 In March 2020, it was reported in "The Sunday Times" that during a private engagement the previous month, Cummings had said that the government's strategy towards the coronavirus was "herd immunity, protect the economy and if that means some pensioners die, too bad".The spokesman for 10 Downing Street decried the article as "a highly defamatory fabrication" which "includes a series of apparent quotes from meetings which are invented".On 27 April, the "Guardian" website reported that Cummings sat in on meetings of the Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies (SAGE), which advises the cabinet on coronavirus response.