Nicola Sturgeon: Cummings should apologise for his mistake

Nicola Sturgeon has urged Dominic Cummings to admit to making a mistake and apologise when the Prime Minister’s political adviser holds his own press conference later today.
Nicola Sturgeon has urged Dominic Cummings to apologise.Nicola Sturgeon has urged Dominic Cummings to apologise.
Nicola Sturgeon has urged Dominic Cummings to apologise.

The First Minister said Mr Cummings should “concede that he made a mistake, that he didn’t follow the rules, and instead of trying to retrospectively rewrite those rules, apologise for that”.

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Speaking at the Scottish Government’s daily coronavirus briefing, Ms Sturgeon was asked about the unusual decision taken by Mr Cummings and Downing Street to allow a political adviser to host a press conference to explain their actions.

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Mr Cummings has come under severe public criticism for his decision to drive 260 miles from London to Durham when he and his wife were both unwell with Covid-19, to stay at a house near his elderly parents, so they, and his sister, could help provide childcare for his young son.

There have also been allegations - denied by Mr Cummings – that he did not self-isolate despite being ill, making a second trip between London and Durham, and that he was seen in other parts of the north east of England.

Despite flouting government guidelines, the decision was backed by Boris Johnson last night, drawing more criticism from across the political spectrum, with many Tory MPs urging him to remove Mr Cummings from his position.

Today it was revealed that Mr Cummings will face the press himself, hosting a press conference and answering questions from journalists.

Ms Sturgeon said she hoped there would be more detail as a result of the press conference, as “there are also lots of detailed questions about his account and the account given afterwards by his wife of his isolation which don’t seem to me to marry up”.

She added: “I think for many people hearing the Prime Minister saying he acted appropriately and followed the instinct of any parent, a lot of parents will have heard that as suggesting that by following the rules they didn’t act like good parents, and that is really, really unfair, and perhaps correcting that suggestion and that impression should be something that comes out of this.”

Ms Sturgeon was also asked if Boris Johnson was making the “same mistake” as she had done over not sacking former Chief Medical Officer Catherine Calderwood immediately it was revealed she had broken lockdown guidelines.

“I’ve set out many times my decision making process then,” she said. “I didn’t defend what she had done, I made it clear I thought she had made a mistake in breaching guidelines, and to be fair to her, she also admitted she had made a mistake and apologised for that.

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“I did make an argument, and I don’t think it was unreasonable, though it didn’t ultimately prevail, that yes she’d made a mistake, she’d apologised and given the pandemic we were dealing with and the importance and neutrality of her advice – she wasn’t a political adviser – she should retain her post and continue to make her contribution.

“But when I realised that the public didn’t agree with that and if we had continued we risked undermining public health advice I came to a different conclusion, and to her great credit Catherine Calderwood came to the same conclusion. In the conversation we had which led to her resignation she didn’t try to save her skin at the expense of the public health advice she knew, as a doctor, was important, and that’s to her credit, and she acted with integrity.

“In terms of the Prime Minister and Dominic Cummings I think they should come to the same conclusion. I don’t say this with relish, I’ve tried not to indulge in party politics throughout this, but I do think there’s a risk that political interests are taking priority over the public interest, and it’s so important that trust in the public health message is maintained.”

The First Minister also said she understood people would have been left “angry and frustrated” by the Cummings story and wondering “why bother” following the rules.

But she stressed: “As far as I am concerned the restrictions and rules we put in place really matter. It is vital that all of us stick to the rules, and not just because people like me tell you to or ask you to. The reason we ask you to stick to these rules is because they help to protect you and your loved ones, they help us protect our National Health Service and they do help us to save lives.”

She said the public had “overwhelmingly done the right thing” in lockdown. “I know many people, parents perhaps in particular, will have made very difficult decisions.

“Grandparents will not have seen new grandchildren, parents will have struggled with childcare, and no access to friends and family to support them, and many people have been denied the opportunity to say a final farewell to loved ones, but it is vital that all of us stick to these rules.”

Ms Sturgeon also said the Scottish Government’s “current expectation” is that it will “announce a relaxation” of some restrictions on Thursday. This will focus at first on outdoor activities with changes expected to come into force from Friday.

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“We will give you careful information as we go through this week about what rules are changing, what measures are in place to help you and what you should be considering as you decide what you can and can't do,” she said.

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