 Cummings had previously described such subsidies as "absurd", complaining that some of them were handed out to "very rich landowners to do stupid things".In November 2019, a whistleblower raised questions about Cummings's interactions during his years in Russia; "The Sunday Times" reported that Whitehall was keeping certain government business from Cummings.As is customary procedure, Cummings temporarily resigned his role when Parliament dissolved for the 2019 general election, along with most special advisers, but was briefly reinstated to assist the government following widespread flooding.