Sarah Vine blasts Dominic Cummings’ ‘unhinged vendetta’ against Boris Johnson

Dominic Cummings blasts Cabinet members as ‘useless f***pigs’

Michael Gove’s ex-wife Sarah Vine has leapt to Boris Johnson’s defence, after watching hours of vitriolic abuse hurled at him by his former advisors during yesterday’s Covid inquiry.

Ms Vine, a Mail columnist, said that Dominic Cummings’s “determination to paint Boris as lazy, incompetent, almost criminally responsible… simply doesn’t chime with what I saw going on behind the scenes”.

Ms Vine was married to Cabinet Minister Michael Gove during the pandemic, whom she pointed out has not historically shied away from harshly criticising Mr Johnson.

However she said that when she asked Mr Gove how Mr Johnson was coping with Covid, he “professed himself impressed”.

He replied: “To be fair to Boris, he’s the best I’ve ever seen him.”

READ MORE: Boris accused ex-aide of ‘disgusting behaviour’ for briefing against him

Mr Gove, in contrast to Lee Cain and Dominic Cummings, described Mr Johnson as “Conscientious, rigorous, decisive, and on top of his brief”.

The now-Levelling Up Secretary has been accused of stabbing Boris Johnson in the back at least twice, with Ms Vine arguing that if he thought the PM lacking in any way, he “would have been the first to say something – to me, but also, more importantly, to Boris’s face”.

Ms Vine argued that Mr Gove was “genuinely impressed” with the PM’s Covid efforts.

“That is why I just don’t buy Lee Cain and Dominic Cummings’s utterly contrasting account of Boris’s behaviour, as told to the Covid inquiry yesterday.

“Their determination to paint Boris as a lazy, incompetent, almost criminally irresponsible Prime Minister — at times in thrall to his jezebel of a wife — simply doesn’t chime with what I saw going on behind the scenes.”

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She accuses Mr Cain and Mr Cummings of having an “almost unhinged vendetta”.

Ms Vine said: “Hell hath no fury like a Spad scorned.”

The star Mail columnist said she knew for a fact Boris Johnson was working “flat out’ during the pandemic, something she was partly privy to given the large number of Zoom meetings Mr Gove had while working from home.

“I know from the conversations I witnessed that he took that responsibility deadly seriously. He weighed up the options with utmost care. To say he agonised over decisions would be an understatement.”

She took aim at Dominic Cummings and Mr Johnson’s other right-hand advisers from the period, saying the PM needed the unwavering support of those closest to him, but instead got the opposite.

Mr Cummings and Mr Cain, Ms Vine argued, simply couldn’t deal with the Prime Minister choosing to deviate from the script they had prepared for him.

She said: “They thought they were the ones calling the shots. And when it turned out they weren’t, they turned on Boris.

“It’s telling that yesterday, in giving evidence, Cain told the inquiry that Boris had the wrong ‘skill set’ to lead the country through the Covid crisis. What he really means is that Boris didn’t immediately do as he was told by Cummings, but sought advice elsewhere.”

Dominic Cummings came away from yesterday’s inquiry session almost equally bruised as Boris Johnson.

He was accused of creating a toxic work environment in No. 10 for staff and ministers and using sexist and misogynistic language in messages about the UK’s most senior female civil servant, Helen MacNamara.

Ms MacNamara gave evidence to the inquiry today.

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