Barnard Castle
| Use attributes for filter ! | |
| Weather | 18°C, Wind N at 11 km/h, 55% Humidity |
|---|---|
| Population | 5,495 (2011) |
| Local time | Saturday 12:29 |
| Dialling code | 01833 |
| Postcode district | DL12 |
| Date of Reg. | |
| Date of Upd. | |
| ID | 908814 |
About Barnard Castle
Barnard Castle is a market town in Teesdale, County Durham, England. It is named after the castle around which it was built. It is the main settlement in the Teesdale area, and is a popular tourist destination.
Covid inquiry: What has Sir Patrick Vallance said in his diaries?
... " 25 May 2020Boris Johnson s special adviser Dominic Cummings (DC) is giving his press conference in the Downing Street Rose garden after the Mirror and Guardian newspapers reveal he has travelled to Barnard Castle, near Durham, during lockdown...
Covid inquiry: Key points from Dominic Cummings and Lee Cain evidence
... Barnard CastleMr Cummings was also questioned on at the height of the first lockdown...
Simon Case: Top official thought Johnson couldn't lead on Covid
... Elsewhere, the inquiry heard that Mr Johnson s aides tried to get the country s top scientific advisers to take part in a press conference with Mr Cummings about his to Barnard Castle in County Durham...
Police Scotland's new chief constable Jo Farrell takes up post
... And she led the force during Dominic Cummings infamous trip to Barnard Castle, County Durham, during the height of the Covid pandemic...
Whorlton Hall verdicts: Can further scandals be prevented?
... There, the BBC Panorama investigation into the 17-bed unit near Barnard Castle exposed how she and some other patients were taunted and mocked...
Whorlton Hall: Four guilty of ill-treating secure unit patients
... Nine former staff at Whorlton Hall, near Barnard Castle, County Durham, had faced a total of 27 charges...
Whorlton Hall: BBC film exposed staff cruelty, court told
... Nine workers were charged with a total of 27 offences after an undercover reporter filmed at Whorlton Hall, near Barnard Castle, County Durham, in 2019...
Social media: Did the pandemic poison online politics?
... " I think my engagement with online politics definitely became more pronounced during the pandemic, " she says, citing Dominic Cummings infamous visit to Barnard Castle as a moment when politics " collided" with social media...
Simon Case: Top official thought Johnson couldn't lead on Covid
By Paul SeddonPolitics reporter
The UK's top civil servant told colleagues in private that Boris Johnson " cannot lead" at The Height of the Covid pandemic.
In WhatsApp messages from September 2020 disclosed to the Covid inquiry, Simon Case said the former PM " changes strategic direction Every Day ".
He added that he was making government " impossible, " and " we cannot support him in leading with this approach".
" I Am at The End of my tether, " he wrote, calling other ministers " weak".
In A Day of explosive evidence, one of Mr Johnson's former aides also said he thought Mr Johnson had questioned why the economy was being destroyed " for people who will Die anyway soon".
The aide, Imran Shafi, told The Inquiry he believed the former PM had made the remark during a meeting with then-chancellor Rishi Sunak in March 2020, around The Time of the UK's first lockdown.
A diary note by Shafi stated: " We're killing the patient to tackle the tumour. Large ppl [taken to mean large numbers of people] who will Die - why are we destroying economy for people who will Die anyway soon. "
Asked who had made the remark, the aide replied: " I can't say for sure, I think it was the former Prime Minister . "
Tensions at The Top of government were Laid Bare in a series of WhatsApps, emails and diary entries.
Mr Johnson's principal Private Secretary Martin Reynolds emailed around 200 staff to a " bring your own booze" during May 2020, at The Height of the pandemic.
Mr Reynolds apologised for sending the email, adding it had been " totally wrong".
He also spoke about the difficulties in Downing Street in the early months of the pandemic, adding there was " divergent internal politics" because of Mr Johnson's former top adviser Dominic Cummings .
He added that the government had been unable to cope with the scale of The Crisis , and the Cabinet Office at The Time had failed to properly co-ordinate The Role of different departments.
In other evidence heard by The Inquiry :
A key piece of evidence came in the form of a September 2020 WhatsApp exchange between Mr Case, Mr Cummings, and Lee Cain , Mr Johnson's former director of communications.
In The Thread , Mr Case, The Cabinet secretary, writes that he is " at The End of my tether" with changes of policy coming from the Prime Minister .
" Monday we were all about fear of The Virus returning as per Europe, March, etc. - Today we were in 'let it rip' mode 'cos the UK is pathetic, needs a cold shower, etc. ," he wrote.
" He [Boris Johnson ] cannot lead and we cannot support him in leading with this approach. The Team captain cannot change The Call on the big plays Every Day . "
He added that the " weak team" at The Heart of the Covid response - including then-health secretary Matt Hancock and then-education secretary Sir Gavin Williamson - " cannot succeed" in the circumstances.
" Government isn't actually that hard, But this guy is really Making It impossible".
In an earlier exchange from July 2020, when he was No 10 permanent secretary, Mr Case said Mr Johnson wanted to " declare that We Are over Covid and that it is going to just all be fine".
Referencing The Presidents of the United States and Brazil at The Time , he added: " This is in danger of becoming Trump/Bolsonaro level mad and dangerous".
Mr Cummings is due to give evidence on Tuesday, alongside Mr Cain - who was due to testify on Monday But The Evidence session overran.
Elsewhere, The Inquiry heard that Mr Johnson's aides tried to get the country's top scientific advisers to take part in a press conference with Mr Cummings about his to Barnard Castle in County Durham .
In diary entries, Sir Patrick said that the advisers tried to " strong arm" him and England's chief medical officer, Sir Chris Whitty , into taking part - But This Was apparently overruled by Mr Cummings himself.
Mr Case, who has been cabinet secretary since September 2020, is expected to give evidence to The Inquiry But is.
A Cabinet Office spokesman said earlier this month he was taking a " short period of leave" and was " due to return to work in a few weeks".
Mr Johnson, as well as his successor Rishi Sunak , are also due to give evidence to The Inquiry later this autumn.
A group representing families bereaved by Covid said it was " was hard to keep up with The Number of horrific revelations" that had emerged from The Inquiry .
" While No. 10 squabbled over power, they resigned themselves to a staggering scale of deaths across the country, " a spokesperson added.
Related TopicsSource of news: bbc.com
