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UK coronavirus live: No 10 accused of trying to cover up Cummings lockdown breach - latest updates UK coronavirus live: No 10 accused of trying to cover up Cummings lockdown breach - latest updates
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Pressure for prime minister’s top adviser to go follows report he breached lockdown rules in March. Follow the latest developments as they happenPressure for prime minister’s top adviser to go follows report he breached lockdown rules in March. Follow the latest developments as they happen
So, erm, was it permissible to travel for help with childcare under the lockdown rules? I had not thought so, but the government’s defence of Dominic Cummings – who is claimed to have respected the guidelines despite driving 260 miles with suspected coronavirus – raises questions that millions of people will want clarifying. Were we all mistaken? What did stay home, save lives, protect the NHS actually mean? The Scottish National party has written to the prime minister and the head of the civil service calling for an investigation into Dominic Cummings’ “rule-breaking and the Tory government’s cover-up”.
In the letter to Mark Sedwill and Boris Johnson, the party’s leader in Westminster Ian Blackford said he was calling for Cummings to be sacked.
He asked for the following questions to be answered:
When did Johnson first find out about Cummings’ trip to Durham and the police investigation into the rule-breaking incident?
Did anyone in the UK government sanction the rule-breaking incident?
Why was Cummings not sacked or asked to resign at the time?
What role did Johnson play in the decision to cover up the incident by keeping the public in the dark for eight weeks until the story was broken by a newspaper?
In a statement, Blackford said:
Here is video of Cummings emerging from his house earlier today (see 12.44pm). It will be for others to characterise his demeanour, but he seems fairly unrepentant and even appears to be making light of his own transgressions.
Dominic Cummings did not follow the advice which the Conservative party just posted on their Facebook account, according to the BBC’s Lewis Goodall.
And there are serious questions over whether the prime minister’s top aide sought to prevent the virus spreading from household to household, as the Guardian’s former deputy editor Paul Johnson highlights.
With demands growing for Boris Johnson to sack his chief aide, Downing Street finally went public to defend Dominic Cummings on Saturday – after seven weeks of failing to provide on-the-record explanations about his whereabouts – but the explanation provided appears to leave fundamental questions unanswered, as my colleagues report:
So, erm, was it permissible to travel for help with childcare under the lockdown rules? I had not thought so, but the government’s defence of Dominic Cummings – who is claimed to have respected the guidelines despite driving 260 miles with suspected coronavirus – raises questions that millions of people will want clarifying. Were we all mistaken? What did “stay home, save lives, protect the NHS” actually mean?
When Boris Johnson introduced the UK lockdown he gave “a very simple instruction - you must stay at home”.When Boris Johnson introduced the UK lockdown he gave “a very simple instruction - you must stay at home”.
The rules, announced in a speech on March 23, stated that people would only be allowed to leave the house for limited purposes. The rules, announced in a speech on 23 March, stated that people would only be allowed to leave the house for limited purposes.
These were shopping for basics, one form of exercise a day, travelling to and from work, but only where absolutely necessary, and medical needs.These were shopping for basics, one form of exercise a day, travelling to and from work, but only where absolutely necessary, and medical needs.
The government’s guidance on circumstances in which a person may leave their home stated:The government’s guidance on circumstances in which a person may leave their home stated:
For work, where you cannot work at home.For work, where you cannot work at home.
Going to shops that are permitted to be open - to get things like food and medicine.Going to shops that are permitted to be open - to get things like food and medicine.
To exercise or spend time outdoors.To exercise or spend time outdoors.
Any medical need, including to donate blood, avoid illness or injury, escape risk of harm, or to provide care or help to a vulnerable person.Any medical need, including to donate blood, avoid illness or injury, escape risk of harm, or to provide care or help to a vulnerable person.
No mention was made of childcare in the published guidance. Reinforcing the message, Johnson said people should not meet family members who do not live with them.No mention was made of childcare in the published guidance. Reinforcing the message, Johnson said people should not meet family members who do not live with them.
The rule on meeting family was unequivocal:The rule on meeting family was unequivocal:
Only in exceptional circumstances were people allowed to attend relatives’ addresses; for example, to drop off food or medicine to their door.Only in exceptional circumstances were people allowed to attend relatives’ addresses; for example, to drop off food or medicine to their door.
However Dr Jenny Harries said at the daily Downing Street press briefing on 24 March that a small child could be considered “vulnerable”. However, Dr Jenny Harries said at the daily Downing Street press briefing on 24 March that a small child could be considered “vulnerable”.
Even now the lockdown rules have been relaxed slightly, visiting friends or family in their own homes is still off limits. The current guidance states: “As with before, you cannot visit friends and family in their homes.”Even now the lockdown rules have been relaxed slightly, visiting friends or family in their own homes is still off limits. The current guidance states: “As with before, you cannot visit friends and family in their homes.”
The government guidance also said:The government guidance also said:
The government’s guidance on self-isolation stated:The government’s guidance on self-isolation stated:
Boris Johnson is facing calls, led vociferously by former Mirror editor Piers Morgan, to front the daily coronavirus briefing later today.Boris Johnson is facing calls, led vociferously by former Mirror editor Piers Morgan, to front the daily coronavirus briefing later today.
Whoever gives the press conference will undoubtedly face some awkward questions and it will be interesting to see whether they stick to the suggestion Cummings and his family travelling north was essential.Whoever gives the press conference will undoubtedly face some awkward questions and it will be interesting to see whether they stick to the suggestion Cummings and his family travelling north was essential.
The health secretary Matt Hancock, who himself contracted Covid-19 and isolated for a week, is the latest cabinet minister to come out in support of parents stricken with coronavirus seeking childcare for their children.The health secretary Matt Hancock, who himself contracted Covid-19 and isolated for a week, is the latest cabinet minister to come out in support of parents stricken with coronavirus seeking childcare for their children.
Hancock’s intervention comes after he said earlier this month he would back the police in any action they wish to take over Prof Neil Ferguson breaking social distancing rules by having a woman visit him at his home.Hancock’s intervention comes after he said earlier this month he would back the police in any action they wish to take over Prof Neil Ferguson breaking social distancing rules by having a woman visit him at his home.
Unsurprisingly, the government’s attempts to defend Cummings – and the apparent hypocrisy exhibited in doing so – are causing growing anger among cross-party politicians.Unsurprisingly, the government’s attempts to defend Cummings – and the apparent hypocrisy exhibited in doing so – are causing growing anger among cross-party politicians.
Amid calls for his resignation after he was found to have travelled 264 miles across the country days after lockdown was imposed with his wife and child while symptomatic, Dominic Cummings has been snapped outside his home gesturing to members of the media to observe social distancing guidelines. Yes, really.Amid calls for his resignation after he was found to have travelled 264 miles across the country days after lockdown was imposed with his wife and child while symptomatic, Dominic Cummings has been snapped outside his home gesturing to members of the media to observe social distancing guidelines. Yes, really.
Cummings has insisted, “I behaved reasonably and legally” and when asked by reporters if his trip to Durham during lockdown looked good, said:Cummings has insisted, “I behaved reasonably and legally” and when asked by reporters if his trip to Durham during lockdown looked good, said:
The suggestion that Cummings was “doing the right thing” echoed the defences issued on Twitter from senior cabinet ministers including Michael Gove and Dominic Raab (see 11.08am.).The suggestion that Cummings was “doing the right thing” echoed the defences issued on Twitter from senior cabinet ministers including Michael Gove and Dominic Raab (see 11.08am.).
The justification that breaching the lockdown rules was legitimate as it was done out of care for his wife and child has infuriated members of the public. So many people, as is pointed out by the i’s Jane Merrick, the Indy’s Ashley Cowburn and others, abided by the rules “with great inconvenience, difficulty and sadness” and are now being told that if they cared for their loved ones they would have done the same.The justification that breaching the lockdown rules was legitimate as it was done out of care for his wife and child has infuriated members of the public. So many people, as is pointed out by the i’s Jane Merrick, the Indy’s Ashley Cowburn and others, abided by the rules “with great inconvenience, difficulty and sadness” and are now being told that if they cared for their loved ones they would have done the same.
Here is a timeline of the key events around Boris Johnson’s key adviser displaying coronavirus symptoms and journeying to County Durham during lockdown.Here is a timeline of the key events around Boris Johnson’s key adviser displaying coronavirus symptoms and journeying to County Durham during lockdown.
Downing Street’s statement on Dominic Cummings’ journey to Durham “raises more questions than it answers”, Labour has said.Downing Street’s statement on Dominic Cummings’ journey to Durham “raises more questions than it answers”, Labour has said.
In a statement, a Labour spokesman said:In a statement, a Labour spokesman said:
Despite senior cabinet ministers publicly backing Dominic Cummings’ reasoning for supposedly breaching lockdown rules (see 11.08am.), there are suggestions that Cummings will find few defenders in the parliamentary Conservative party.
One Tory MP told the Guardian’s north of England editor, Helen Pidd, that Cummings “isn’t popular with most Tory MPs”, adding:
This is from the FT’s Jim Pickard
Pickard also tweeted on Friday:
Downing Street is facing accusations of a cover-up over Dominic Cummings’ trip to Durham at the height of the national lockdown, amid reports that No 10 knew he made the 264-mile journey after developing symptoms of coronavirus, Matthew Weaver writes.
Opposition parties have called for the prime minister to sack his chief adviser over the apparent lockdown breach, which was revealed in an investigation by the Guardian and the Mirror.
Downing Street repeatedly refused to answer questions from the Guardian over a number of weeks, before breaking its silence on Saturday to offer the following explanation for Cummings’ movements:
Durham police said on Friday that officers had “explained to the family the [lockdown] guidelines”.
The BBC reported that an anonymous source close to Cummings had claimed that a “small number of people in No 10 knew that Cummings had gone to Durham”, prompting opposition MPs to accuse Downing Street of trying to suppress the story.
Full report here:
The acting Durham police and crime commissioner, Steve White has issued an official statement in which he said Dominic Cummings’ travelling to Durham when known to be infected was “most unwise”. The statement reads:
No 10 earlier put out a statement backing Cummings (see 10.25am), which said:
My colleague Matthew Weaver wrote on Friday, “When asked if Cummings had been warned [by police] about breaching the lockdown, a spokesman for Durham Constabulary said:
A number of Conservative politicians, including senior cabinet ministers, have defended Dominic Cummings’ actions on Twitter this morning.
Downing Street has said Cummings believes he “behaved reasonably and legally” when travelling from his London home to Country Durham during the lockdown (see 10.25am.).
Michael Gove, the Cabinet Office minister, said it was “not a crime” to care for your wife and child.
The first secretary of state, Dominic Raab, said an explanation had been provided and that the issue of a sick couple needing help with childcare was being “politicised”.
Rishi Sunak, the chancellor, tweeted that “trying to score political points” against somebody “taking care of your wife and young child” was not reasonable:
And the chair of the Commons education committee, Robert Halfon, wrote:
Britons abiding by the government’s lockdown measures have slammed the “hypocrisy” of the prime minister’s chief adviser following reports he travelled to his parents’ home despite coronavirus travel restrictions.
Police have confirmed they attended a property in County Durham after it emerged that Dominic Cummings travelled more than 260 miles from his London home during the lockdown Boris Johnson had just announced with his wife and child, while the former was suspected to have contracted the virus.
Members of the public are piling pressure on Downing Street to sack him.
Some Twitter users said they had not left their home to see their family since February, while others said the reports were making their “blood boil”.
One user, who gave his name as Tony, tweeted that he was unable to hug his father at his mother’s funeral, saying he was “frankly appalled”. He said:
Another user, Katie Hall from Yorkshire, said:
The public has been asked to follow restrictions since they were brought in on 23 March, which has kept many people apart from loved ones for months.
User Rachel Kerry, tweeted:
Another user, Johanna Saunders, wrote:
Others hit out at the fact that Cummings displayed coronavirus symptoms “over the weekend” of 28 March, and questioned why the public should continue following restrictions.
User Nat Reed tweeted:
In more upbeat news, the children’s author Michael Rosen has left intensive care after eight weeks in hospital, and continues his recovery on the ward.
His wife, Emma-Louise Williams, has been updating fans on the former children’s laureate’s condition on Twitter, though she has not confirmed if his condition is related to Covid-19.
Amid accusations from Opposition MPs of a cover-up about what was known by whom about Dominic Cummings’ lockdown travels and calls for the top aide to resign, No 10 has issued its first official response, maintaining that “his actions were in line with coronavirus guidelines” and Cummings “believes he acted legally and responsibly”.
This is from the Mirror’s Pippa Crerar, who broke the story with the Guardian’s Matthew Weaver
Police have confirmed they attended a property in County Durham after it emerged that Cummings, Boris Johnson’s chief adviser, travelled more than 260 miles from his London home during the lockdown.
And this is from the BBC’s Nick Robinson
Here is some reaction from Twitter about the Dominic Cummings story
From the FT’s Jim Pickard
A thread from ITV’s Robert Peston
A thread from HuffPost’s Paul Waugh
From Business Insider’s Adam Bienkov
Ian Blackford, the SNP’s Westminster leader, said the prime minister had “serious questions” to answer regarding what he knew about Dominic Cummings’ lockdown trip to Country Durham.
Speaking to BBC Radio 4’s Today programme, Blackford said:
He branded the alleged actions the “height of irresponsibility for someone to think this is a reasonable course of action”, and added:
Blackford said Cummings’ alleged actions were “more serious breaches” than rule-breaking carried out by UK government adviser Prof Neil Ferguson and Scotland’s former chief medical officer Catherine Calderwood, both of whom resigned for their breaches.
Good morning. Boris Johnson is facing mounting pressure to sack his closest aide following reports he breached lockdown rules in March.
A joint investigation by the Guardian and Mirror newspapers revealed that police spoke to Dominic Cummings, the prime minister’s key adviser, after he visited his parents’ home in Durham, 264 miles from his London home while he had coronavirus symptoms in late March.
Cummings and his wife, who was also experiencing symptoms, stayed with his parents while self-isolating. A source close to Cummings denied a breach of the coronavirus rules to the BBC, saying the couple needed childcare help. They added that the couple had stayed in a separate building at the property.
Only days earlier, the government had told the public to avoid all non-essential travel, to not meet family members who do not live with them, and to stay at home – with fines in places for those who broke the rules – and both Boris Johnson and the health secretary, Matt Hancock, had tested positive for Covid-19. Anyone with coronavirus symptoms was also instructed to self-isolate at home and not to leave the house for seven days - even for essential supplies. The prime minister had also said clearly that children should not be left with grandparents or older relatives “who may be particularly vulnerable or fall into some of the vulnerable groups”.
Labour demanded No 10 “to provide a very swift explanation for his actions”. The party’s vice chair, Tulip Sadiq, said:
The acting leader of the Liberal Democrats, Ed Davey, tweeted:
And Ian Blackford, the Scottish National party’s Westminster leader, said:
But a source close to Cummings said there is “zero chance” he will resign.
Cummings is the latest high-profile figure to have broken the government’s lockdown rules. Prof Neil Ferguson, whose epidemiological modelling helped shape the lockdown policy, resigned in early May when it was revealed that he flouted the rules to receive visits from his lover at his home. And Scotland’s chief medical officer, Catherine Calderwood, had to go after it emerged in early April that she visited her second home twice despite her own advice to the public to avoid all non-essential travel.
I’ll be bringing you all the latest UK developments on the coronavirus pandemic throughout the day, so please feel free to get in touch with any news tips, advice, comments or suggestions.
Email: lucy.campbell@theguardian.comTwitter: @lucy_campbell_