Dominic Cummings’ profile has risen to a height even Boris Johnson may now be uncomfortable with

The more the adviser is identified as the true centre of power within government, says Andrew Woodcock, the more he overshadows his boss

The barely concealed message is that Cummings can say or do what he likes because he is the one in charge (Getty)

One of the first rules of politics is that the adviser should never become the story, because if he or she does they probably won’t survive for long.

Every prime minister has one or two close confidantes in their private offices who they rely on for support, ideas and philosophical ballast.

And it is always an obsession of the political press to find out who that person is, what their ideology is and how much influence they really wield.