TWO more witnesses say they spotted Dominic Cummings out and about in Barnard Castle, contradicting the Prime Minister’s adviser’s previous claims.
At least three people have now come forward to say they saw Cummings at the beauty spot on Easter Sunday.
Boris Johnson’s chief claimed he drove 30 miles from the farm in Durham where he had been staying to Barnard Castle to test his eyesight. “We walked about 10 to 15 metres from the car to the river bank nearby. We sat there for about 15 minutes. We had no interactions with anybody,” Cummings said.
He added that “we did not walk around the town” during the trip, which was on his wife's birthday.
However, retired council worker Rosalind told the Sunday Times that she saw the former Vote Leave chief “around lunchtime” in Market Place — a street of shops and Barnard Castle’s main thoroughfare. The 60-year-old, who has given a “lengthy” witness statement to police, said Cummings was with a “group of people”. Police have examined her account.
READ MORE: The UK Government failures that brought us to Dominic Cummings
Another witness, retired engineer Alan Gowland, told the Sunday Times he walked past the PM’s aide on a walkway that runs alongside the River Tees and down towards Barnard Castle weir.
“I am 100% certain it was him,” Gowland said. “I have a friend who looks a bit like Cummings. At first I thought it was him. I didn’t have my glasses on and I saw him coming and thought it was Richard.
“I put my glasses on and as we walked past each other I thought, ‘I recognise this guy.’ His wife and child were behind him on the path. And he was walking ahead.”
He added that Cummings nodded as he passed.
“He behaved responsibly,” Gowland said. “I have no criticism of that. And I wouldn’t like to see him lose his job, either. I watched him on TV during his press conference on Monday. I thought to myself — ‘he’s a clever man’. He’s like Paul Newman in that film, Cool Hand Luke. Calm as anything.”
Yet the retired engineer’s account suggests Cummings at least went on a longer walk than he had claimed.
READ MORE: Cummings fiasco shows how British politics has become Americanised
The latest witness statements come after retired Robin Lees spoke out to say he spotted Cummings walking on a road called The Sills, which runs parallel to Tees.
Police announced last week that the adviser would have been sent home if he had been caught during the trip to Barnard Castle. However, officers said such a breach would be “minor” and that no further action will be taken.
Number 10 commented: “These allegations are untrue. The police investigation found that in travelling to Durham, Mr Cummings did not commit an offence and no further action will be taken.
“The Prime Minister has said he believes Mr Cummings behaved reasonably and legally given all the circumstances and he regards this issue as closed.”
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