David Lammy is currently in Canada for a two-day G7 summit at the river resort of La Malbaie. He has so far had a meeting with Canada’s foreign affairs minister and has eight sessions in total to attend and will also be doing media today including a podcast interview. He’s been training up for it…
A freedom of information request from Guido has revealed that the Foreign Office has ramped up its ministerial media training – at the taxpayer’s expense. In December Labour said in a written answer that £1,848 had been spent on media training for “junior ministers” like stilted performer Hamish Falconer. The FCDO specifies that figure has risen in the subsequent three months to £4,948 on “media training for Ministers.” No reference to junior there – has Lammy had a few sessions with Leonie Mellinger?
That’s about £1,000 a month since Christmas on media training. This Lammy podcast interview better be good…
Former Treasury minister and adviser to Burnham in the Makerfield campaign Lord Jim O’Neill, who has turned down a role in his government, said Burnham’s first statement Commons was:
“The last thing investors wanted to hear… gilt yields have risen by a 0.25% in one day, which is a lot. We’ve not had that since Liz Truss days… If your country is under the focus of ‘can they come up with a sensible fiscal strategy’ on a day when the markets think ‘well no, you’re not showing any sign of it’ you’re going to have a tough day…if it stays like this your mortgage rate is going up.”