The UK Prime Minister’s top adviser on Monday tried to defuse a national scandal over breaking the country’s coronavirus lockdown rules, giving an extraordinary address from 10 Downing Street.
Dominic Cummings told of driving his wife and young son 420 kilometres from London to Durham, where his parents live.
Mr Cummings said giving the details of his journey would help to clear up the widespread anger over his decision.
But the adviser’s address set social media sites ablaze with further questions about his travels, and questioning by many of Britain’s top political journalists stretched his retelling of the incident to its limits.
Mr Cummings said he had driven nearly 50km from Durham to Barnard Castle, a popular tourist destination, as a test because he was worried he could not see properly after recovering from the virus.
But social media users asked if it was advisable to get behind the wheel at all if you had concerns over your vision, and wondered if Mr Cummings had put his family at risk.
“Driving a car with a child in it if you think you have bad eyes is putting them in danger,” a Twitter user wrote.
Others pointed to the UK’s driving safety guidelines, which require road users to report any concerns or changes to their eyesight to the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency.
“When you take your driving test they normally check your eyesight before you get in the car,” wrote one user.
Many compared Mr Cummings’ performance to that of Britain’s Prince Andrew after questions surrounding his links to disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein.
The eye-test explanation drew comparison to Prince Andrew’s claim that he was unable to sweat because of his experiences in the Falklands war.
Mr Cummings's wife, the journalist Mary Wakefield, also found herself at the centre of the renewed scrutiny over the lockdown drive.
Twitter users pointed out that Ms Wakefield's birthday corresponded with the visit to Barnard Castle, casting further doubt on Mr Cummings's eye-test claim.
Many were left wondering why Mr Cummings's wife did not contribute to the driving if he was feeling unwell, and asked whether she was able to drive.
Other apparent holes in Mr Cummings’s story were queried, including the possibility of completing the 420km journey from his home in north London to Durham, in England’s far north-east, without stopping for fuel.
When asked whether he had stopped to refill his tank on the journey, which could have risked spreading the virus, he said he might have stopped on the return leg of the journey but couldn’t remember.
One Twitter user said Mr Cummings’s Land Rover Discovery could only achieve 14km a litre, making the long drive without a stop “possible, but unlikely”.
And debate broke out over whether Mr Cummings’s car ran on petrol or more efficient diesel fuel.
In the aftermath of the press conference, it also emerged that Mr Cummings had gone back and edited a post on his blog to make it look like he had warned of the risks of coronaviruses as early as 2019.
In fact, according to one eagle-eyed Twitter user, Mr Cummings's blog post on pandemic risk was updated to include references to Sars and coronavirus between April and May of this year.
With a death toll of more than 36,000, Britain is the worst-hit country in Europe and the government was already under pressure over its handling of the pandemic.
Mr Johnson said he accepted Mr Cummings’s explanation for the trip, and the adviser said he had not considered resigning.
The prime minister's refusal to fire Mr Cummings has angered many in his own party.
At least 20 Conservative MPs have now called on him to resign or be sacked.
Police in Durham on Monday said they were formally investigating whether Mr Cummings had broken lockdown rules.
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Gallery: Coronavirus around the world
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Director: Paul Weitz
Stars: Kevin Hart
3/5 stars
THE SPECS
Engine: 1.5-litre
Transmission: 6-speed automatic
Power: 110 horsepower
Torque: 147Nm
Price: From Dh59,700
On sale: now
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Company%C2%A0profile
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Dust and sand storms compared
Sand storm
- Particle size: Larger, heavier sand grains
- Visibility: Often dramatic with thick "walls" of sand
- Duration: Short-lived, typically localised
- Travel distance: Limited
- Source: Open desert areas with strong winds
Dust storm
- Particle size: Much finer, lightweight particles
- Visibility: Hazy skies but less intense
- Duration: Can linger for days
- Travel distance: Long-range, up to thousands of kilometres
- Source: Can be carried from distant regions
RESULTS
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Tax authority targets shisha levy evasion
The Federal Tax Authority will track shisha imports with electronic markers to protect customers and ensure levies have been paid.
Khalid Ali Al Bustani, director of the tax authority, on Sunday said the move is to "prevent tax evasion and support the authority’s tax collection efforts".
The scheme’s first phase, which came into effect on 1st January, 2019, covers all types of imported and domestically produced and distributed cigarettes. As of May 1, importing any type of cigarettes without the digital marks will be prohibited.
He said the latest phase will see imported and locally produced shisha tobacco tracked by the final quarter of this year.
"The FTA also maintains ongoing communication with concerned companies, to help them adapt their systems to meet our requirements and coordinate between all parties involved," he said.
As with cigarettes, shisha was hit with a 100 per cent tax in October 2017, though manufacturers and cafes absorbed some of the costs to prevent prices doubling.
The specs
Engine: 1.5-litre 4-cylinder petrol
Power: 154bhp
Torque: 250Nm
Transmission: 7-speed automatic with 8-speed sports option
Price: From Dh79,600
On sale: Now
Dubai Rugby Sevens, December 5 -7
World Sevens Series Pools
A – Fiji, France, Argentina, Japan
B – United States, Australia, Scotland, Ireland
C – New Zealand, Samoa, Canada, Wales
D – South Africa, England, Spain, Kenya
57%20Seconds
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COMPANY%20PROFILE
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How to wear a kandura
Dos
- Wear the right fabric for the right season and occasion
- Always ask for the dress code if you don’t know
- Wear a white kandura, white ghutra / shemagh (headwear) and black shoes for work
- Wear 100 per cent cotton under the kandura as most fabrics are polyester
Don’ts
- Wear hamdania for work, always wear a ghutra and agal
- Buy a kandura only based on how it feels; ask questions about the fabric and understand what you are buying
Super%20Mario%20Bros%20Wonder
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How to help or find other cats to adopt
Lexus LX700h specs
Engine: 3.4-litre twin-turbo V6 plus supplementary electric motor
Power: 464hp at 5,200rpm
Torque: 790Nm from 2,000-3,600rpm
Transmission: 10-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 11.7L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh590,000
White hydrogen: Naturally occurring hydrogen
Chromite: Hard, metallic mineral containing iron oxide and chromium oxide
Ultramafic rocks: Dark-coloured rocks rich in magnesium or iron with very low silica content
Ophiolite: A section of the earth’s crust, which is oceanic in nature that has since been uplifted and exposed on land
Olivine: A commonly occurring magnesium iron silicate mineral that derives its name for its olive-green yellow-green colour
The essentials
What: Emirates Airline Festival of Literature
When: Friday until March 9
Where: All main sessions are held in the InterContinental Dubai Festival City
Price: Sessions range from free entry to Dh125 tickets, with the exception of special events.
Hot Tip: If waiting for your book to be signed looks like it will be timeconsuming, ask the festival’s bookstore if they have pre-signed copies of the book you’re looking for. They should have a bunch from some of the festival’s biggest guest authors.
Information: www.emirateslitfest.com
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Kumulus Water
Started: 2021
Founders: Iheb Triki and Mohamed Ali Abid
Based: Tunisia
Sector: Water technology
Number of staff: 22
Investment raised: $4 million
ONCE UPON A TIME IN GAZA
Starring: Nader Abd Alhay, Majd Eid, Ramzi Maqdisi
Directors: Tarzan and Arab Nasser
Rating: 4.5/5
F1 The Movie
Starring: Brad Pitt, Damson Idris, Kerry Condon, Javier Bardem
Director: Joseph Kosinski
Rating: 4/5
Ultra processed foods
- Carbonated drinks, sweet or savoury packaged snacks, confectionery, mass-produced packaged breads and buns
- margarines and spreads; cookies, biscuits, pastries, cakes, and cake mixes, breakfast cereals, cereal and energy bars;
- energy drinks, milk drinks, fruit yoghurts and fruit drinks, cocoa drinks, meat and chicken extracts and instant sauces
- infant formulas and follow-on milks, health and slimming products such as powdered or fortified meal and dish substitutes,
- many ready-to-heat products including pre-prepared pies and pasta and pizza dishes, poultry and fish nuggets and sticks, sausages, burgers, hot dogs, and other reconstituted meat products, powdered and packaged instant soups, noodles and desserts.
The specs: 2018 GMC Terrain
Price, base / as tested: Dh94,600 / Dh159,700
Engine: 2.0-litre turbocharged four-cylinder
Power: 252hp @ 5,500rpm
Torque: 353Nm @ 2,500rpm
Transmission: Nine-speed automatic
Fuel consumption, combined: 7.4L / 100km
