Boris Johnson's approval ratings plummet to -1% amid public backing of Dominic Cummings
The Prime Minister's approval ratings have dropped below zero for the first time during the pandemic, amid his public backing of Dominic Cummings, according to pollsters.
Polls from Savanta's daily coronavirus tracker show Boris Johnson's approval rating now stands at -1 per cent, a drop from 19 per cent four days ago. Two weeks ago, the approval rating was at 25 per cent.
It comes after Mr Johnson doubled down on his defence of Mr Cummings' actions, backing his aide for acting "responsibly and legally", before supporting him again when quizzed about the controversy during the daily Downing Street press briefing.
On Monday, Mr Cummings gave an extensive report of his trip to Durham at a press briefing in the Downing Street rose garden, in which he said he did "not regret" his actions. Despite the explanation, several figures are still calling for his resignation, with one Tory minister resigning in protest.
As the row rumbled on, Mr Johnson's and the Government's approval rating dropped to the negatives for the first time since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic.
According to Savanta, the overall Government approval rating dropped by 16 points overnight to -2 per cent. That compares to Labour Leader Keir Starmer's personal rating, which rose from 7 per cent to 13 per cent over the same period.
Mr Johnson defended his senior aide after the story broke, saying Mr Cummings had "followed the instincts of every parent".
He added: "I have concluded that in travelling to find the right kind of childcare, at the moment when both he and his wife were about to be incapacitated by coronavirus – and when he had no alternative – I think he followed the instincts of every father and every parent. And I do not mark him down for that.”
During Monday's press briefing, Mr Johnson told reporters he would not give anyone "unconditional backing" but stressed that he did not believe that any of his staff in Downing Street had done anything to undermine the lockdown messaging.
“Do I regret what has happened? Yes, of course I do regret the confusion and the anger and the pain that people feel," said Mr Johnson.
“This is a country that has been going through the most tremendous difficulties and suffering in the course of the last 10 weeks and that’s why I really did want people to understand exactly what had happened.”
The Conservative party, meanwhile, has had a mixed response to Mr Cummings' actions, with senior party members such as Chancellor Rishi Sunak and Education Secretary Gavin Williamson coming out in support of the senior aide.
But other notable Tory figures have publicly condemned the news, with MP Douglas Ross announcing his resignation from Government over the row.
The MP for Moray said: "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 the guidance of the Government.
“I cannot in good faith tell them they were all wrong and one senior adviser to the government was right.”
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