Conservative councillors across Cumbria have weighed in on Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s decision not to sack senior adviser Dominic Cummings.

Mr Cummings was forced to defend a trip from London to Durham last month despite the coronavirus lockdown, which he claimed was to stay in a cottage on his family’s farm because of concerns about childcare for his four-year-old-son if he and his wife were incapacitated by the virus.

He faced questions on Monday about whether he regretted the drive and a subsequent visit to Barnard Castle which he argued was to test his eyesight, but did not apologise, and the PM repeated his support of his aide following the press conference.

Conservative Tony Annison, who represents Warnell on Allerdale Council, said he was no fan of the PM or Mr Cummings but felt that much of the attention was because of a "blame culture hysteria" and that some people had an axe to grind with the pair.

"It is totally disproportionate to what has happened," he said.

"Let's face it, he hasn't even had a £60 fine."

Tony Markley, who is a Conservative councillor for the county and Allerdale, felt Mr Cummings had acted out of a desire to protect his family.

He said: "What else could he have done?

"He needed to get childcare.

"I think the media are pushing it too much."

Coun Markley said he was concerned that the topic would mean that other important stories around the country would not get the coverage they deserved.

Outside of the Conservative Party, the reception has been less supportive, with the West Cumbria Liberal Democrats calling for Mr Cummings to resign and writing an open to letter to Mark Jenkinson and Trudy Harrison, the Conservative MPs for Workington and Copeland respectively.

Rebecca Hanson, who is a county councillor for Cockermouth and a spokesperson for the group, said: “People right across West Cumbria have made incredible sacrifices to stop the coronavirus.

"Even if the Prime Minister keeps his blinkers on, Mark Jenkinson and Trudy Harrison cannot be oblivious to how angry people are with this scandal.

“Each minute this scandal is allowed to drag on is another minute the Government is distracted from upscaling Britain’s testing capacity, securing PPE for frontline workers and preventing the tragic deaths in our care homes.

“Mark Jenkinson and Trudy Harrison must stop defending the indefensible and put the health, wellbeing and economy of our country before efforts to save the Prime Minister’s adviser.”