Despite reports of a rift between Boris and Crosby, it looks like Boris has accepted Crosby’s advice in at least one respect – the next Tory manifesto is set to be a short one. Despite Boris having a better track record of levity than brevity…
Speaking at a Women2Win fringe event late last night, the PM said
“And if you want any evidence – any further evidence – to our commitment to having a wonderful agenda not just for women but for the entire country, I can tell you that we […] already have a Conservative manifesto for the next election (which will be a short and concise… with no hostages to fortune) being drawn up by two particularly brilliant women”
As Tim Shipman detailed in Fallout, Crosby implored May to release a very short manifesto that only covered Brexit, to ensure the election didn’t get derailed by other more contentious policies – the election guru even suggested May didn’t release a manifesto at all. Nick Timothy, however, overruled him, leading to the disastrous 2017 election campaign. Ironically earlier in his speech, Boris got the room to cheer May – however for her work on Women2Win, not her election tactics…
People still don’t seem to grasp that Boris has not in fact assembled a “War Cabinet”, that the phase was just a journalese shorthand term to sex up a story about committees which has been in common use for years. In reality the official list of Cabinet committees has boring names for Brexit committees like “Exit Operations”, “Exit Economy & Trade” and “Exit Strategy”. There is no belligerent, macho committee “using Second World War era language” outside the imagination of Remainers…
It’s been less than a week of Boris as Prime Minister and lefty Remainers have already managed to contract Boris Derangement Syndrome to the degree of making utter laughing stocks of themselves. Over the phrase “war cabinet” used by Tim Shipman on Saturday night…
Never mind the fact that “war cabinet” has been an entirely standard part of the political lexicon for years. And politics as a whole is called “campaigning”.
For those journalists struggling with the concept of metaphor, or historians struggling with recent history, Guido has compiled a handy guide to how to use war metaphors correctly in the eyes of the Twitterati:
Don’t they have any idea how insulting this is to people who have actually died?
A classic Media Twitter Bitch Fight over the weekend, as the Sunday Times’ Tim Shipman and the FT’s Peter Spiegel argued about who scooped whom. Particular highlights are Shippers on the “classic FT self-satisfied and patronising tone” and Spiegel’s catty remark about a departing Sunday Times hack.
Is it still a scoop if it was in th @FT two months ago? https://t.co/2q9fkZSwXu
— Peter Spiegel (@SpiegelPeter) February 11, 2018
We’ll take lessons from you Peter when the FT stops copying out Bojan’s Brexit stuff and rebadging it as revelation
— Tim Shipman (@ShippersUnbound) February 11, 2018
That’s because he is politer than me. But thanks anyway for your classic FT self-satisfied and patronising tone. Always a joy to interact with such learned, wise and correct scholar-journalists as yourself.
— Tim Shipman (@ShippersUnbound) February 11, 2018
Oh I’m sorry, have I upset your cerebral condescending existence? We’re hacks mate not academics. It’s a dirty trade. I know that’s not how you American fourth estaters see yourselves. Or the FT brains trust. Don’t dish it out if you can’t take it.
— Tim Shipman (@ShippersUnbound) February 11, 2018
Ok, nice meeting you, proper reporter hack person. I’ll go back to my American ivory tower to drink some cognac. Any other national/ethnic stereotyping you’d like to engage in? Or you could just acknowledge we had the Westminster scoop in Nov.
— Peter Spiegel (@SpiegelPeter) February 11, 2018
If there was an original scoop, it was nick’s in October. You seem unaware of his story. Which is odd because I thought FT executives always know everything
— Tim Shipman (@ShippersUnbound) February 11, 2018
After some even early jousting, Guido reckons the more experienced Twitter streetfighter Shippers took it with the final zinger.
Chancellor blames briefings against him on hard Brexiteers: “Noise is generated by people not happy with agenda I’ve tried to advance” #marr pic.twitter.com/9vEQU1OX3G
— The Andrew Marr Show (@MarrShow) July 16, 2017
On Marr Phil Hammond claimed the briefing against him in the weekend papers is coming from Brexiteers: “people who are not happy with the agenda that I have tried to advance of ensuring that we achieve a Brexit which is focused of protecting our economy”. Andrew Marr replied “I think you can guess” who that means. This might fit the narrative of Hammond, the BBC and excitable Twitter Remainers, but it isn’t true…
Tim Shipman, the Sunday Times pol ed who received today’s anti-Hammond briefing, has shot down the theory:
“Some will see this as a plot by Brexiteers to undermine the leading remainer in the cabinet. All I can say is that the majority of my sources are not Brexiteers. Others will see a plot by Hammond’s leadership rivals to kill off his chances. Again, my sourcing doesn’t stack that up.”
A Brexiteer plot against Hammond carried out by Remainers? That’s a new one…
The Sunday Times deputy political editor job is one of the toughest in political journalism, requiring scoops that hold and set the agenda every weekend. The paper will be looking at candidates who fall into more than one of the following three categories; journalists who are good on Labour – Tim Shipman has top Tory contacts and wrote the book on Brexit so he may want someone who can look after the Corbyn beat, as James Lyons did previously. Journalists who have Sunday experience – Guido can tell you that writing for the Sundays is hard and requires a different skill set, so those who have already done so in their careers are at an advantage. Journalists who break awkward stories – surely the most important category, the Sunday Times gig requires a candidate with a track-record at breaking news the powers that be wanted out of the public domain. Half the Lobby will fancy themselves, as ever MediaGuido gives you your runners and riders…
John Stevens, Daily Mail: Since coming back from Brussels he has made an impact with Westminster scoops, the Twitterati particularly enjoyed his recent hit on aid. EU knowledge obviously valuable in the next few years.
Jim Pickard, Financial Times: Well-connected across Labour, from the leader’s office to the unions and moderates. Comfy on the Remainiac patch at the FT, where he’s been for yonks. Time to join a Brexit-backing paper?
Kevin Schofield, PoliticsHome: Hates being described as a “Blairite hack”, however he has excellent Labour sources and enjoys kicking Corbynistas. Ex-Sun, would he relish making more high-profile splashes?
Harry Cole, The Sun: Earned his print credentials at Britain’s raciest red top, the Daily Star Sunday. Not just a tabloid muckraker, as proved by four years at the Spectator. Number 10 would be thrilled.
Ben Riley-Smith, The Telegraph: A rise up the Telegraph hierarchy akin to being on the Western Front, joining as a private and quickly becoming a general. Writes the Sunday paper now everyone else has left.
Ben Glaze, Daily Mirror: Obviously well in with Labour and the path has been trodden before. Might he follow in the tiny footsteps of a previous Mirror deputy pol ed?
Rowena Mason, The Guardian: Nowhere to go at the Guardian now there’s the successful pol ed sisterhood jobshare. Not your usual Guardianista, though would she take the Murdoch shilling?
Steve Hawkes, The Sun: Strong trade union contacts, has broadsheet experience. Could expect plenty of business-themed Brexit scoops. An inter-News UK sideways move is possible…
Tom MacTague, Politico: Is beginning to make Politico a worthwhile read, his in-depth analysis would not be out of place in the Sunday Times. Has Sunday experience at the IoS when it existed. Though after that would he ditch digital for the dead tree press?
Caroline Wheeler, Sunday Express: Strong scoop -getter and considerable experience in the Sunday Lobby. Move would bring more influence…
Lucy Fisher, Times: Good on Corbynista Kremlinology and has had some revealing Momentum scoopettes. Has worked at the Sunday Times before…
Kate McCann, Telegraph: Another fast riser up the Lobby ranks. A web of contacts helped her break the arachnid-based story of the year.
Matt Chorley, Times Red Box: Another former IoS man. Would do everyone a favour limiting those fun emails to once a week. Change would have a serious impact on sleeping patterns.
Matt Holehouse, MLex: Brexit wonk who has Brussels experience and a better grasp of the minutiae than most. Would he want to give up the reasonable and well paid hours at newswire platform MLex?
Camilla Tominey, Sunday Express: Quietly broken some big scoops that no one saw because they were at the Sunday Express. Outside chance, deserves a bigger platform…
Good luck to the many Lobby hacks throwing their hat in…
