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Dominic Cummings PA

Dominic Cummings steps up criticism of Boris Johnson’s suitability for office

Boris Johnson’s former aide Dominic Cummings criticised the UK Prime Minister for a lack of focus.

BORIS JOHNSON’S DOWNING Street is now a branch of the “entertainment industry”, with a lack of serious focus on important issues, Dominic Cummings claimed.

The UK Prime Minister’s former chief aide used his website to launch a fresh series of attacks on the way the British government operates.

He claimed that if the way the top of government worked was shown to the outside world, “everyone would sell everything and head for the bunker in the hills”.

Cummings made the comments today in an online question and answer session, which subscribers are required to pay to access.

It is the latest salvo from Cummings in his sustained war of words with the British Prime Minister.

In response to a question on his experience of being “close to power and the opportunities it provided”, Cummings said: “Fascinating but very troubling.

“The world is so dangerous, there are so many very smart and able people – when you watch the apex of power you feel like ‘If this were broadcast, everyone would sell everything and head for the bunker in the hills’.”

In his latest attack on Whitehall, he added that it is “impossible to describe how horrific decision-making is at the apex of power” and that it is “generally the blind leading the blind”.

Responding to a question about the artificial general intelligence (AGI), the hypothetical ability of machines to develop human-like thinking, Cummings said the country that first acquired the technology may be able to “subdue” all others “and destroy us all”.

Cummings, who has a fascination with science and military technology, said AGI “ought to be a massive focus of government thinking but it is not”, despite his efforts while in Downing Street.

“Nothing like this now will get serious focus in Number 10 – Number 10 now is just a branch of entertainment industry and will stay so til BJ gone, at earliest,” Cummings said.

“The most valuable commodity in (government) is focus and the PM literally believes that focus is a menace to his freedom to do whatever he fancies today, hence why you see the opposite of focus now and will do til he goes…”

The latest criticism from Cummings came after he called his former ally Johnson a “gaffe machine” and released text messages from the early stages of the pandemic in which the Prime Minister was highly critical of UK Health Secretary Matt Hancock.

embedded260428396 The Prime Minister’s former chief aide made the comments on Monday Oli Scraff / PA Oli Scraff / PA / PA

Cummings published one screenshot from WhatsApp in which the Prime Minister described the Health Secretary as “totally f****** hopeless” in an exchange about coronavirus testing.

In another message about struggles to procure ventilators, Johnson responded: “It’s Hancock. He has been hopeless.”

Appearing on BBC Breakfast today, Hancock acknowledged that people say “all sorts of things in private” when they are under pressure, but insisted that he and Johnson work “very strongly together”.

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    Mute Shaun Gallagher
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    Nov 15th 2022, 9:54 AM

    Our carbon tax is working well.

    132
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    Mute Michael Dowling
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    Nov 15th 2022, 10:17 AM

    @Shaun Gallagher: I want a refund of this failed policy.

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    Mute Edward Reid
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    Nov 15th 2022, 10:21 AM

    House retrofitting is not going to work, because the grants are still making it out of reach for most to upgrade and then even if they increased the grants or gave tax breaks, we don’t have the workforce to make the difference in the time needed for this. Government need to put viable alternatives in place for all not just the top 5%!

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    Mute Derek Lyster
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    Nov 15th 2022, 11:17 AM

    @Edward Reid: house retro fitting should be free to those who need it. There should also be courses up and running training people on how to retrofit houses. Of course this should have happened years ago but the minister of soundbites and no substance has been asleep at tge wheel.

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    Mute Dave Barrett
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    Nov 15th 2022, 10:28 AM

    Bring back the Turf.

    97
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    Mute SPQH
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    Nov 15th 2022, 9:22 AM

    This reporting seems off, I just looked up the index and Denmark is the highest EU country at 4th, Sweden is at 5th.

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    Mute David Corrigan
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    Nov 15th 2022, 9:26 AM

    @SPQH: They are over doing the reporting. It’s going to get to the stage where people won’t listen anymore and just say screw it. The reports are relentless at this stage.

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    Mute Pat Man
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    Nov 15th 2022, 11:10 AM

    @David Corrigan: The essence of brainwashing, keep repeating the message over and over .Very little balance, resulting in a small number of indoctrinated fanatical supporters and a disillusioned majority.

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    Mute SPQH
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    Nov 15th 2022, 9:25 AM

    Interestingly there is no 1st 2nd or 3rd place as no country has scored high enough it seems! So Denmark sits at highest.

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    Mute Hans Vos
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    Nov 15th 2022, 9:59 AM

    Reading this: it’s about time that we’re opting in.

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    Mute Metaljester
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    Nov 15th 2022, 10:03 AM

    @Hans Vos: more carbon tax is the answer……

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    Mute Hans Vos
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    Nov 15th 2022, 11:26 AM

    @Metaljester: more and better recycling like a lot of other countries is a better answer.

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    Mute Baronvoncass
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    Nov 15th 2022, 3:34 PM

    @Hans Vos: it would be good to see especially for businesses, separate to do with climate change issue though.

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    Mute Baronvoncass
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    Nov 15th 2022, 3:36 PM

    . Energy infrastructure is the way forward. Invest in fast track wind turbines. We need to maximise our resources, and we also do need security of having gas fields available for energy security aswell. Heat pumps for new and major renovations. Insulation grants for the large stock the rest have little alternative to gas and oil central heating, focus on improving insulation in those.

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    Mute thesaltyurchin
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    Nov 15th 2022, 6:58 PM

    @Baronvoncass: Would be buying into tidal systems big time also.

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    Mute thesaltyurchin
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    Nov 15th 2022, 6:57 PM

    “In transport, long-term patterns of a car-dependent system.”… er, isn’t that how we’ve been politic’d?

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