David Lammy’s ex June Sarpong is Ian Katz’s latest hire at Newsnight, Mandrake reveals. What they didn’t mention is that Sarpong’s Labour connections do not end there. The photo above shows her fronting a Labour election rally in April 2005 alongside Tony Blair and Gordon Brown. The Telegraph at the time reported that the former Channel 4 presenter “seemed awe-struck”, fangirling on stage over Labour leaders present and future. Having Labour links on your CV seems to be a prerequisite for a Newsnight job these days…

UPDATE: Sarpong will, according to Newsnight’s Ian Katz, apparently only be an occasional contributor.

.@GuidoFawkes sorry to disappoint but #newsnight has not hired @junesarpong…she may contribute occasional films to the show.

— Ian Katz (@iankatz1000) May 22, 2014