The Cummings Effect - are people rebelling?

I agree with Tinny.

People were out on the beaches and roaming around the countryside weeks before the news about Cummings broke. It was a good excuse for some people to finally say enough is enough but Cummings isn't the reason. Most people can make their own minds up. The only reason I stuck lockdown out was out of love and concern for my family. I didn't want to give them anything and they didn't want me to get anything. I do think that the reason lockdown eased as quickly as it did was to make use of the people who were mixing already and see if herd immunity works. Fingers crossed it does!

His wife wrote that long article about how ill Dominic C was, saying the both had the covid. She gave the impression they were in their London home, made no mention of the drive to Durham. She didn't mention calling an ambulance or spending the night in hospital in the NE with their 4 year old. It's all very disingenuous (well thats a kind way of describing it).
AGAA4, it certainly sounds as though as well as the eye test, the trip to Barnard Castle was a birthday jolly for his wife.

Iam64. I understand. I am annoyed about what he did and that he got away with it.

WW2. It is suspicious isn't it? A jolly for the wife's birthday?

AGAA4

According to theSpectator Article they had coved.

It’s all lies isn’t it?

They simply went away for a fortnights jolly.

SorryAGAA4 , I’m so cross I can’t stop ranting ??

Iam64. That is what I have been saying since my OP. Cummings broke many lockdown rules and has been irresponsible in the extreme.

AGAA4 - he knew his wife had covid. He went home to see her, then returned to work at Downing Street. He must have known he could be taking the virus back there with him.
Not content with this, they put a vulnerable 4 year old in their car and drove almost 300 miles. The risk of a puncture, a minor accident or any of the other things that can occur during a long journey like that should have led them not to risk infecting emergency responders, garage staff, members of the public - in fact, the risk of spreading the disease in their wake.
The vast majority of us were doing exactly what the government asked us to do. Following the guidelines Cummings helped to write. The actions of Mr C and his wife can't be justified.

He was supposed to isolate.

But Cummings did know his wife had Covid! that was why he did what he did.

You don't know that for sure AGA, and neither do they.

Papilionem. Not excusing their actions but as far as I know none of those people took Covid 19 with them when they travelled putting the lives of other people at risk.

Financial Times
@FinancialTimes

Opinion: At least 1m people in Britain are estimated to have lost their jobs since March. Dominic Cummings is not one of them. That’s all you need to know about this week in British politics

Papilionem; but they weren't breaking rules that they, themselves have instigated. And Two of the people you mention have resigned. Ian Blackford just travelled back from attending parliament and then self isolated for 14 days. Kinnock was actually in the area anyway I believe [I could be wrong] and didn't exactly cover it up. Don't see why a more worthy reason is breaking the rule of staying at home and self isolating when a member of the family has covid. This, at a time when test trace isolate depends on people self isolating immediately if they get the phone call telling them to do so.

I am neithera lover nor a hater of Dominic Cummings and I realise I'm in the minority here but I do feel he has been unfairly targeted for whatever reason.When people say 'because of the actions of one man'.That is not true. There are several high profile individuals who have broken the rules and I would say DC had a more worthy reason.·IanBlackford SNP MP travelled 600 miles to the Isle of Skye·MarkWoolhouse advisor to the Scottish Government went to hisholiday home in the Hebrides·TahirAlli MP went to a funeral of 100 people·Kevan Jones MP attended abirthday party·ProfessorNeil Fergusonresearch scientist who advised on lockdown admitted his lover tohis house·Dr CatherineCalderwoodScotland’s chief medical officertwice visited her holidayhome·Robert JenrickMP travelled150 miles to visit his parents·Stephen Kinnock MP travelled 100miles to celebrate his father's birthdayThese people have not been villifiedin the same way.

varian; thanks yet again for the clip of Cummings FIL discussing eugenics. For some reason I can't post links any more and I wanted to post that one. Strange family in that, if my memory is correct Earl Grey was a liberal reformer [?]. The post Cummingsgate sighting of Cummings at Wooler that has been discredited is bothering me as it's very close to Chillingham and people in that area would know the family well. I know for a fact that 'our friends in the north' [at least, the ones that we've spoken to recently] are furious with Cummings behaviour. We met Wakefield many years ago and just thought he was a bonkers eccentric type; never dreamt that people like that would be pulling the governmental strings one day. Scary times even without the pandemic.

But HollyMolly he has been publicly shamed and it not made damned bit of difference! That makes it all worse. He's just not bothered about us little people.

How strongly I disagree with your comment. It is up to people who advise us to respect the instructions they give and set an example. This Cummings was sitting on the advisory body SAGE as well as directing the Prime Minister on how to cope with the Covid pandemic. He should be ashamed and if he isn't, he should be publicly shamed.

the country estate part-owned by Cummings, where he does his partially sighted driving tests, is roughly half way between two famous pubs, the Cock of the North & the Honest Lawyer.

I'm afraid that Campbell is making up those County Durham pals or it's a very long time since they've been near Durham City. Though it is a lovely and very applicable little story.

Sadly, the Cock of the North was demolished 15, maybe 20, years ago and is now a big block of apartments.

The Honest Lawyer is still there, though. (But I'm sure it used to be called something different 30 years ago...)

Cummings FIL's horses name says it all really Odious man...I really hate these entitled superior types .He's clearly living in the wrong century.I'd happily exchnge a million or more like him for one Barak Obama

It obviously been much more difficult for those living in flats with no outside space ad they should be helped to get an hours worth of fresh air and exercise each day. However those with gardens should, as far as possible, stay put.

This could have been avoided if we had had a competent government which issued lock-down instructions weeks earlier - but sadly at that time BJ was stupidly boasting about shaking hands with covid patients.

If we don’t gradually come out of lockdown now we will have no life worth living anyway with a destroyed economy. I know several elderly people that have started going out because they say they have had enough and their life is so miserable that they don’t want to spend their last bit trapped in their homes. One lady said she was taken to a garden centre - with very few shoppers - and all the way said, ‘ look trees, flowers ‘ etc. It’s abnormal for humans to be trapped indoors that obviously some start to rebel BUT in my area, they are still distancing when out.

I do not believe that restrictions should have been released until the "r" value was around 0.5.

It should be obvious that any relaxation of restrictions will result in a rise in "r".

I believe that relaxation measures should be gradually allowed so that the rise in "r" resulting could be assessed.

Although the government are describing the proposed relaxation as gradual, the "r" value is so close to 1 that we will have to be very lucky to avoid it increasing above 1, which would lead to another rise in the incidence of covid 219.

Because this country was so late in responding to the pandemic, and everything was done too late, we probably need a longer spell in lockdown to drive down the "r" value before we can move on in the way other countries have done.

.Olliebeak. I agree. This easing of lockdown is a distraction from the Cummings problem.

Scientists are saying that we are no further on than we were 3 weeks ago with the R number around 1. The virus hasn't gone away and they say cases are bound to rise as we all start to go out more.

I think BJ and DC think everyone will forget and move on now we have been allowed out a bit more. We are being treated like children.

Another reason to keep Cummings. Johnson can’t do a no deal on his own. The wealthy elite are banking on Cummings to get them a no deal. I wonder how much money associates of Johnson have invested in such an outcome.

Corruption, corruption, all is corruption.