Opinion Matrix: Power battles and realities of society

In his column Iain Martin says Johnson's adviser Dominic Cummings will destroy No 10 from the inside.

He said: "His power in Downing Street has grown and his overly aggressive style is now in danger of wrecking this government before it has barely begun. What works for insurgent campaigns, it turns out, is not an effective way to marshal a government that hopes to get anything useful done over five years.

"Johnson's impatience and annoyance is at the root of the problem. All prime ministers discover, after a few months in the job, that it's harder than it looks. They pull the levers, expect instant results but soon realise that often nothing happens. Wise PMs react by making the No 10 operation work with a combination of charm, guile and command built through trust.

"That is not the Cummings agenda. His contempt for convention and established institutions, including the Tory part, is total. His goal is the destruction of the machine."

The Independent

Columnist Andrew Grice said that in the past Priti Patel ignoring the civil service didn't work and it certainly won't now.

He said: "The criticism of the Home Office is not new. John Reid, former Labour home secretary, once declared its immigration department “not fit for purpose”. Patel knows it is often a political graveyard; Theresa May was one of the few to get out alive. One Home Office official told me: “Priti Patel knows her own mind, her world view. She does not like to hear any conflicting advice.”

This goes to the heart of the matter. The civil service’s job is not to say “yes, minister” but to flag up potential problems, for example when a policy is being developed. It’s the politicians’ right to overrule their officials. As Margaret Thatcher put it: “Advisers advise, ministers decide.” "

He goes on to say: "There are times when it’s right for elected politicians and their aides like Cummings to tell obstructive civil servants: “just do it”. But there are also times when officials are within their rights to ask ministers to think again. The civil service is a vital part of the checks and balances in our system; it saves politicians from themselves more than they care to admit."

The Guardian

Richard Seymour in his column says former Love Island presenter Caroline Flack’s death shows how social media has democratised cruelty.

He said: "Flack was about to be prosecuted over allegations of assaulting her partner, despite him withdrawing his complaint. Most of us know next to nothing about what really happened. However, the press that had happily built her up as a star also delighted in taking her down, cackling about Caroline “Whack”. On the back of these headlines, armies of online vigilantes were equally happy to harass someone about whom they knew little, often acting as judge, jury and executioner while dispensing with the presumption of innocence. What is really happening here is that a form of punitive moralism towards celebrities, long associated with the tabloid press and the police – whose alliance was exposed by the phone-hacking scandal – has now been democratised. The issue is not unkindness or random bad behaviour, but a cultural system of public sadism."

The Daily Express

Leo McKinstry's column was deeply personal yesterday when he revealed that he had been diagnosed with Parkinson's.

He says he has been humbled by the love and support from his wife and family.

He goes on to say: "But what is equally striking is the kindness constantly shown to me by members of the public who do not know me at all.

"We are constantly told by large sections of the media that modern Britain is a cruel, nasty place, riddled with divisions and bigotry.

"But my experience has been the opposite.

" Since I developed my condition, I have encountered only generosity.

"As I shuffle about with my stick, I am treated with understanding, never hostility.

"My vulnerability seems to bring out a deep strain of humanity in other people."