Moray MP Douglas Ross resigns as minister in UK government over handling of row over Dominic Cummings' lockdown breaches; move is welcomed by Highland politicians, including Ross, Skye and Lochaber MP Ian Blackford, Caithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross MP Jamie Stone, and Inverness, Nairn, Badenoch and Strathspey MP Drew Hendry
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A UK government minister's resignation in protest over No 10's handling of the Dominic Cummings lockdown breach row, has been welcomed by fellow Highland politicians.
Douglas Ross, who is a Conservative MP for Moray, resigned from his post as Under Secretary of State for Scotland this morning, as the fallout continued over Mr Cummings' controversial journey to Durham to self-isolate during the pandemic.
Mr Cummings' actions have sparked furious criticism from across the political spectrum – and have heaped growing pressure on the Prime Minister, Boris Johnson, to fire him.
Mr Johnson has so far resisted such calls, and tried to draw a line under the matter after Mr Cummings gave a lengthy public statement yesterday afternoon – during which he set out his reasoning but refused to apologise for his actions.
Critics have warned that Mr Cummings' 264 mile journey from London to Durham sends out the wrong signal to the public, amid fears it might encourage other people to travel long distances to self-isolate in second homes or areas where Covid-19 is less prevalent.
Highland politicians and residents of the far north have repeatedly voiced concerns during the lockdown about people travelling to the area to self-isolate – and celebrated author Neil Gaiman sparked widespread anger last week after he jetted from New Zealand to his home on Skye.
And Mr Ross, in his resignation statement this morning, said that Mr Cummings' "interpretation of the government advice was not shared by the vast majority of people who have done as the government asked" during lockdown restrictions.
He added: "I have constituents who didn't get to say goodbye to loved ones; families who could not mourn together; people who didn't visit sick relatives because they followed thre guidance of the government. I cannot in good faith tell them they were all wrong and one senior advisor to the government was right."
Welcoming Mr Ross' actions, Ian Blackford – the SNP MP for Ross, Skye and Lochaber – said: "This will have been a difficult decision to make and I respect Douglas Ross for taking it. This issue transcends politics. It is about protecting trust and confidence in the public health advice. The Prime Minister must remove Dominic Cummings from his post without further delay."
Fellow Ross-shire MP Jamie Stone – the Liberal Democrat representative for Caithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross – added: "Desperately sorry to see Douglas Ross go.
"We belong to different parties, but he a man of great integrity – something that his resignation only underlines.
"I wish him and his family all the best."
The various comments were also echoed by Inverness, Nairn, Badenoch and Strathspey's SNP MP, Drew Hendry, who added: "Credit to Douglas for doing the right thing."
Click here to read Douglas Ross' full resignation statement.
