Dominic Cummings scandal shows Boris Johnson holds public in contempt – Angus Robertson

Dominic Cummings’ long-distance trip during the lockdown has been widely condemned, but the Scottish Tories have been disgracefully quiet, writes Angus Robertson.

Dominic Cummings runs the media gauntlet outside his home following the weekend's revelations (Picture: Aaron Chown/PA Wire)

‘Do as I say, not as I do.’ This is the new motto of the UK Government. The Dominic Cummings debacle has unleashed levels of hypocrisy and cant that are intolerable to the overwhelming majority of the public. People are irate and quite rightly so.

Boris Johnson’s chief Svengali thought he could drive from one end of England to the other while exposed to coronavirus and spent yesterday’s press conference justifying himself without an apology. The Prime Minister thinks that is was fine for his pal Cummings, but everyone else has had to stay at home. Most people have not been able to see friends, family and loved ones, even when they were dying, because they respected the rules. Even Tory supporting newspapers have been headlining with “What Planet Are They On”.

Apart from a small group of cabinet ministers strong-armed into defending the indefensible everyone else has been horrified, none more so than England’s Anglican bishops. The Right Reverend Nick Baines of Leeds said: “The question now is: do we accept being lied to, patronised and treated by a PM as mugs? The moral question is not for Cummings – it is for the PM and ministers/MPs who find this behaviour acceptable. What are we to teach our children? (I ask as a responsible father.)”

He was joined by the Bishop of Worcester John Inge who said: “The PM’s risible defence of Cummings is an insult to all those who have made such sacrifices to ensure the safety of others.”

The Bishop of Ripon, Helen-Ann Hartley, said: “Integrity, trust and leadership were never there; just a driven misguided ideology of power that has total disregard for the most weak and vulnerable, and those who work to protect and care for us with relatively low pay. My parents live in Durham, an hour away from where we live. My father finished radiotherapy treatment just before lockdown. I’ve missed his birthday, Mothering Sunday and countless other catch-ups that would have happened. And that’s a fraction of a story compared with others.”

Calls for Cummings’ resignation were joined by leading Conservatives including the influential Tim Montgomery and a growing number of Tory MPs. In Scotland they were echoed by commentators like Alan Cochrane, Stephen Daisley and Alex Massie.

However for two days the Scottish Tories were completely silent. Not a peep from leader Jackson Carlaw, not an intervention by Ruth Davidson, not a peep from a single MP or MSP. Finally a statement was issued by Carlaw bravely stating “I’ve heard what the Prime Minister has said and it is a situation for him to judge”. That is the same Jackson Carlaw who only a few weeks ago said: “There cannot be one rule for bosses and another for everyone else.” What a total disgrace.

The Dominic Cummings scandal has shown the contempt Boris Johnson holds for the public. It’s one rule for his pals and another for everyone else. When given the opportunity to show leadership and consistency the Scottish Tories failed utterly. When invited to explain their total hypocrisy they refused invitations to appear on radio and television by the broadcast media.

Not only are they unfit in government, they are unfit as an opposition. The public deserves a lot, lot better than this.