Prime minister Boris Johnson faced a grilling this afternoon as he stood by his aide Dominic Cummings amid rising frustration from MPs both inside and outside of the Conservative Party.
The prime minister hit out at MPs in the Commons Liaison Committee as they questioned him over his chief adviser's trip to Durham, claiming that the public did not want the government to focus on 'political ding dong'.
He also faced calls for clarification on advice to parents with Covid-19 who are staying at home despite struggling with childcare as Mr Cummings claimed he had.
During the video conference this afternoon, MP Simon Hoare explained to the prime minister that "this is now a distraction and people are very annoyed".