NEW: Downing St denies Guardian story. Downing St spokesperson says: "It is not true that Mr Cummings or Dr Warner are 'on' or members of SAGE. DC and DW have attended some SAGE meetings and listen to some meetings now they are all virtual..." https://twitter.com/lewis_goodall/status/1253751628517294081

..."They do this in order to understand better the scientific debates concerning this emergency and also to understand better the limits of how science and data can help govt decisions. Occasionally they ask questions or offer help when scientists mention problems in Whitehall."

..."Others also listen to meetings without being 'on" or 'members of' SAGE.

SAGE provides independent scientific advice to the govt. Political advisers have no role in this."

"The scientists on SAGE are among the most eminent in their fields. It is factually wrong and damaging to sensible public debate to imply their advice is affected by government advisers listening to discussions."

‘The Prime Minister wants his advisers to understand the scientific debates around covid as well as they can for obvious reasons.

‘From the start the government has tried hard to integrate scientific advice into its decision making in a sensible way. It will continue to do so."

‘Public confidence in the media has collapsed during this emergency partly because of ludicrous stories such as this.’

SO Guardian and Downing St have very different version of events.

Whatever the truth, this likely to add to calls for more transparency around SAGE and the decision making process.