Northern Ireland

Dominic Cummings is no stranger to controversy

Prime Minister Boris Johnson's senior aid Dominic Cummings leaves his north London home yesterday. Picture by Victoria Jones/PA Wire
Prime Minister Boris Johnson's senior aid Dominic Cummings leaves his north London home yesterday. Picture by Victoria Jones/PA Wire Prime Minister Boris Johnson's senior aid Dominic Cummings leaves his north London home yesterday. Picture by Victoria Jones/PA Wire

DOMINIC Cummings is no stranger to controversy.

Over the years, Boris Johnson’s senior adviser has been known for his stinging remarks, long before he started working at Number 10.

He also appears to have no love for Northern Ireland and its role within in the UK.

In September last year, during discussions about Brexit, it was reported he far from complimentary on his thoughts about the north.

There were claims that Mr Cummings said he 'did not care if Northern Ireland fell into the sea', although he allegedly expressed his thoughts in even more colourful terms.

The following month, former secretary of state Julian Smith hit out at Mr Cummings over an anonymous Downing Street briefing which threatened to withdraw cooperation from EU countries that support delaying Brexit.

Mr Smith, who was sacked in Boris Johnson's last reshuffle and replaced by Brandon Lewis after only 204 days in the role, expressed alarm at the suggestion that the UK could punish Ireland if it backed a delay by scrapping security ties.

It is understood the comments came in response to a memo - widely believed to have been written by Mr Cummings - which said the government would "scupper" any attempts to delay Brexit.