If you were annoyed at Dominic Cummings before

[NoMoreReluctantCustodians]

How has his performance in the rose garden affected your opinion?

YANBU it's made things worse
YABU its cleared things up for me

Michael Gove said on Today this morning that DC drove to BC, walked a few yards and sat on a park bench for a while.
I’ve mostly been indoors, it’s possible I’m losing the plot, but weren’t people being prevented from sitting on park benches, moved on by police and in some cases fined if they were bolshy, in April? And wasn’t DC one of the team that compiled these rules?

So wouldn’t that be yet another breach?

I haven't seen it so far, might watch it. I've got over Dominic Cummings by now anyway, hopefully will not remember who he is in a few months (doubt he'll remember me either :-). I like rose gardens, though.

I think the vitriol directed at Cummings hides a lot of displaced guilt about people's own lockdown infractions. He has become a collective scapegoat.

The opposite of this BertiesLanding, I've seen complete adherence to the rules, from some of the most deprived people in society, even while their relatives were sick or dying from COVID. I feel fury that the government is telling us we were all idiots for thinking we had to abide by the stay home, save lives message when we could have used our 'instincts'.

Talk about a Grimm Fairy Story, I’ve never heard so much tosh in all my life! Laughable excuses and I sincerely hope the press keep digging his ditch for him.

Just to add. I’m sure he really does believe his circumstances are exceptional though. That’s what arrogant people always think

im wondering this- and a lot of people seem to sympathise- theyre like; 'but he has a vulnerable child'
huh? his child has two (multimillionaire) parents, no siblings- it surely doesnt get much less vulnerable than that!?

It gives me no great pleasure that a family has been hounded by the press

A family has not been hounded by the press.

A lying scumbag has been held to account for his actions which contravened the rules that he was involved in making.

He's being investigated by the police and will get a fine if it's decided he was in breach of the law.

I imagine a phone call has already been made to ensure the 'correct' outcome of that investigation.

sunglasses123 we've had second homers here every weekend during lockdown. Sometimes with friends.

When another poster posted something similar, moaning about second homers in lockdown, she/he was absolutely crucified for being a London hating, nosy curtain twitcher.

The hypocrisy is strong in Mumsnet.

Did you see the crowds at Brighton? Those people knocking back the beers, crowding into beauty spots, those are the sorts of people you need to pull up.

You mean the people out after BJ announced we are allowed to sit outside?

I agree that the lack of social distancing is potty but for some reason many seem to think that the government message is not clear and consistent.

I’ve mostly been indoors, it’s possible I’m losing the plot, but weren’t people being prevented from sitting on park benches, moved on by police and in some cases fined if they were bolshy, in April? And wasn’t DC one of the team that compiled these rules? You need to get outside. Go into the fresh air.

Did you see the crowds at Brighton? Those people knocking back the beers, crowding into beauty spots, those are the sorts of people you need to pull up.

why because their fathers dont have blue bell woods the other side of the country to go to?

as for its the same as the others, no- he and catherine calderwood, and neil ferguson created the regulations for the country- and broke them. thats why they resigned. he should to rather than pretend we all misunderstood the rules and when theres a 'vulnerable' child involved we dont comply.

@Chillipeanuts Yes in April you we were told you could be out to exercise but that did not include stopping to sit down. I had seen Police patrolling my local park reminding people who were sitting down of this at the time.

I find it intresting that Boris backed him up by saying his eye sight had deteriorated after covid and he now needs glasses, not something I had ever heard before as a symptom.

so either they both happened to get the same rare to the point of being unheard of symptom, or Boris fed him that line to justify the Barnard Castle day trip. Better to admit to driving when you are unsure you are in a fit state to drive, which amounts to careless driving at the least, than I fancied a day out in a pretty village on my wifes birthday.

Just remembered that he said one of the reasons he took his fame to Durham was that he was worried about leaving his wife and child alone in the house due to behaviour of people outside. Peston later remarked that this was lockdown London- nobody about but if he was about to self isolate for 14 days with her, they wouldn’t be alone.

The hypocrisy is strong in Mumsnet

tbf its unlikely to be the same poster. different poster, different opinions...

His behaviour shows a blatant disregard for the health of people in the North East. His wife and son are quite likely to have contaminated the hospital in Durham. (I know the child’s test was negative, but 30% of negative results are wrong.) As a pp said, he and his wife put their own preferences and convenience before the health and well being of ordinary people. And for nothing: their visit to Durham turned out to be completely unnecessary.

Is he not worried about the behaviour of people at his house now???? If he was he’d resign and he’d be left alone.

@Chillipeanuts. I said exactly the same, the "guidelines" stated at the time, exercise was permitted but not stopping on a bench.
Yet another example of one rule for the elite and another for the rest of us.

I have also emailed Downing Street. Boris wanted to know if we accepted DC story and I definitely don't.

It was a pretence of allowing DC to be questioned without actually allowing any proper questioning or follow-ups a pattern repeated by Boris later in the evening.

I have sympathy for him as a person being hounded and I thought the nervous presentation was good for the cause.
But no, the rest of it is just shoddy.
If his 4 year old can't get from Durham to Barney without needing a wee, how did they do the 4.5 hour journey from London and back? They must have needed to stop.
The whole tale - lack of childcare when his wife has family in London: taking the virus to another area; having a day trip: lying by omission in the Spectator- it's all a load of old bull and we all know it is.but they're not going to do anything. The journalists can carry on asking the questions but what use is it. They just don't care.

I was prepared to give him the benefit of the doubt. If he and Boris apologised and said we should have made it clear that you could travel during your 24 day symptomatic isolation of you need to for childcare then I might have thought differently (might! As am so annoyed for the people making sacrifices Cummings didnt)....

But the eye sight test really takes the piss.

The rose garden was bad. The continual support from
Government is worse.

I’d like to know how he managed the 6 hour journey to Durham without stopping, but his son was unable to travel 30 minutes to Barnard Castle without a stop.

So a man who implies he's the real person running the country and a writer wife, cannot between them come up with a better lie than an eyesight driving test of 60 miles.
A man so important he implies he runs the country really, cannot figure out a simple way of getting childcare and food to his home that he's not supposed to leave.
A man with his implied power and obvious money cant see any easier option than driving 4 hours and many miles (apparently without stopping)
He's so thick but he advises our prime minister. Not got a lot of hope for the rest of their term.

The fact that Boris thought that by saying he too now needed glasses after covid was a way of answering a question in driving when sight was poor, just astounds me. He totally missed the point.