The World Health Organization (WHO) has a mandate to establish global health policy, coordinate global responses to health emergencies, and combat disease.

But just how well has it performed in relation to Covid-19? With a US$2 billion annual budget could it have done better? Did it make the right decisions? Should it have intervened faster and firmer? Indeed, had it intervened in China earlier could the whole pandemic have been averted?

In this new video from the Institute of Economic Affairs, Patrick Basham, founding Director of the Democracy Institute, details the shortcomings of the United Nations’ public health agency – and puts forward radical proposals for protecting global health in future.