Camilla Tominey and Christopher Hope of GB News were all set to chair Q&A sessions with the four Tory leadership candidates at next week’s conference. However, Guido hears that Tominey has been unceremoniously dropped following a complaint from one of the candidates. Known for her sharp questioning, her removal is bound to raise eyebrows…
CCHQ will be fuming over this last-minute decision. Not only do they need to scramble for a replacement moderator, they’ve also had to yank her from the online agenda. And she’s featured in the brochure…
Now, whispers are swirling about which candidate had the gall to complain, with rival camps hurling accusations at one another over who was too timid to face Tominey’s tough questions. Good start to what may shape up to be a spicy conference…
The Guardian has done a gushing interview with dullard podcaster Jon Sopel. When asked about his public and constant support for Huw Edward as The Sun first reported allegations last year, Sopel ran out this old chestnut: “I’ve known Huw a long time, but we weren’t mates, hadn’t seen each other socially.” That’s not what was said back then…
In fact, Sopel is widely reported as being Edwards’ “friend.” Quite a change from “I don’t know what went on at The Sun… it was nonsense” to“I’m not going to defend anything that he’s done. It’s absolutely abhorrent.” Jon’s going to be rolling back for some time…
Normally, it takes a new government a good year for the cracks to start showing. For Labour, it’s taken less than three months. The ongoing freebie scandal involving Sir Keir Starmer and his close ally, Lord Alli, is laying bare the staggering hypocrisy of the Labour leader. Last night, Guido exposed how Starmer filmed his 2021 “work from home, even if it’s inconvenient” video from Alli’s £18 million penthouse—hardly an image of integrity and transparency from ‘Mr Rules’. Sir Keir’s morning coffee will have gone down bitterly today, with headlines from all sides picking up Guido’s scoop…
The Daily Mail splashed: “How Starmer ‘hoodwinked public by filming Covid video in Lord Alli’s £18m penthouse – dressed up to look like his OWN home'”
The Times‘ front page: “Keir Starmer used Labour donor’s £18m flat for pandemic speech”
The Telegraph: “Keir Starmer Covid broadcast urging work from home came from donor’s £18m penthouse”
The Guardian: “Starmer defends borrowing £18m flat as place for son to study during election”
The Independent: “Starmer: It is important to look at the ‘human story’ behind a donation”
Meanwhile, GB News, Sky and other news channels are running with the story throughout the day. Questions about how long Starmer has been using Lord Alli’s luxury pad as his personal office, and why the Covid video and Queen tribute weren’t declared, aren’t going to disappear anytime soon. This scandal is sticking around…
Yesterday Guido revealed the PM filmed his 2021 Christmas Covid broadcast from Lord Alli’s £18 million Covent Garden penthouse. He urged people to work from home as he sat in someone else’s home…
Downing Street sought to calm the storm by saying no rules were broken – heard that one before – and it was a ‘one-off’ use of the place. One-off eh…
The Guardian wrote:
“No 10 said Starmer was completely confident he had broken no rules when in Alli’s flat. The clip was recorded for work purposes and it is understood he was only using the flat as a one-off.”
Unfortunately for Downing Street, exactly 37 minutes after their line was published Guido went to pixel with evidence that Starmer paid tribute to the Queen on the day of her death from the very same ‘one-off’ penthouse. Gone were the family photos – replaced with some dark urns and books including an Obama biography…
This is going to become untenable for Keir Starmer. The revelations about Lord Alli’s apartment have only just started…
Former cabinet minister Michael Gove has been appointed as editor of The Spectator magazine, replacing Fraser Nelson, who ran Britain’s oldest magazine for 15 years. This comes after the Tory bible was bought by GB News co-owner Sir Paul Marshall. Gove will start his new job on 8th October. All change at Old Queen Street…
UPDATE: In a very gracious article by him on vacating the editor’s chair Fraser Nelson says:
“There’s never a good time to leave a job like mine but, after 15 years and a new owner with big ambitions, there is an obvious time.”
Fraser also write that Charles Moore will be the new chairman, replacing Andrew Neil, and that he has been offered the role of associate editor.
Labour Conference is developing a strong anti-media narrative. Starmer’s allies have taken to complaining bitterly about journalists reporting on his and his ministers’ freebie-taking…
At a pro-tax love-in this morning attended by Exchequer Secretary James Murray and a selection of high-tax activists discussed fiscal proposals including more than doubling capital gains tax and imposing additional taxation on the well-endowed. Wealth tax fanatic Arun Advani said he was “optimistic” because the Labour government is “genuinely listening” to his ideas. Which include growth-crushing expansions of existing taxes…
Ex-FT reporter and Labour rising star Yuan Yang MP rounded off the event by claiming that “access to Lobby journalists” is held primarily by vested interests and the majority of reporting on tax issues is “not representative of what people say to me on the doorstep.” She urged Labour activists present to take “action” to combat the media narrative and present the case for higher tax. No doubt those tight new controls on the press will help…
Speaking at his speech on how to achieve “progressive capitalism” Wes Streeting fired a dig and Andy Burnham:
“Bond markets are not bond villains and fiscal rules matter.”