Back in March we wrote that disasters create shared identity, a sense of community where people act together for the common good. But, we warned, that shared identity is fragile. It can be undermined by divisive leadership. https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2020/jul/30/cummings-saga-damaged-uk-unity-covid-19-study-suggests?CMP=share_btn_tw

That is why, when I heard Johnson defend Cumming's rule breaking, I tweeted despairingly: "in a few short minutes tonight, Boris Johnson has trashed all the advice we have given on how to build trust and secure adherence to the measures necessary to control COVID-19".

Because the issue was less Cumming's actions than the Government condoning and even endorsing them - thus creating a strong sense of a different set of rules for those in power and those without. Immediately, the sense of a whole had been shattered into 'us' and 'them'.

Almost immediately trust in Government plummeted by nearly 20%. The Director of the Institute carrying out the poll said "“I have never in 10 years of research in this area seen a drop in trust like what we have seen for the UK government in the course of six weeks.”

Now we have rich qualitative data to confirm this picture and show the link the Cummings fiasco. The tragedy is that the real harm here is to the public for the government's misdemeanours. At a time when we need good leadership to guide us through a crisis we have a void.