UK PM Johnson's Brexit 'brain' Cummings to leave Downing Street

[rooster59]

UK PM Johnson's Brexit 'brain' Cummings to leave Downing Street

By Guy Faulconbridge and Elizabeth Piper

 

Dominic Cummings, special advisor for Britain's Prime Minister Boris Johnson, arrives at Downing Street, in London, Britain, November 12, 2020. REUTERS/John Sibley

 

LONDON (Reuters) - Dominic Cummings, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson's most powerful adviser, will stop working for Downing Street in mid-December as Johnson tries to reset his premiership after a series of failures in tackling the coronavirus pandemic.

 

Cummings, expected to stay until around Christmas, was pictured by a Reuters photographer clutching a box as he left Johnson's office in No. 10 Downing Street on Friday evening.

 

The BBC, Sky News and other media outlets reported that Cummings had left his role for good, abruptly reducing the sway of Brexit hardliners in Johnson's government.

 

But No. 10 said Cummings would continue to work for Johnson until mid-December, although it was unclear in what capacity and whether he would return to the building.

 

Johnson is grappling with factional fighting over the future direction of the government just as he struggles to contain Europe's deadliest COVID-19 outbreak, establish a rapport with U.S. President-elect Joe Biden and master the delicate diplomacy of a last-minute Brexit trade agreement.

 

Cummings, who masterminded the 2016 Brexit referendum vote and Johnson's 2019 landslide election win, had told the BBC that he wanted to be largely redundant by the end of this year, once Britain has left informal membership of the European Union.

 

Critics said that while the upheaval in Downing Street was unwelcome at a time of national crisis, the announcement marked the end of Cummings' policy clout.

 

"I think that Dom now, so far as Westminster is concerned, is a busted flush," said one Conservative lawmaker who spoke on condition of anonymity.

 

Johnson is under pressure from Conservative parliamentarians to recast his administration and get a grip of the pandemic which is decimating the economy.

 

JOHNSON'S 'BRAIN'

 

The exit of Johnson's influential right-hand man marks one of the most significant changes to the prime minister's inner circle so far: Cummings was cast by some as Johnson's "brain".

 

A committed Brexiteer, he was seen by European diplomats as a hardline influence on Johnson over Brexit and the proponent of Madman Theory - a reference to former U.S. president Richard Nixon's attempt to contain the Soviet Union during the Cold War by convincing Moscow that he was irrational.

 

Cummings, 48, educated at Oxford and married to the daughter of a baronet, scorned the British political establishment and hurled barbs at reporters and cabinet ministers alike.

 

He was cast in the Spitting Image satirical puppet show as an alien who repeatedly threatened Johnson with resignation.

 

With Johnson pondering decisions on future relations with the EU and the COVID-stricken economy that could impact British prosperity for a generation, the 56-year-old leader appeared trapped between rival factions.

 

The battle spilled into the open with the resignation of his director of communications, Lee Cain, a close Cummings ally who had been tipped as a new chief of staff.

 

The Westminster political bubble was awash with speculation that Johnson's fiancee Carrie Symonds aligned with Johnson's new press secretary Allegra Stratton to oust Cain - to the displeasure of Cummings, who then threatened to resign.

 

Cain will also keep working for Johnson until mid-December.

 

'TAKE BACK CONTROL'

 

Cummings's strategy was instrumental in driving Vote Leave to victory in the 2016 Brexit referendum. He is credited with coining the campaign's central slogan: "Take back control".

 

Cummings believes the elites of the West - and the United Kingdom in particular - are out of touch with voters and have repeatedly neglected the interests of their people while bailing out big business.

 

In 2019, he told Reuters to stop asking about Brexit: "You guys should get outside London and go to talk to people who are not rich Remainers."

 

His disregard for accepted norms was shown when he said he had done nothing wrong by driving 250 miles from London to obtain childcare at a time when Britons were in lockdown to mitigate the spread of COVID-19.

 

Cummings is seen by allies and enemies as a ruthless strategist who cares little for the conventions of traditional British politics. Known as Dom to his friends - who regard him as a visionary - he was described by former Prime Minister David Cameron as a "career psychopath".

 

Asked once if he was the Thomas Cromwell of British politics - a reference to King Henry VIII's most feared adviser - Cummings chuckled.

 

He scorns the accepted Westminster dress code of a suit and tie, wearing jeans and T-shirts in Downing Street.

 

Cummings helped Johnson navigate the tortuous follow-through from the 2016 Brexit referendum amid a hung parliament that failed repeatedly to ratify the terms of withdrawal from the EU, and steer his quest for the prime ministership.

 

That set the scene for Johnson's victory in the 2019 election with the biggest majority his party has achieved since Margaret Thatcher's in 1987.

 

(Writing by Guy Faulconbridge, Additional reporting by Sarah Young, Henry Nicholls, William James and Alistair Smout; Editing by Paul Sandle, Mark Heinrich and Mike Collett-White)

 

-- © Copyright Reuters 2020-11-14

 

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[Rookiescot]

Rats fighting in a sack.

So who is running the country now?

Johnsons girlfriend?

[fishtank]

3 minutes ago, Rookiescot said:

Rats fighting in a sack.

So who is running the country now?

Johnsons girlfriend?

Yep. That's the way it looks.

It sure is not Bozo.

[Chomper Higgot]

“Dominic Cummings, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson's most powerful adviser, will stop working for Downing Street in mid-December as Johnson tries to reset his premiership after a series of failures in tackling the coronavirus pandemic.”

 

1. Was Cummings ever working for ‘Downing Street’?

 

2. Has Johnson ever been in control of anything?

 

My guess is the guy in No 11 is preparing to move his accommodations.

 

 

[NanLaew]

Try and keep up. Bojo just evicted Cummings from #10.

 

Boris Johnson boots out top adviser Dominic Cummings

Source says aide’s instant departure came after he was accused of briefing against PM

 

https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2020/nov/13/dominic-cummings-has-already-left-job-at-no-10-reports

 

[simon43]

We need a PM with balls.  Maggie fitted the bill just fine.  All we have now is a blusterer and bumbler.

[pkrv]

Not a moment too soon; this piece of work should have left after his little lockdown jaunts to Durham.

Bye bye Trump, bye bye Cummings. Can we have bye bye Johnson and bye bye Prayut next please?

[OneMoreFarang]

Does this mean now Boris has to do all that work? Unthinkable. 

[OneMoreFarang]

Soon the consequences of Brexit will crash down on the UK. And probably Dom will sit somewhere in an easy chair and enjoy the show.

As much as I think "good riddance" it would be even better if the people who are responsible for Brexit have to sort out the mess. Let's look how long Boris will pretend to be in charge.

[vogie]

4 minutes ago, pkrv said:

Not a moment too soon; this piece of work should have left after his little lockdown jaunts to Durham.

Bye bye Trump, bye bye Cummings. Can we have bye bye Johnson and bye bye Prayut next please?

You can either love or loathe Cummings, but one thing is for sure that he is a winner and as we all know that losers hate winners. Without Cummings the democratic vote to leave the EU might never have happened, so in affect the man is worth his salt just by that one action alone, we won't even mention giving the Tories an 80 majority in parliament, it's just too embarrassing for the remainers.

And since you have brought Trump into the discussion, it has been said that like the remainers neither believe in honouring a democratic vote.

[Chomper Higgot]

17 minutes ago, simon43 said:

We need a PM with balls.  Maggie fitted the bill just fine.  All we have now is a blusterer and bumbler.

You’ll recall Maggie sneaking tearfully out the back door of No10, knives still lodged in her back.

 

Johnson is on borrowed time.

[pkrv]

6 minutes ago, vogie said:

You can either love or loathe Cummings, but one thing is for sure that he is a winner and as we all know that losers hate winners. Without Cummings the democratic vote to leave the EU might never have happened, so in affect the man is worth his salt just by that one action alone, we won't even mention giving the Tories an 80 majority in parliament, it's just too embarrassing for the remainers.

And since you have brought Trump into the discussion, it has been said that like the remainers neither believe in honouring a democratic vote.

Who said I don't honour the democratic process? Don't put words into my mouth.

It was voted to leave - fine then do it. Come on all you "winners" where is Leave? Remind me again how many years you've had for the easiest deal?

Would these be the "winners" who manipulate everything to suit themselves and think they are somehow better than others?

Edited November 14, 2020 by pkrv

[vogie]

7 minutes ago, Chomper Higgot said:

 

 

5 minutes ago, pkrv said:

Who said I don't honour the democratic process? Don't put words into my mouth. It was voted to leave - fine then do it. Come on all you "winners" where is Leave?

I haven't put any words in your mouth, I don't have a clue as to whether you are a remainer, leaver or even an Euro.

"Where is leave"  work in progress.

Edited November 14, 2020 by vogie

[pkrv]

1 minute ago, vogie said:

 

I haven't put any words in your mouth, I don't have a clue as to whether you are a remainer, leaver or even an Euro.

"Where is leave"  work in progress.

I'm English hence my obvious interest.

"In progress..." Ah, yes. For how long? Any timescale? No? Thought this was going to be a doddle and then everything would be rosey.

[vogie]

6 minutes ago, pkrv said:

Who said I don't honour the democratic process? Don't put words into my mouth.

It was voted to leave - fine then do it. Come on all you "winners" where is Leave? Remind me again how many years you've had for the easiest deal?

Would these be the "winners" who manipulate everything to suit themselves and think they are somehow better than others?

I think we can safely say without fear of contradiction that without the undemocratic actions of the remainers that It would not have taken "years"

 

[pkrv]

10 minutes ago, vogie said:

I think we can safely say without fear of contradiction that without the undemocratic actions of the remainers that It would not have taken "years"

 

Lying about and misselling the Leave product is democratic?

[polpott]

37 minutes ago, vogie said:

I think we can safely say without fear of contradiction that without the undemocratic actions of the remainers that It would not have taken "years"

 

I think we can safely say that it was Tory rebels, including Johnson, that caused it to take years.

[pkrv]

16 minutes ago, vogie said:

No more than lying and misselling the remain product. If you are going to look for excuses I'm very sure you will find them. The top and bottom of all this is that the British electorate made their own minds up and didn't need swaying either way. But it is only the leavers that got swayed and not the remainers because you lot are far too intelligent for that eh? 

"You lot" and "their superiority"? Wow.

Like Jon Snow, you know nothing.

1. I could have not noted and am now unhappy with the situation.

2. I could have voted Remain and am now unhappy with the situation.

3. I could have voted Leave and am now unhappy with the situation.

All you know is I am now unhappy with the situation.

[Surelynot]

2 hours ago, Rookiescot said:

Rats fighting in a sack.

So who is running the country now?

Johnsons girlfriend?

Princess Nut Nuts ....as she is being referred to now in the press.

[vogie]

2 minutes ago, pkrv said:

"You lot" and "their superiority"? Wow.

Like Jon Snow, you know nothing.

1. I could have not noted and am now unhappy with the situation.

2. I could have voted Remain and am now unhappy with the situation.

3. I could have voted Leave and am now unhappy with the situation.

All you know is I am now unhappy with the situation.

You are unhappy with democracy then, there is no cure for you I'm afraid.

[NanLaew]

Back on topic (please), it would appear that Cummings hasn't been given any option to remain in #10.

 

I always thought it strange that any senior adviser who appears to have fallen foul of internecine political infighting would have been allowed to stay longer than necessary regardless of his publicly stated desire to 'leave before Christmas'.

 

I held a position with an employer that became untenable through some third-parties making 2+2=5 assumptions about my intentions. Mid-week, I was summonsed back to the US head office from a middle-east assignment but before they could fire me and while in transit through Europe, I resigned, giving them the paid 30-days notice that my contract required. At a hastily convened, Friday office meeting, my resignation was accepted but the CEO suggested that despite being paid, I needn't work the full 30-days. There was obviously no need to have what they saw as a potentially disruptive, soon-to-be former employee hanging around the water cooler any longer than necessary. Instead, I pulled a mutually agreed long weekend in the office working on a handover of our ongoing projects with my immediate supervisor while discussing and agreeing on who should replace me. I cleared my desk, handed him my gate card and office keys on the Sunday afternoon, put my box files in my trunk... then we went off to the pub.

 

Can anyone see Boris and Dom having a few pints together after this has blown over?

Edited November 14, 2020 by NanLaew

[vogie]

4 minutes ago, polpott said:

I think we can safely say that it was Tory rebels, including Johnson, that caused it to take years.

I think we can safely say that you are wrong. 

[pkrv]

2 minutes ago, vogie said:

You are unhappy with democracy then, there is no cure for you I'm afraid.

No. Now why don't you toddle off and continue reading the Daily Mail(icious).

Edited November 14, 2020 by pkrv

[Surelynot]

44 minutes ago, vogie said:

I think we can safely say without fear of contradiction that without the undemocratic actions of the remainers that It would not have taken "years"

 

........plus the democratic actions of the ERG

[vogie]

Just now, pkrv said:

No. No toddle back and continue reading the Daily Mailicious.

Right on cue, you are reverting to what the remainers do best, insults.

[CorpusChristie]

6 minutes ago, polpott said:

I think we can safely say that it was Tory rebels, including Johnson, that caused it to take years.

 

It was the Remainers who voted against every proposal hoping to force another referendum, that caused the delay in leaving 

[pkrv]

Just now, vogie said:

Right on cue, you are reverting to what the remainers do best, insults.

I think it's safe to say without contradiction that you're a typical Leaver.

[polpott]

3 minutes ago, CorpusChristie said:

 

It was the Remainers who voted against every proposal hoping to force another referendum, that caused the delay in leaving 

Not true. It was Tory rebels that voted against May's deal, including Johnson. We would have left 18 months earlier and a lot more smoothly had they not voted against the government.

 

 

Edited November 14, 2020 by polpott

[vogie]

1 minute ago, pkrv said:

I think it's safe to say without contradiction that you're a typical Leaver.

First thing I agree with on, you are correct, I believe in democracy.

[luckyluke]

6 minutes ago, NanLaew said:

Can anyone see Boris and Dom having a few pints together after this has blown over?

Pints maybe not, but Champagne =