Guido hears Number 10’s first ever ‘influencer reception’ for TikTok stars was a total dud. Having finally realised the legacy media is in a death spiral, Downing Street crammed 90 or so online creators into the Number 10 garden last night in an effort to “go where people are” as part of the government’s new comms strategy. There was, of course, a panel discussion on ‘authenticity’…
According to Guido’s moles, it didn’t go to plan: the authenticity lecture was “poorly received”, several guests left early, and Starmer himself vanished after about ten minutes, leaving Ed Miliband to pick up the slack. There was a general sense of confusion over the purpose of the event, other than to snap a selfie with the PM while he was still there. Lefties are complaining that their invites were lost in the post, so it looks like ideological conformity was also a prerequisite to getting through the door. Even the food was “terrible”. Apparently they went a bit “overboard” on the vegan options…
Starmer did at least acknowledge the slow demise of the legacy media, saying the benefit of influencers over the dead tree press is that the legacy media “talk about things people don’t care about”, while influencers “talk about things that are relevant to people’s everyday lives”. He also assured (or warned) the guests – many of whom were glued to their phones throughout the speech – that this reception wouldn’t be their last. Better upgrade the catering next time…
As the Lords rises for recess today to wind down parliament for the summer the Downing Street operation has a big task ahead to repair and reform itself. It’s a dirty job but someone will have to do it…
A Downing Street source tells Guido fatigue has set in and is “starting to show.” Unforced errors and mistakes have left Starmer exposed and he will now have to “resolve the problems with the policy unit” which has been beset with problems, is often blamed for failures due to chaotic management. Hence Bloomberg reporting this week that Starmer is asking to hear about policy earlier in the pipeline…
Without a wide shake-up to the private office that smoothes procedures an insider source tells Guido Starmer will need “a heavyweight official in No10 who can sort things for him in the way the private office can’t at the moment... they need to work well with Morgan, Powell and the Cabinet Secretary.” No10 dysfunction is usually treated with these kinds of workarounds and they don’t usually work…
Alistair Campbell confidant the former Blairite No10 director of communications Tim Allan has been mooted for that role as a new “permanent secretary for communications.” A Downing Street source tells Guido if Allan is appointed strategic communications boss James Lyons “will be pissed off.” Loggerheads on the way – not a quiet recess for some…
A bizarre readout from Cabinet emerged yesterday, reported by The Times on its front page this morning: “Sir Keir Starmer is demanding urgent action from cabinet ministers to avoid a repeat of last summer’s rioting after warnings from Downing Street officials that Britain is “fraying at the edges.” Certainly is…
Journalists were told Angela Rayner blamed a number of factors including “economic insecurity, the rapid pace of deindustrialisation, immigration and the impacts on local communities and public services, technological change and the amount of time people were spending online.” Nothing about the government’s own disastrous handling of Southport, migrant hotels and daily small boat crossings…
The briefing was gobbled up by clueless Westminster hacks and regurgitated as a deep social analysis of Britain’s problems. Liz Lloyd, Downing Street’s executive director of policy and delivery, is also said to have quipped: “Social cohesion is fraying at the edges, as services are unable to keep up with changes in time and migration.” They don’t get it…
Macron may not have noticed Starmer’s faux pas diplomatique yesterday when the PM misspelled Charles de Gaulle’s name on the wreath he laid at the French hero’s statue. Mon dieu…
There was as fiddly ceremony at Carlton Gardens yesterday to lay the wreaths. Starmer’s handwritten note reads:
“In memory of President de Gualle and the free French forces now, as then, we stand together for freedom & democracy on this continent, Keir Starmer.”
An ampersand – lazy. It’s hard when Morgan isn’t writing your copy…
Spotted by a passing Tory adviser the galling mistake may throw a spanner in the works of this afternoon’s private Macron-Starmer meeting in Downing Street. Will the French President push for extra concessions on the one in one out migrant deal after this insult?
Downing Street is yet to form a strategy to deal with an upcoming rebellion over special educational needs provision. Two overnight splashes in the Times and the Guardian have brought the issue to the fore…
Ministers including Bridget Phillipson are making headlines by refusing to guarantee current SEND provisions will be legally guaranteed for children with special needs as the government looks for cost-savings in an efficiency drive for the system, which currently costs £11 billion. A white paper for later in the year is due to involve focussing SEND provision in mainstream schools as opposed to investment in specialist institutions. Costs have skyrocketed in recent years…
Backbench Labour MPs have briefed the papers anonymously while campaigners and charities are already rearing their heads now that there is talk of reform. A Downing Street source tells Guido they are “still working out what to do” on the potential revolt, adding that “proposals weren’t due until the autumn anyway.” On that front Guido hears the current plan is to “just play it long and try to sort the rebels over the summer.” There is time – and a jolted No10 will not be keen on a repeat of the welfare debacle…
Starmer’s spokesman has just confirmed there are no plans to celebrate Labour’s one-year anniversary. Just as there were no plans to celebrate the first 100 days…
Downing Street says it did a reception with public sector workers earlier in the week which is good enough. Asked about dismal poll ratings the spokesman said Brits are “impatient for change.” One way to put it…
The once-back-scratching media and pollsters are rounding up how it’s gone instead. Not pretty…
Former leader of the SNP in Westminster Ian Blackford told Times Radio why he believes Nicola Sturgeon’s claim that she spent no time in the kitchen and therefore didn’t see any of her husband’s purchases:
“She doesn’t have a passion for cooking.”
