Coronavirus

[BillyStubbsTears]

Does anyone actually believe that Cummings never spoke to Johnson before vanishing for a fortnight?

Really?

Remember, Johnson was self-isolating at the time, but wasn't seriously ill. And Cummings, who works with him like an organ grinder and a monkey, dealing with him multiple times every day, just upped and left without a word?

Really?

[BillyStubbsTears]

Oh dear.

Another lie slipped into the Cumgate briefing today.

https://twitter.com/jwiechers/status/1264953956758884354

[BillyStubbsTears]

And there was the other bit of mendaciousness. He said that the media had said he was against a lockdown when he wasn't. He said he had been pushing for a lockdown.

Now, the reports are that he WAS indeed pushing for a lockdown. From around 20 March, by which time EVERYONE knew that is where we were heading.

That's not really the point. In fact it is not the point in any way whatsoever.

The point is, what was Cummings pushing for in late February and early March, when we could have saved tens of thousands of lives if we had locked down, but the reports are that he was resisting that and pushing for Herd Immunity.

[SydneyRover]

bst

''Sir Roger Gale, the senior Tory backbencher said that Cummings is a civil servant. If he didn't want to bother the PM with checking if it was OK to drive to Durham, he should have spoken to the Head of the Civil Service to see what measures could be taken. But he didn't. Gale said it was a sign of Cummings' arrogance that he consulted no-one, just decided for himself how to interpret the rules that were put forward as ironclad for everyone else''

So did he take leave did he have a sick note? as a CS you can please yourself what hours and base yourself anywhere in the country, apparently

[SydneyRover]

The Guardian and the Mirror have been chasing this story down for weeks with the PMs office and getting nowhere and the story happens to break on a long weekend.

[SydneyRover]

Summary

Johnson & Cummings are acting like two kids caught behind the bike shed smoking

the excuses are so stupid they should be thrown out just for that

neither has apologised

the lies compound the problem

they hold the country in contempt

[SydneyRover]

I went for a 1/2 hour drive to Barnard Castle 44 miles away, I drove at 88 mph 

[SydneyRover]

This is why you should listen to scientists not politicians

''AAP has a bit more on the new Queensland Covid diagnosis, which is suspected to be linked to the Ruby Princess cruise ship:

A passenger of the Ruby Princess who tested positive to coronavirus is suspected to have carried the “dormant” virus for almost 10 weeks before falling ill.

The woman was diagnosed in Cairns on Monday, taking the total number of Queensland cases to 1057, with just 12 remaining active.

Authorities suspect she is the latest coronavirus case to have carried the inactive virus and become sick weeks after exposure.

Last week another woman in Queensland was diagnosed two months after returning from India.

[drfchound]

No one bothered to ask.
The journalists had had all day to prepare the questions too.

How could they prepare questions before they knew what his story was.?

I thought those people were the cream of journalists ?
Surely one of them might have thought of it.

How the hell do you expect any of them could have pre-planned a question about eye testing.?

I was saying that with them being the cream of the journalists, one of them might have thought to ask the question AFTER his statement.
There was at least half an hour after he mentioned driving to Barnard Castle and them asking questions.
I am surprised that you thought otherwise.

[Donnywolf]

They also might have asked (reasonably) that the Govt trumpeted the message :

STAY HOME

PROTECT NHS

SAVE LIVES

Thats all I honestly thought it was - that was it - hook line and sinker

However they keep now saying things like well we had the rules but also alongside that were the "explanations / exceptions / discretions" and Cummings and all the little puppet yes man keep going back and back to that BUT who knew such a document existed ?

[Donnywolf]

 
I didnt - was there such a thing ? Was it in Johnsons Letter I got a week or so ago

[Jonathan]

Why does anybody need the journalists to drill down further into the Barnard Castle explanation to convince them it’s not true? What more would you need to know?

[drfchound]

I would have thought that it was the proper thing to do, for clarity of course.

[SydneyRover]

but he said it himself hound do you think he's a liar?

[Jonathan]

I would have thought that it was the proper thing to do, for clarity of course.

What more clarity do you need to be able to judge it on its merit? Seriously?

[Donnywolf]

None at all.

Its tribal (as Piers Morgan says) and for me he has gone beyond the spirit of the Lockdown we were all mostly following for his own means and is now weaseling out aided and abeted by liar Johnson

I will throw in my "understanding of what happened" all my own opinion

They wanted to go to Durham to see his parents

He and Wife hatched a plan - whereby she would say she had potential symptoms

She rang "on cue" on the Friday and he told Johnson he was off to self isolate (perhaps he didnt tell him where)

He drove the A1 - 260 miles and he stopped at least once for a pee for the kid or to add fuel to a thirsty car - probably both at the same time

He met his parents (it was rumoured to be his Mothers Birthday) probably at a social distance (give him some credit as they are in at risk age group)

They stay largely put but then on April 12 (his Wifes Birthday according to Wikipedia) he drove to Barnard Castle and stayed as long as he wanted to and was recognised by member of Public

When his "break" was over he drove back to London stopping for Pees / Fuel possibly as above

At no time did he his Wife or Kid have Coronavirus and as such they could only have picked it up - NOT given it out

Who's to say I am not too far from the truth ? In fact my version may be closer to the truth that his

(To quote my fav ad Aviva - I dont know - NOBODY knows)

[IDM]

By his own admission, Cummings breached the self isolation rules whilst under lockdown, when he drove (but his wife’s article described him as in bed for how many days?) to the hospital to collect his wife and child.

Yet his excuse to be at his family estate was to have the potential for childcare - quoting the exceptions to the rules.

So why didn’t one of the family drive to the hospital.?

And Hound, you need to address your questions to the journalists.  I have no idea why they didn’t think immediately to ask such questions - perhaps they just didn’t spring to mind immediately.  My thought on the hospital drive didn’t occur until several hours later.

[SydneyRover]

And there's more once, once ensconced at his parents home he should not have driven back, just becasue you have broken the law on the first leg of the journey in doesn't give you a get out of jail  card for the return trip.

[drfchound]

I would have thought that it was the proper thing to do, for clarity of course.

What more clarity do you need to be able to judge it on its merit? Seriously?

Seriously, I have already said I thought it was dodgy.

[Filo]

First junior minister resigns over Cummings lies Douglas Ross

[IDM]

All the defence I am seeing of Cummings is not taking into account the terrible perception of this issue in the public, and no recognition that the population were unaware of the exceptions.  The bigger issue now is the reduced credibility of any message or rules the government puts out - which could now result in more infections and more deaths.!

[BiargeBob]

When my grandchildren are ill I tell their parents leave them at home we will come to you. Simple.

[SydneyRover]

First junior minister resigns over Cummings lies Douglas Ross

He's a man of integrity

''As a father myself, my instinct is to always do what is best for my son and wife. We have been fortunate not to have caught this awful virus but if we did, we are prepared to follow the government advice and stay at home to contain this virus.

While the intentions may have been well meaning, the reaction to this news shows that Mr Cummings interpretation of the government advice was not shared by the vast majority of people who have done as the government asked.

“I have constituents who didn’t get to say goodbye to loved ones; families who didn’t visit sick relatives because they followed the guidance of the government. I cannot in good faith tell them they were all wrong and one senior advisor to the government was right.”''

[EasyforDennis]

They also might have asked (reasonably) that the Govt trumpeted the message :

STAY HOME

PROTECT NHS

SAVE LIVES

Thats all I honestly thought it was - that was it - hook line and sinker

However they keep now saying things like well we had the rules but also alongside that were the "explanations / exceptions / discretions" and Cummings and all the little puppet yes man keep going back and back to that BUT who knew such a document existed ?

I think "Please check the small print" should have been added to the message.

[Jonathan]

I want this story to go away. It’s detracting from, and damaging to, the national effort. What isn’t helping is the continuing attempt to cover it up and explain it away. It worries me that that was the immediate instinct of the government. If they admitted there had been a breach right at the start, dealt with it internally, reiterated the importance of setting the right example and sought to move on then they could have retained some credibility. But now they’ve dug themselves into this embarrassing position of trying to defend the indefensible, and undermined their whole position. I don’t know how they get out of this from here. But we all need them to. This cannot be used to justify everyone just doing what they want, and that I’m afraid is the message they’re sending out by endorsing this nonsense.

What a mess.

[SydneyRover]

I agree Jonathan, the crime was bad but the reaction is a whole lot worse and it begs the question if they are willing to lie about this what else is there that they have or will cover up.

They covered up for weeks and then thought is would peter out over the long weekend, if he had resigned all those weeks ago it would be dead and buried by now.

[DonnyOsmond]

https://twitter.com/BalancePowerUK/status/1265212091209854977?s=19

[SydneyRover]

This is info on SPADs

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special_adviser_(UK)

[SydneyRover]

Tory MP William Wragg, chairman of the influential Commons Public Administration and Constitutional Affairs select committee, has added his name of to a growing list of Conservatives revolting against Dominic Cummings. He has tweeted this morning:

William Wragg MP
✔
@William_Wragg
We cannot throw away valuable public & political good will any longer. It’s humiliating & degrading to their office to see ministers put out agreed lines in defence of an advisor. This is a time of national emergency and our focus must be unrelenting. We owe it to the nation.

3,268
7:35 PM - May 26, 2020

[Copps is Magic]

I agree with Gove, personally. When I need to test my eyes, I go out flinging an aluminium box around the roads at 60km an hour. Just to make sure.

https://www.lbc.co.uk/radio/presenters/nick-ferrari/michael-gove-driving-eyesight-cummings-baranard/?fbclid=IwAR0I5S0SkEE6SWHtlrmeBEXSPJoiy2kbNhM2n6kmUODKx5Lc4e9XalsFjS4