Today has been revelatory in a few key respects and the emend has changed much

1) Mr Cummings accepted he made a trip to Barnard Castle (initially dismissed by Nunber 10). By any measure that was against rules. Grant Shapps just 24 hours ago was saying he stayed in one place.

2) By any stretch of the imagination, Mr Cummings actions cannot be said to have been within the rules as they were understood and communicated to by the government (a communications strategy partly of Mr Cummings’ design)

3) some Tory MPs do believe he’s done enough, save for any new revelations. Nonetheless, damage is done in a couple of senses. One- the govt has acted nakedly politically to protect Mr Cummings and made an exception for him.

As a result, the cloak of national apolitical unity will be much harder for the government to wear again.

And though, remarkably, the govt wouldn’t acknowledge there had been any damage to the govt’s public health strategy at all, it was there for us all to see.

The PM clearly felt chastised and unable to repeat key health messages, forced to resort back to the very first (now almost trite sounding) “wash your hands”

We all, also know privately, that many are basically abandoning social lockdown.

That isn’t only about Mr Cummings but it feels it’s been accelerated by it.

Ministers will prob try and make a virtue of it by trying to speed up economic unwinding. But it’s quite a call to make to save one man. It’s fraught with risk.

Lots of hope and talk by some that the story will pass. V few stories make it through the noise. The totalising nature of pandemic means that it feels like this one has. As a result, it could have a unique potency and potential to wound. The polls will be the next crucial thing.

Today is a test of a mode of politics, a mode Cummings made. His remarks were laced with attacks on the media. He didn’t give an inch even when it was clear that what he was saying wasn’t correct. It’s a way of doing politics which has been v successful. Has it reached its limit?