THE real issue surrounding the Dominic Cummings affair is no longer his behaviour, what matters now is the behaviour of Boris Johnson in response to it.

It is clear that Mr Johnson is unable to form and initiate policy without his unelected special adviser. Mr Cummings is a man who is known for his desire to disrupt and reform Britain’s political and civil institutions in a way that none of us can know because he has never been exposed to public scrutiny through the ballot box. The little we knew about him came from second-hand knowledge of his activities during the Brexit campaign, to which he was apparently crucial.

Mr Johnson is being exposed for the weak and indecisive character he is, and this during a critical period in the Brexit negotiations. We are at serious risk of crashing out of the EU with a hard Brexit, and that process driven by a man whom we normally only ever see scuttling out of the basement of his London home dressed like a vagabond hippy, not that I have anything against vagabond hippies, I just don’t want them in government.

The British public really must wake up to our predicament, time is short and the answer is not clear. The key to this must lie with the Conservative Party itself; its majority of 80 leaves opposition parties helpless at Westminster, and there are still reasonable and responsible people inside that party, but they must act now.

John Jamieson, Ayr.

THE Prime Minister, so fond of seeing himself as a latter-day Churchill, has given a form of the great man’s two-fingered salutation to the British public in his defence of Dominic Cummings.

On the weekend of the late spring bank holiday and Eid, where the authorities are desperate to have people stick to Government rules on social distancing and lockdown, in saying do as I say, not as I do, he sends the completely wrong message to the masses.

The Tories in Scotland, who hope to do well at next May’s elections, will be left bereft of any hope of victory, because of his actions.

Stuart Brennan,

Glasgow G44.

THE truly worrying element in the Cummings scandal is not the rules-are-for-little people arrogance, which has been the focus of public criticism. It is the irresponsibility. Two minutes’ thought would have shown Mr Cummings that if he was spotted breaking the rules there would be a major controversy which would seriously impede whatever plans he had politically. But he took the risk.

What concerns me is that this is the man whose advice will take us out of Europe with no alternative plans for the future. National bankruptcy, civil unrest, food shortages: these things happen to other countries.

Martin Axford,

Bridge of Weir.

I’M astonished by the sheer brass neck of Nicola Sturgeon in attacking Boris Johnson’s defence of Dominic Cummings.

Ms Sturgeon is holding the Scottish people in contempt. She thinks that we have forgotten that, while Catherine Calderwood eventually fell on her own sword to cover for her boss, the First Minister outright refused to sack her and in so doing behaved exactly like the Prime Minister.

Ms Sturgeon, Ian Blackford, and other SNP outriders who have weighed in publicly to condemn Mr Cummings are blatant hypocrites. Scottish and British governments alike share in the perfidy, this is just a grubby party-political scalping.

Robert Frazer,

Dundee DD2.

THROUGH retrofitting their own guidelines to suit the situation, the Prime Minister and his senior aide have displayed double standards, arrogance and contempt for the thousands of parents who would have loved to have done the same but chose to do the right thing for the greater good.

What I find equally disturbing is it appears that our Prime Minister simply cannot do without Dominic Cummings. This begs the question of who is the dog and who is the tail in this relationship. Only one of them was democratically elected

Just what hold does Mr Cummings have over our Prime Minister?

Willie Towers,

Alford.

I KEEP hearing that the Covid-19 pandemic is going to be the catalyst for a more caring and considerate society. Let me say I am anything but optimistic that this will come to pass if current behaviour is anything to go by.

By any measure our society is deeply divided and it appears people are hell bent on stressing the negativity of everything which in any way opposes their world view while ignoring all failings by those on their side of the argument. A clear example of this was the constant attacks on the NHS in Scotland for perceived failings in performance. Yet these same people were completely silent when the NHS in England failed every one of their performance indicators essentially revealing the worst performance since records commenced.

And then Covid-19 struck. Consistently there have been attacks on Nicola Sturgeon and the Scottish Government for their handling of the pandemic, even descending to the absurdity of suggesting that Ms Sturgeon is “enjoying” the crisis and using it to promote the case for independence. Contrast that with the performance of Boris Johnson and his colleagues, whose bumbling incompetence has been truly stunning. This is not just my opinion but that of my friends and colleagues in England who are also regularly effusive in their praise of Nicola Sturgeon and her handling of the crisis.

Now we come to another contradiction. The Chief Medical Officer (CMO) in Scotland broke lockdown rules and there were deafening calls for her to resign which she did, admitting her mistake. However, when Dominic Cummings breaks lockdown by driving 250 miles with his Covid-infected wife he had the temerity to assert that he broke none of the guidelines. It will indeed be fascinating to see if any of the usual suspects who correspond with The Herald will be calling for his head as they did with Scotland’s CMO.

Life will never be the same again for those of us who have lost someone, but the dog eat dog mentality is still alive and well. To quote Bertold Brecht, “the bitch that bore him is in heat again.”

David Stubley, Prestwick.

I NOTE with interest The First Minister’s exit route map and in particular I see mention of public transport in the section of “getting around” which is to be introduced in four undated phases. I am sure this week’s update ill focus primarily on trains and bus travel and what are perceived as necessary restrictions to accommodate social distancing. In reviewing transport arrangements, I would encourage Transport Secretary Mr Matheson. to ensure that both he and his transport colleague Paul Wheelhouse, Minister for Energy, Connectivity and the Islands, ensure that they do not overlook another vital part of Scotland’s necessary transport infrastructure, namely ferries.

During lockdown there has been a considerable reduction in the Calmac ferry timetable on all routes from the Clyde to the Outer Hebrides. The named secretary and minister have a clear direct responsibility for the company which is managed (some might say mismanaged) through the government department Transport Scotland. It is imperative that island residents as individuals and business owners know at a very early stage what the intentions are regarding full reinstatement of the previous service. In Arran’s case, five return sailings daily plus support from a second vessel. The ferry routes to all isles are described by ministers as “lifeline services”. They are not luxury liners, they are our bus service.

The island communities, who predominantly depend directly or indirectly on tourism in so many ways, cannot watch an entire season’s business disappear if businesses and therefore communities are to survive. By June there will be 10 weeks of pent-up demand caused by lockdown and travel to the mainland for island residents, a normal part of island life, for personal, social, business and health reasons is dependent on return to a full service and we need to know in detail what is planned.

Neil HC Arthur,

Broombrae,

Isle of Arran.

WITH the welcome news that lockdown rules will start to ease this week, should we not begin to have an adult debate about what the appropriate social distance actually should be?

In the UK we have settled for two metres, but many other countries who have handled the crisis somewhat better than we have, for example Germany, have chosen 1.5m and some one metre. All claim to be following “The Science”.

One metre might not seem a lot but it will make a huge difference to how we manage education, industry and our lifestyle. We obviously need to stay safe but we should be careful not to bankrupt the country and our children’s future by being inappropriately risk-averse.

If I had to choose between Boris Johnson’s science or Angela Merkel’s science, I know whose I’d be choosing.

Ian McNair, Cellardyke.

I SUFFERED a stroke 18 months ago; it is recognised that an unfortunate side-effect of such an illnesses is depression; this depression has, in my case, been made worse by the fact that for much of every day, I am imprisoned in a cell (my bedroom) in a prison (my house) because I am paralysed and cannot reach the safety of the street until a hoist, which I have paid for, has been installed; this is not permissible under the current lockdown rules, even though it is a simple job in the open air.

In an effort to stop feeling sorry for myself I have set myself 10 tasks: the first is to have a letter printed in The Herald in the probably forlorn hope it will be read by our First Minister who might loosen the lockdown restrictions in a sensible way – for example, allow outside building work, or make a concession in my case on compassionate grounds.

The last two are to climb, with my grandchildren, the mountain of Goatfell on Arran, which I can see from my cell when it is not raining, and the last is to play 18 holes at Prestwick Golf Club with my favourite foursomes partner in a dinner match.

Iain Tulloch, Prestwick.

Read more: Cummings defends 260 mile trip