Alicia Kearns – 2020 Comments on the Behaviour of Dominic Cummings

Below is the text of the comments made by Alicia Kearns, the Conservative MP for Rutland and Melton, on 27 May 2020.

Over the weekend. I relentlessly pressed for more information to get the facts of what happened, I believed that was the least the British people were owed. On Monday, we received more of the information that residents had been calling for: I wish this information had been made available at an earlier time.

I do not support Mr Cummings’ actions. I would not have done the same.

Mr Cummings believed he was protecting his family, and not just from his fear of not being able to care for his child, but from the abuse his family was enduring at their home. I know what it is to be a worried parent, but his actions have caused much disappointment.

Mr Cummings has accepted that he could have done better. I agree.

With regards to his travelling to County Durham, he was acting within the very limits of what Deputy Chief Medical Advisor Dr Harries OBE set out at the daily televised press conference on 24th March when she said ‘clearly if you have adults that are unable to look after a small child, that is an exceptional circumstance’.

It is for the police, not me, to determine whether Mr Cummings breached the lockdown guidelines. Durham police had publicly stated that there was no case to answer. However, since then they are now investigating and dependent on the outcome, I will make a further statement.