It might take time, but it's possible for the government to admit its mistakes. In the UK, some MPs have condemned the initial scientific-led response to the pandemic and successfully called for a public enquiry which is now underway.
That’s great to hear, though I’m not too optimistic about what will actually be done.
Here in Germany there is no chance of any form of such investigations. It’s still at the stage where any form of criticism is labeled as “far right” by the media block.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-58876089
https://covid19.public-inquiry.uk/
There is no doubt that a mixture of political and scientific lessons will be applied in the response to the next pandemic.