in the last few minutes it's been
revealed that Boris Johnson's senior
adviser Dominic Cummings will make a
public statement and take questions
later this afternoon it comes amid
growing calls for his resignation over
claims he broke the government's own
lockdown guidelines the Prime Minister
is holding a cabinet meeting in Downing
Street right now it's scheduled to be
looking at further ways of easing the
coronavirus lockdown restrictions but
Boris Johnson is facing a revolt from
MPs within his own party as well as
criticism from across the political
spectrum following his decision to back
his most senior and most trusted aide
our political correspondent Jessica
Parker reports the questions keep coming
and can't easily be waved away Boris
Johnson strongly backed his chief aide
last night saying Dominic Cummings had
acted legally with integrity the Prime
Minister appearing to consider the
matter closed
in terms of them breaking the rules and
therefore breaking the law Dominic
Cummings assess how absolutely clearly
and that's absolutely categorically the
you know he didn't break the rules and
he didn't break the law this is you know
for prime ministers right to be asking
those questions right to be asking for
those assurances amid lockdown mr.
Cummings travelled in late March from
London to County Durham with his wife
who had covered symptoms and their young
son to self isolate on the family farm
in case they needed help with child care
then was there later a day out 30 miles
down the road at Barnard Castle Durham's
acting police and crime Commissioner has
requested that the facts be investigated
coming out last night to back his
advisor I think he followed the
instincts of every father and every
parent and I do not mark him down for
that but a number of conservative MPs
now want an investigation others for
Dominic Cummings to go my inbox is
absolutely bloated with debt with white
anger with real fury from constituents
of across the political spectrum from
across the
our different professions and jobs in
both Dorset absolutely furious waiting
for developments it's now understood mr.
Cummings will make a public statement
later take questions but opposition
parties have been calling on the Prime
Minister to sack him Wallis Johnson is
putting his political interests ahead of
the public interest and when trust in a
public health message and public health
advice is as important as it is right
now the consequences of that could be
very serious Michael Carter from Surry
staying home for health reasons didn't
get to see his mother before she died
and says he feels insulted it looks as
if it's the old boys club looking after
each other now that's when it feels like
and some make rules for the British
public to follow and then to break them
or to deceive people which is more so
what he's done is unacceptable at a
virtual meeting today the cabinet's
looking at the next steps out of
lockdown as decisions are made behind
this door public trust a crucial
commodity Jessica Parker BBC news so in
a highly unusual step the Prime
Minister's senior adviser Dominic
Cummings is going to make a public
statement this afternoon
our chief bit of corresponding is in
Downing Street for us now and what are
we expecting him to say well we don't
know how he's gonna do this we know it's
a public statement and he will also take
questions I think this is a real
acknowledgement that things have not
been handled well that what the Prime
Minister did yesterday coming out and
defending his advisor actually might
have made things worse a lot of
Conservative MPs concerned that people
are questioning the judgment of the
Prime Minister by clinging on to his
advisor now I think the anger from
Conservative MP some of them going
public because they in turn are hearing
the anger from their constituents that
even if Dominic Cummings didn't break
the law he undermined the government's
message he didn't behave in the same way
as millions of other people have done so
this feels like a last and potentially
very risky and dramatic way of trying to
save Dominic Cummings job Vicky thank
you very much
well Darrin's acting police crime
commence Commissioner has written as the
forces chief constable calling an
officer's to establish whether mr.
Cummings did breach the law I'm the
first correspond Daniel Sandford is here
with me now so what happens next well
Steve light has asked the chief
constable Joe Farrell to establish the
facts so that as he puts it the people
of Durham can be satisfied that the
police force are continuing to do their
job independent of governments clearly
what the force does in terms of the
resources put into it is a key question
now because it would be disproportionate
to put huge amounts of resource since it
like into a murder inquiry
but are there simple things that can be
done like checking a NPR cameras for the
movements of the car talking to those
witnesses who's been dominant cuts his
scene Dominic Cummings speak to normally
comes himself that could be done to
establish quickly the set of facts for
what is in the end a breach of Health
Regulations it's not a major crime but
it also but of course it is something
that is of great concern at the moment
to people right across the country
including some Tory MPs so that's why
Steve White is quite keen that the facts
as much as the force can establish them
get established Daniel thanks very much