Tens of thousands of people died unnecessarily because of the Government's failings over coronavirus and Boris Johnson is "unfit for the job" of Prime Minister, Dominic Cummings has told MPs.
In explosive evidence to a Commons committee the Prime Minister's former adviser said Mr Johnson dismissed the pandemic as a "scare story" or the new "swine flu" in early 2020 as the global crisis loomed and then had to be persuaded to lock down in March.
Mr Johnson then ignored scientific advice when faced with calls for a circuit breaker in September, before saying he would rather see "bodies pile high" than announce a third lockdown, Mr Cummings said. He added: "The Prime Minister knew I blamed him for the whole situation and I did.
He earlier admitted his trip to Barnard Castle was a "major disaster" for the government's Covid-19 policy.
H admitted his decision to drive 250 miles from London to access childcare after fearing he had contracted Covid, and a further excursion to the nearby beauty spot to test his eyesight "was definitely a major disaster for the government and the Covid policy."
He revealed damning details about the Government response to a committee of MPs, including that it was “complete nonsense” the Government had put a shield around care homes. He told the Commons Health and Social Care and Science and Technology committees “when the public needed us the most the Government failed”.
Mr Johnson defended the Government’s handling of Covid at Prime Minister’s Questions, saying: “I don’t think anybody could credibly accuse this Government of being complacent about the threat that this virus posed at any point. We have worked flat out to minimise loss of life, to protect the NHS, while they have flip-flopped from one position to another.”
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