He ruined UK’S trust

DOMINIC Cummings’ jaunt to Durham during lockdown drastically undermined trust in the Government’s handling of the pandemic, research found.

University College London found the PM’S chief adviser‘s trip reduced people’s willingness to follow social distancing rules.

Dr Daisy Fancourt, of UCL, said of the study published in the Lancet: “These data illustrate the negative and lasting consequences that political decisions can have.”

miles with his wife, who had Covid-19 symptoms, and son to self-isolate at his parents’ home on March 27 at the height of the lockdown.

During their two-week stay, the family went to Barnard Castle, 30 miles away, on April 12, which he later claimed was to test his eyesight before the drive to London the next day.

A man got in touch with the Mirror on April 19, claiming he saw Mr Cummings with a female companion in Houghall Woods at 8.30 that morning.

But in an extraordinary press conference in the No10 garden in May, Mr Cummings denied the claim – and insisted photos and data on his phone would prove it. A No10 spokesman said yesterday: “Durham Constabulary have made clear they are not taking any further action against Mr Cummings and that by locating himself at his father’s premises he did not breach the regulations.

“The Prime Minister has said he believes Mr Cummings behaved reasonably and he considers the matter closed.” But the latest revelations raise further questions about the