TORFAEN MP and Shadow Home Secretary Nick Thomas-Symonds has called for the prime minister’s chief aide Dominic Cummings to be subjected to an “urgent investigation” following allegations he breached lockdown guidelines.

Mr Thomas-Symonds was speaking on the Andrew Marr Show this morning, where he said the prime minister “must provide answers” in the coronavirus daily briefing later today.

Mr Thomas-Symonds was speaking on the morning that new allegations came out about Mr Cummings, with the Observer and the Sunday Mirror saying he visited the North East on two separate occasions.

On the first occasion, Mr Cummings was reported to have visited his family near Durham with his ill wife and four-year-old child with their safety in mind.

Downing Street said he acted "reasonably and legally" by driving from London to County Durham while his wife had coronavirus symptoms, and said the stories were “inaccurate”.

Since then, new claims have been made by two eyewitnesses who told the Observer and the Sunday Mirror that Mr Cummings and his wife were again up in County Durham the weekend after he had returned to work.

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It is claimed he was spotted in Houghall Woods near his parents' house on April 19.

Now, Mr Thomas-Symonds has called for an investigation by the cabinet office, and called the situation “extraordinarily serious”.

“British people have made extraordinary sacrifices,” he said, “we know grandparents who have not seen their grandchildren for months - sometimes new-borns.

“People have died alone, people have not been able to attend loved ones' funerals.

“This has happened because people followed the guidelines. In this situation, the guidelines were simple about not leaving home. The allegations we've seen are extraordinarily serious and they do need to be dealt with.”

The government's guidance published when lockdown began said you can only travel for work if you can't work at home, when going to the shops for groceries and other essentials, to exercise once a day, and for a medical need or to support a vulnerable person.

Travelling long distances so childcare could be provided by relatives was not included in the government's guidance.