The Cabinet Office has finally admitted that they have spent more than £365,000 on social media influencers. The department has consistently refused to answer FOIs and written questions on the matter…
In a written response to Tory MP Mike Wood, Paymaster General Nick Thomas-Symonds said:
“Spend on influencer costs (exclusive of agency fees) since July 2024 to the date of this PQ is £365,331. This figure is reflective of currency conversion rates at the time of the request.”
That is the total spend since July 2024 via advertising and communications firms OmniGov and Pablo Unlimited. No doubt that figure will only continue to go up. Nick helpfully adds that “some data has been withheld due to commercial and wider sensitivities”. Meanwhile Starmer’s ‘New Media Unit’ has an eye-watering £13.2 million budget to propagandise the activity of the government. Might take a little more than a few TikToks to save Starmer…
Speaking about Morgan McSweeney’s resignation, skills minister Jacqui Smith told Times Radio:
“It’s clearly not ideal but I do understand why Morgan, as he explained, decided to resign at this point. But the important thing as you say is how we both tackle what this Epstein and Mandelson scandal has identified and also how we make sure, as the prime minister is absolutely determined to, that we continue the change that the country needs and that’s what I’m focusing on this morning.”