By Ben Kerrigan-
The Director of Public Prosecutions is facing a High Court legal challenge over claims he failed to investigate alleged lockdown breaches by Downing Street adviser, Dominic Cummings.
Max Hill QC(pictured) has been accused of failing to probe Mr Cummings’ trip to Durham at the end of March, as well as a drive to Barnard Castle in mid-April, which the political aide insists was for the purpose of testing his eyesight.
A member of the public, Martin Redston, together with his legal team headed by Michael Mansfield QC, has applied for Judicial Review of the CPS decision not to investigate, filing papers at the High Court yesterday.
Mr Redston, who lives in London and insists he has followed coronavirus lockdown rules, has raised almost £20,000 online for the court challenge, and claims it is urgent to counter a “Cummings effect” which he says is undermining the government message.
“The rule of law should apply for all persons, irrespective of any friendships in government”, he said.
“My lawyers have lodged proceedings in the High Court to seek an urgent judicial review of the Director of Public Prosecution’s inaction over the alleged breaches of the Coronavirus Regulations by Dominic Cummings.
One of the expressed reasons for the action is that Hill refused to disclose any communication he may have received from Johnson, his ministers or officials over the Cummings affair. It said: “The manoeuvres of the government and use of its powers behind the scenes is of obvious concern given the history of the this high-profile case.”
It said the DPP had a duty to take “active steps to ensure the maintenance of public confidence in accountability to, and enforcement of, the law that is designed to protect the public from the ongoing threat of Covid-19”.
Controversy
Mr Cummings found himself in the middle of controversy last month following news he had driven 260 miles to Durham with his wife and young child at the end of March, when he feared they were about to be struck down with coronavirus
Mr Cummings was also seriously criticised for a drive to Barnard Castle – a beauty spot in the northeast – before their return to London. He claimed they took the trip so he could test his eyesight, fearing it had been affected by coronavirus and he wanted to check it was safe to make the long drive back to London
Dominic Cumming’s press conference to explain his trip Image: PA
It said: “There is a lack of an appearance of independence to the decision-making of the DPP which arises from the scheme of subordination of the DPP to the attorney general.”
A group last week separately indicated plans to prosecute Cummings for allegedly breaching sections of the Road Traffic Act 1988 when he admitted driving with bad eye sight to test his vision.
Durnham Police has cleared the prime minister’s senior adviser of any criminal investigations, and the prime minister himself has said he considers the case closed.
That decision appears to have left many people feeling disappointed and offended that their sacrifices in abiding by the lockdown was not equally observed by Mr. Cummings, who helped put the guidelines together in the first place.
The CPS will defend its position by stating the whole affair to primarily be a police matter.