Bassetlaw MP explains why Dominic Cummings gets his full support

As you can probably imagine, this has been a busy time for MPs.

I won’t bore you all by going over the same things you’ve no doubt been reading and seeing on television all week, but I do want to clarify my own views and why I have taken the position I have.

I have received hundreds of emails relating to Dominic Cummings and whether he was right to go to Durham with his family and whether he should or shouldn’t still be in his job.

My original position was that people should wait and listen to the facts before jumping to conclusions and that we shouldn’t be having a trial by media.

I listened carefully to what he said in his press conference and I concluded that he did what he thought was best for his family.

I know that not everybody accepts various parts of the story and whether it does or doesn’t comply with the rules.

Many have also questioned whether they would have done the same thing in the circumstances.

I appreciate this and respect what those people are saying.

The unconditional love that we have for our children cannot be underestimated.

Like Mr Cummings, I also have a four year old son and I would do anything for my family.

And I can empathise with the position they found themselves in, having had Covid-19 myself and then unfortunately passing it on the rest of my household.

As a public figure, I know I must set an example to others and I have strictly followed the rules since lockdown, as have most others.

Can I honestly say though that every trip to the supermarket was 100 per cent necessary or that I have always been precisely two metres from every person I have passed?

This pandemic has been tough on us all.

I haven’t seen my own mother for three months and I’ve missed the funerals of family and friends.

We are all human beings and none of us are perfect.

Compassion and understanding are more important now than ever.

Brendan Clarke-Smith is MP for Bassetlaw.