Why are people concerned about Boris Johnson's phone?

Over the last few days, people have been expressing concerns about Boris Johnson's phone.

The hashtag #borisjohnsonsphone has trended on Twitter and many public figures including Alistair Campbell have said the issue should be discussed more in the media, rather than other stories not least the Huw Edwards affair.

But what is so special about the former PM's phone?

Well, it contains WhatsApp messages sent to and by Johnson before May 2021.

These messages were meant to be handed over to the Covid inquiry but they haven't been as it was turned off and locked away following a security breach when it was revealed his phone number had been publically available for 15 years.

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Inquiry chair Baroness Hallett had requested access to WhatsApp messages on Johnson's devices from a group chat set up to discuss the pandemic response.

She also asked to see WhatsApp messages he exchanged with a host of politicians, including then-Chancellor Rishi Sunak, as well as various civil servants, including the UK's top civil servant Simon Case.

Johnson said he was "more than happy" for the inquiry to see his unredacted messages. The former prime minister previously said he had handed over WhatsApp messages, diaries and personal notebooks to the Cabinet Office in unredacted form.

As usual, everything concerning Johnson is a complete palava.

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