HEALTH Minister Eluned Morgan has said she is “prepared to apologise” for any failings made by the Welsh Government during the Covid-19 pandemic.

Ms Morgan was speaking at a Welsh Government briefing on Tuesday about the country’s vaccination programme when she responded to questions from journalists about the report published by MPs on the UK Government’s coronavirus response.

Asked about the Duchy of Lancaster Stephen Barclay’s refusal to apologise for policy failings that led to deaths, Ms Morgan said: “I never really understood why politicians have such a problem in apologising.

“And so yes, of course I’m prepared to apologise to all of those who have suffered during the pandemic.

“This was a new disease that we’ve never seen before. None of us knew how it was going to impact, none of us knew how it was going to spread, none of us had any idea of the fact that it could be spread even without showing any symptoms.

“Of course we had a huge amount to learn and I’m pleased to say that we have learned over the course of the pandemic.

"Of course, we’ve made some mistakes at the beginning of that process because of the lack of information and data, and knowledge that we have now have learned, and of course, I think we have a duty and responsibility to say sorry to people where we’ve made mistakes.”