Burnley MP believes Dominic Cummings 'acted responsibly'

Prime Minister Boris Johnson has been coming under increasing pressure to sack his key advisor following claims he drove 260 miles from London to County Durham with his wife, who had coronavirus symptoms.

In a statement, Mr Higginbotham said: "Over the last few days I have received many emails and messages from people angry about the media reports about Dominic Cummings. Everyone who has contacted me will receive a response in due course but I also wanted to share my views here.

"I fully understand the anger. Everyone has made enormous sacrifices, including here in Burnley and Padiham. We all want to see our family members, me included, and get back to a sense of normality. And the rules apply to everyone equally - no exceptions.

"Let me also say clearly that I do not, nor will I ever, agree or accept trial by media. I heard at the same time as you and there was people asking me to denounce Dominic Cummings straight away. Including on this Facebook page. I maintain that it was right for me to wait to know the full details.

"Dominic Cummings has provided a full outline of the actions he has taken, and the reasons he took those actions. There will be some who disagree with those actions, and some who think what he did was perfectly reasonable. That's a debate that can be had in a civil way.

"After hearing it, I believe he acted reasonably, taking into account his very legitimate health and security concerns which led him to decide that the best place to self-isolate was away from a place which had been targeted (and recent media action shows this continues to be the case).

"We have huge challenges ahead to deal with. This weekend has been a detraction from that. I remain focused on helping people across our borough who need my help during this period, and delivering on the commitments I made during the General Election."