Dominic Cummings

He was educated at Exeter College, Oxford, graduating in 1994.

One of his professors has described him as "fizzing with ideas, unconvinced by any received set of views about anything".

He was "something like a Robespierre – someone determined to bring down things".

After university, Cummings moved to Yeltsin's post-Soviet Russia from 1994 to 1997, working on various projects.

In November 2019, a whistleblower raised questions about Cummings' interactions during his years in Russia.

Cummings wrote an essay titled "Some thoughts on education and political priorities", about transforming Britain into a "meritocratic technopolis"; the essay was described by Guardian journalist Patrick Wintour as "either mad, bad or brilliant – and probably a bit of all three"

Patrick Wintour described the Cummings–Gove working relationship: "Gove, polite to a fault, would often feign ignorance of his adviser’s methods, but knew full well the dark arts that Cummings deployed to get his master’s way"

In 2014, Prime Minister David Cameron described Cummings as a "career psychopath"

He advised Babylon Health on its communications strategy and senior recruitment up to September 2018.

The Labour Party opposition spokesman Jon Ashworth said the links between Cummings, the health secretary and Babylon were "increasingly murky and highly irresponsible"

In March 2019, the Commons Select Committee of Privileges recommended the House issue an admonishment for contempt of Parliament after Cummings failed to appear before the Digital, Culture, Media and Sport Committee inquiry into claims of false news during the referendum campaign

On 27 April, it emerged that Cummings sat in on meetings of the Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies (Sage) which advises the cabinet on coronavirus response.

Cummings urged a faster lockdown and encouraged the scientists to support the closure of pubs and restaurants.

In December 2011, Cummings married Mary Wakefield, sister of his friend Jack Wakefield, former director of the Firtash Foundation.

Mary Wakefield has worked at the weekly magazine The Spectator for decades, since Boris Johnson was editor, and is now commissioning editor

Journalist Owen Bennett claimed that Cummings "is a Russophile"

Cummings is registered as a director of Dynamic Maps Ltd, an information tech consultancy

He runs another company called North Wood that "tries to solve problems" related to management, politics and communications.