Cummings should quit, say city Conservatives
following the revelation he broke the rules to travel to Durham at the height of the coronavirus lockdown.
And now Boris Johnson’s party allies in Sunderland have added their voices to demandsforhimtogoandcalled for political interests to be set aside.
“Personally, I’m quite disappointed that [some Conservative supporters] don’t share my view that he should resign,” said Coun Antony Mullen, deputy leader of Sunderland City Council’s Conservative
group.
“A lot of people seem to be very defensive of him and I don’t think it should be a partisan issue.
“Some of the criticism has been unfair and mobs outside his house aren’t appropriate, but it’s clear from public polling it is not tenable for him to remain in place, it’s far too damaging.”
Speaking to journalists in Downing Street on Monday, Cummings admitted travellingtohisfather’sfarminDurhaminlateMarchandstaying inacottageonthefamily’sland with his wife and son.
At one point during the stay he also drove to Barnard Castle, in the south of County Durham, to see if he ‘could drive safely’ due to concerns about eyesight after suffering suspected COVID-19.
Another Wearside Conservative councillor, who did not want to be named, feared the aide’s actions could prompt a rise in numbers of peoplefloutinglockdownregulations.
But Coun Mullen does not think it will have a significant impact on what he claimed was already a problem.
“Ihadconcernsbeforethis becauseofthenumberofpeoplenotfollowingtherules,”he added.
“I think there’s a sense of fatigue already.”
Coun Robert Oliver, the leader of the Wearside’s Conservatives,saidCounMullen’s viewsreflectedthatofthewider political group in the city, but added that the issue was ‘up to the Prime Minister’ to resolve.