Markus Andrews

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson has brought in new senior staffers as he tries to restore his flagging authority — including a communications chief who has called lockdown-breaching government parties “unforgivable.”The prime minister hired Guto Harri, an aide from his days as London mayor who has recently been critical of Johnson, to try to regain control of the government’s messaging after weeks of turmoil that have led some in the ruling Conservatives to call for his removal. He also appointed a senior Cabinet minister, Steve Barclay as his new chief of staff.Visiting a hospital cancer center Monday outside London, Johnson said he was “focused completely” on clearing a backlog of millions of medical procedures built up during the pandemic. It’s one of a pile of critical issues, including a squeeze on household finances from inflation and a looming tax hike, that are being overshadowed by Johnson’s personal woes.“I think what people want is for the government to focus, not on stuff going on at (the government district of) Westminster, but to focus on life … beyond Westminster, and to focus on the needs of the country,” Johnson said. “And that is what we’re doing.”Johnson’s grip on power has been shaken by public anger over revelations that his staff held “bring your own booze” office parties, birthday celebrations and “wine time Fridays” in 2020 and 2021 while millions in Britain were barred from meeting with friends and family because of his government’s COVID-19 restrictions.A total of 16 parties have been investigated by a senior civil servant, Sue Gray with a dozen of them also under investigation by the Metropolitan Police.In an interim report last week into the four parties not under criminal investigation, Gray found that “failures of leadership and judgment” enabled events to occur that “should not have been allowed to take place” and described a Downing Street operation marked by excessive drinking and dysfunctional dynamics.Johnson apologized — without admitting personal wrongdoing — and pledged to fix the problems in his office. But on Friday he was rocked by the departure of five senior staff, including his chief of staff, his communications director and his policy director, Munira Mirza. Mirza, a loyal longtime aide, stood by the prime minister amid the “partygate” revelations. But she said Johnson’s “scurrilous accusation” this week that an opposition leader had failed to stop a notorious pedophile was the final straw.Johnson responded to the departures with a Downing Street shakeup that included the eye-catching appointment of Harri, a former BBC journalist who worked for Johnson at City Hall from 2008 to 2012 but has more recently criticized him. In 2018, Harri called Johnson “sexually incontinent,” and in 2020 he said government communications during the pandemic had been “a masterclass in incompetence.” Last month Harri said reports of parties in Downing Street while Britain was in lockdown were “unforgivable,” though also “understandable in some ways.”Harri told a Welsh-language news site that Johnson greeted him on his first day by singing Gloria Gaynor’s “I Will Survive.”The staff moves are intended to reassure Conservative lawmakers who are debating whether to seek a no-confidence vote in the leader who won them a big parliamentary majority just over two years ago. Under party rules, a no-confidence vote is triggered if 15% of party lawmakers — currently 54 people — write letters calling for one. If Johnson lost such a vote, he would be replaced as party leader and prime minister.Only 15 of the 360 Conservative legislators have publicly called for Johnson to quit, though the number who have written letters is likely higher. Conservative lawmaker Tom Tugendhat, who has already said he will run for leader if Johnson is ousted, said the prime minister’s fate depended on “how the reset goes.”He said “there’s an awful lot of talent going in,” but also “an awful lot of talent coming out.” More

Labour is demanding answers after it emerged that Boris Johnson’s new spin chief lobbied the government for controversial Chinese tech firm Huawei.Guto Harri came under fire on his first day as No 10’s director of communications over his past work for Hawthorn Advisers, a consultancy firm founded by the co-chair of the Tory party.It was also reported that Mr Harri arranged a six-month leave of absence from the firm – to rescue Mr Johnson’s beleaguered administration – before being required to resign to take up his new role.Angela Rayner, Labour’s deputy leader, seized on the revelation that Mr Harri lobbied for Huawei, which was banned from building the UK’s 5G network because of its close links to the Chinese state.Mr Johnson initially gave the go-ahead with restrictions, before being forced to step back by a Conservative backbench revolt, amid criticism from the White House.“We can’t have the revolving door from lobbying to government see potential national security issues arise,” Ms Rayner said.“We need full transparency from Guto Harri about all contact he had with government in his former role and who his clients were.”Hawthorn Advisers included Huawei as a major client in the two years that Mr Harri, a former BBC journalist, worked at the firm and he had “a hands-on role”, sources told The Sun.A Downing Street source told the newspaper: “This is separate to his new role in No 10. This government is committed to removing Huawei from UK 5G networks by 2027.”And Mr Johnson’s official spokesperson told a Westminster media briefing there was no conflict of interest.“He provided advice to the clients of a private company. That’s entirely legitimate, it’s in the public domain,” said the PM’s spokesperson.“Obviously we wouldn’t exclude from government someone with valuable experience and expertise.“Our position on Huawei is clear. We have strict controls on how Huawei is currently deployed.”He said that anyone taking up work in 10 Downing Street goes through “requisite” security checks and these had been completed for Mr Harri.The PM’s spokesperson said that any meetings Mr Harri had with Mr Johnson or senior Downing Street staff during his time as a lobbyist would be recorded and published in the usual way.“He will be an asset to the prime minister, providing detailed communications advice based on his significant experience,” he said.Lobbying scandals have dogged the government in recent years, in particular the way Greensill Capital joined a government backed loan scheme before its collapse.The Treasury was accused of giving the doomed firm special favours because of fierce lobbying by David Cameron, who was employed by it.The appointment of Mr Harri, who worked for Mr Johnson when he was Mayor of London, has raised eyebrows because of his recent criticisms of his leadership style.In 2018, he warned Mr Johnson was “digging his political grave” with his controversial newspaper columns and that he would be “hugely divisive” as prime minister.Mr Harri also offended “culture war” Tories for taking the knee live on air during a debate about racism towards England’s black footballers, triggering his suspension from the GB News channel.Arriving at work, Mr Harri appeared to signal an end to No 10’s alleged boozing culture, telling reporters his first act was to bring “healthy snacks and mineral water” for staff.Mr Johnson promised Tory MPs big “changes” in the way his government is run, as he fights off the threat of a no-confidence vote in his leadership following the Partygate scandal.A mini-reshuffle is expected to see the removal of Mark Spencer, the chief whip, who has been blamed for failures dating back to the botched attempt to save the disgraced Owen Paterson over a different lobbying scandal. More

The government has said it could use its new Brexit “freedoms” to ditch planned EU car safety regulations.The UK was involved in drawing up the General Safety Regulations, which include higher standards for cars and lorries to make them less deadly for pedestrians.But ministers have now said they could “capitalise on our regulatory freedoms” and decide not to implement the safety measures after all. The regulations include requirements to build buses and lorries with better lines of sight so that they are less likely to accidentally crush pedestrians and cyclists – known as the Direct Vision Standard.They also require cars and vans to have advanced emergency braking systems to help prevent collisions, go through more comprehensive crash tests, and include design changes to prevent head injuries for pedestrians and cyclists. The regulations were finalised while Britain was still in the EU but because they are being phased in they did not automatically apply to Britain.But asked whether the UK planned to go ahead with the regulations, transport minister Trudy Harrison, said no decision had been made.Campaigners urged the government not to ditch the new rules and said they would save lives.Jason Wakeford, head of campaigns at Brake, the road safety charity, told The Independent: “The EU proposals, which the UK helped to shape prior to Brexit, provide the biggest leap forward for road safety this century – perhaps even since the introduction of the seat belt. “We urge the UK Government to commit to adopting these lifesaving regulations, helping reduce needless deaths and serious injuries on British roads.”Stephen Edwards, interim chief executive of Living Streets said: “Pedestrians cause the least amount of road danger but are often left paying the price on our roads, accounting for a quarter of all road deaths. We need the highest standards for vehicle safety to reduce the number of lives lost each year. “If we want people to choose cleaner and healthier ways to travel, then we need to improve safety. This means the highest standards for vehicle safety alongside measures that protect pedestrians, including lower speed limits, more effective crossings and better street maintenance.” Sarah Olney, the Liberal Democrats’ transport spokesperson, said: “I’m sure that when the Tories to promised to ‘take back control’ people didn’t think it meant more dangerous roads and less safe cars.”The Direct Vision standards for lorries and buses included in the EU package were first developed by Transport for London – and then adopted by Brussels. Some Brexiteers in government and the Tory party have spoken out at what they see as foot-dragging by the government on ditching EU rules. Lord Frost, who negotiated the Brexit deal, articulated the view last year when he said that Britain would only make a success of Brexit if pushed ahead with a low-tax economy that focused on deregulation.Last week ministers promised a bonfire of Brexit freedoms cut “cut £1 billion of red tape” for British businesses.In a written answer to a parliamentary question, transport minister Ms Harrison said: “The package of European measures known as the General Safety Regulation includes vehicle construction requirements covering pedestrian safety and a range of additional new technologies. “The Department for Transport was involved in developing these requirements, but as they apply from July 2022 it will be for the Government to decide whether to mandate the same systems in GB. No decision has yet been taken.”The UK’s departure from the EU provides Government with the platform to capitalise on our regulatory freedoms. The vehicle safety provisions included in the EU’s General Safety Regulation are currently under consideration. Government will implement requirements that are appropriate for GB and where they improve road safety.” More

Rishi Sunak has delayed a crucial plan to confront the huge NHS patient backlog because he believes Boris Johnson’s government is “dying”, a health chief says.Matthew Taylor, the head of the NHS Confederation, made the extraordinary claim after the “elective recovery plan” – due to be unveiled by the prime minister and the health secretary on Monday – was shelved suddenly.Sajid Javid, the health secretary, blamed the fallout from the surge in Covid infections from the Omicron variant for the delay to the strategy to cut the waiting list of 6 million people.But Mr Taylor, head of the No 10 policy unit under Tony Blair, said the episode was reminiscent of Gordon Brown throwing his weight around as Mr Blair’s power waned.“Increasingly getting the sense that Johnson now faces the same (but more intense and short term) challenge TB had in his third term,” the NHS Confederation chief executive tweeted.“Namely that HMT [Her Majesty’s Treasury] is loath to agree to any No 10 plans involving money as the ChX [chancellor] sees these as opportunistic and wasted on a dying administration.”The claim comes as Mr Sunak is accused of being “on manoeuvres”, following his criticisms of the prime minister over the Partygate scandal and the Jimmy Saville smear of Keir Starmer.Before that, the chancellor – the favourite to take over if Mr Johnson is toppled – has clashed repeatedly with No 10 over tax and other policies.Treasury sources have briefed that Mr Sunak was unwilling to sign off on the multi-billion pound NHS recovery plan because its targets are ill-conceived.The chancellor appears to fear that the plan will target very long waits – which attract the worst headlines – over patients who have waited less time, but need treatment more urgently.The clash comes as Mr Johnson attempts to prop up his government with further changes at No 10, but as more Tory MPs demand a no-confidence vote in his leadership.Mr Taylor told BBC Radio 4 that the strategy for clearing the backlog, which will take at least three years, must be made on “rational, objective grounds”.“Clearly in any situation where the government is under political pressure, these things tend to get politicised both in the outside world and in Whitehall.”Mr Javid denied the Treasury had held up his plan, insisting: “There has been no argument – there has been a very active discussion.”He told BBC Breakfast: “The plan has been delayed, but it’s been delayed by Omicron,” calling the Treasury “an excellent partner”.But he pointed to the need “when you publish something so ambitious and important that you make sure that, across the government, everything is agreed and that everyone is behind the plan”. More

Boris Johnson is “fighting a losing battle” in his efforts to recover with voters from the Partygate scandal, according to one of the country’s top polling experts.While the prime minister tries to win back support from Tory MPs with changes within No 10, Sir John Curtice told The Independent that public opinion had hardened against him in recent weeks in a way that was “very difficult to reverse”.The political scientist said a high proportion of Conservative voters “don’t believe what he is saying”, and revealed that his own analysis of recent surveys shows that 41 per cent of Tory voters at the last election think Mr Johnson should resign.“When two-fifths of the people who voted for him in 2019 think he should go – that’s pretty striking, substantial stuff,” said the University of Strathclyde expert.It comes as former Tory leader Sir Iain Duncan Smith raised doubts that Mr Johnson could recover after losing the electorate’s trust. “When you lose [trust], it’s a very difficult task to get it back,” he told the BBC.However, Sir Iain urged colleagues not to submit letter of no-confidence and plunge the party into the “internecine warfare” of a leadership contest while the government had to focus on the cost of living crisis.The senior Tory figure also told challengers to “temper their ambition”, in an apparent warning to chancellor Rishi Sunak and others thought to be considering leadership bids.Cabinet minister Kwasi Kwarteng issued a strong defence of the prime minister during media interviews on Sunday, as No 10 desperately tries to shore up backbench support following the appointment of Cabinet Office minister Steve Barclay as No 10 chief of staff.The business secretary rejected a claim made by senior Tory Sir Charles Walker that it was now “inevitable” Mr Johnson would be ousted, and urged MPs to give Mr Johnson “time and space” to deliver on promises of a reset.Mr Kwarteng also dismissed “feverish speculation” about the number of no-confidence letters submitted by MPs to 1922 Committee chair Sir Graham Brady, following a report that the PM’s own shadow whipping team believes that at least 35 letters have already been sent.No 10 is braced for the possibility that the threshold of 54 letters will be hit soon, triggering an immediate vote on Mr Johnson’s leadership, as wavering backbenchers still angry over parties weigh up whether the prime minister can possibly recover his party’s standing in the polls.In an interview with The Independent, Sir John pointed to the latest Opinium poll showing that 75 per cent of 2019 Conservative voters think Mr Johnson broke his own Covid rules – and 61 per cent of Tory voters do not believe he is telling the truth about parties.“A high proportion of Tory voters believe he broke the rules and they don’t believe what he is saying – this is a real problem for him,” said Sir John. “The question becomes, what will they believe him on in future?”The expert added: “Political parties can recover from electoral trouble. But leaders rarely recover, once a leader becomes very unpopular. It’s very difficult to reverse.“So far, Boris Johnson is fighting a losing battle in persuading people that he did not break the rules … The art of rhetoric, at which he is brilliant, may not be sufficient to enable him to restore his reputation.”Sir John said Mr Johnson’s appeal with voters had been badly damaged not only by stories about parties at No 10, but the PM’s own explanation that he thought he was attending a “work event” at the “bring your own booze” garden gathering in May 2020.“We know from the Barnard Castle episode that people regard rule-breakers during a public health crisis with a great deal of moral disapprobation. The phrase ‘work event’ has entered the lexicon in the same way Barnard Castle did,” the polling expert said.The most recent surveys by YouGov, Savanta ComRes and Ipsos MORI put Labour’s lead at between six and nine points respectively. Sir John said polling shows that the Tory vote in red wall seats has “plummeted by exactly the same proportion” as the rest of the country.Tory peer Gavin Barwell, who served as chief of staff to Theresa May, said on Sunday that there was a “strong case for change” at No 10 – but warned MPs that there was “not a chance in hell that the prime minister is going to voluntarily resign”.Lord Barwell told Sky News: “My inclination is that the Conservative Party would be better making a change and I also think, for the good of the country in terms of trust and faith in our politics … But it’s not up to me to make a decision.”The peer also raised questions about how much difference the appointment of Mr Barclay as his chief of staff, and journalist Guto Harri as his director of communications, would make to his operations.Lord Barwell said Mr Barclay would have to find “a different way” to do the job despite his other duties, but added: “There’s only so much different advisers can make if the person at the top is not actually listening to the advice that we’re giving.”Comments made by Mr Harri criticising Mr Johnson also surfaced on Sunday. The new No 10 spin doctor said back in 2018 that he would be a “hugely divisive figure” if he became Tory leader and also referred to him being “sexually incontinent”.The new communications chief also told the BBC’s Newscast podcast in recent weeks that he PM had “weaknesses” to cover and had “always underestimated how critical it is to have a fantastic team around him”.Meanwhile, No 10 fears Mr Johnson’s former strategist-turned-nemesis Dominic Cummings could blog new evidence about the funding of his flat this week, according to a report in the Sunday Times.Mr Cummings was said to have established WhatsApp groups across Whitehall for people to send him information about any “unethical or incompetent behaviour” by Mr Johnson. More

Boris Johnson is “fighting a losing battle” in his efforts to recover with voters from the Partygate scandal, according to one of the country’s top polling experts.While the prime minister tries to win back support from Tory MPs with changes within No 10, Sir John Curtice told The Independent that public opinion had hardened against him in recent weeks in a way that was “very difficult to reverse”.The political scientist said a high proportion of Conservative voters “don’t believe what he is saying”, and revealed that his own analysis of recent surveys shows that 41 per cent of Tory voters at the last election think Mr Johnson should resign.“When two-fifths of the people who voted for him in 2019 think he should go – that’s pretty striking, substantial stuff,” said the University of Strathclyde expert.It comes as former Tory leader Sir Iain Duncan Smith raised doubts that Mr Johnson could recover after losing the electorate’s trust. “When you lose [trust], it’s a very difficult task to get it back,” he told the BBC.However, Sir Iain urged colleagues not to submit letter of no-confidence and plunge the party into the “internecine warfare” of a leadership contest while the government had to focus on the cost of living crisis.The senior Tory figure also told challengers to “temper their ambition”, in an apparent warning to chancellor Rishi Sunak and others thought to be considering leadership bids.Cabinet minister Kwasi Kwarteng issued a strong defence of the prime minister during media interviews on Sunday, as No 10 desperately tries to shore up backbench support following the appointment of Cabinet Office minister Steve Barclay as No 10 chief of staff.The business secretary rejected a claim made by senior Tory Sir Charles Walker that it was now “inevitable” Mr Johnson would be ousted, and urged MPs to give Mr Johnson “time and space” to deliver on promises of a reset.Mr Kwarteng also dismissed “feverish speculation” about the number of no-confidence letters submitted by MPs to 1922 Committee chair Sir Graham Brady, following a report that the PM’s own shadow whipping team believes that at least 35 letters have already been sent.No 10 is braced for the possibility that the threshold of 54 letters will be hit soon, triggering an immediate vote on Mr Johnson’s leadership, as wavering backbenchers still angry over parties weigh up whether the prime minister can possibly recover his party’s standing in the polls.In an interview with The Independent, Sir John pointed to the latest Opinium poll showing that 75 per cent of 2019 Conservative voters think Mr Johnson broke his own Covid rules – and 61 per cent of Tory voters do not believe he is telling the truth about parties.“A high proportion of Tory voters believe he broke the rules and they don’t believe what he is saying – this is a real problem for him,” said Sir John. “The question becomes, what will they believe him on in future?”The expert added: “Political parties can recover from electoral trouble. But leaders rarely recover, once a leader becomes very unpopular. It’s very difficult to reverse.“So far, Boris Johnson is fighting a losing battle in persuading people that he did not break the rules … The art of rhetoric, at which he is brilliant, may not be sufficient to enable him to restore his reputation.”Sir John said Mr Johnson’s appeal with voters had been badly damaged not only by stories about parties at No 10, but the PM’s own explanation that he thought he was attending a “work event” at the “bring your own booze” garden gathering in May 2020.“We know from the Barnard Castle episode that people regard rule-breakers during a public health crisis with a great deal of moral approbation. The phrase ‘work event’ has entered the lexicon in the same way Barnard Castle did,” the polling expert said.The most recent surveys by YouGov, Savanta ComRes and Ipsos MORI put Labour’s lead at between six and nine points respectively. Sir John said polling shows that the Tory vote in red wall seats has “plummeted by exactly the same proportion” as the rest of the country.Tory peer Gavin Barwell, who served as chief of staff to Theresa May, said on Sunday that there was a “strong case for change” at No 10 – but warned MPs that there was “not a chance in hell that the prime minister is going to voluntarily resign”.Lord Barwell told Sky News: “My inclination is that the Conservative Party would be better making a change and I also think, for the good of the country in terms of trust and faith in our politics … But it’s not up to me to make a decision.”The peer also raised questions about how much difference the appointment of Mr Barclay as his chief of staff, and journalist Guto Harri as his director of communications, would make to his operations.Lord Barwell said Mr Barclay would have to find “a different way” to do the job despite his other duties, but added: “There’s only so much different advisers can make if the person at the top is not actually listening to the advice that we’re giving.”Comments made by Mr Harri criticising Mr Johnson also surfaced on Sunday. The new No 10 spin doctor said back in 2018 that he would be a “hugely divisive figure” if he became Tory leader and also referred to him being “sexually incontinent”.The new communications chief also told the BBC’s Newscast podcast in recent weeks that he PM had “weaknesses” to cover and had “always underestimated how critical it is to have a fantastic team around him”.Meanwhile, No 10 fears Mr Johnson’s former strategist-turned-nemesis Dominic Cummings could blog new evidence about the funding of his flat this week, according to a report in the Sunday Times.Mr Cummings was said to have established WhatsApp groups across Whitehall for people to send him information about any “unethical or incompetent behaviour” by Mr Johnson. More

Boris Johnson’s has been urged to crackdown on a loophole which could allow post-Brexit freeports being used to launder dirty money, as peers move to stop illicit finance from Russia and elsewhere.Eight English ports are to be granted tax breaks by the government in a bid to generate more trade after the UK’s exit from the EU.The Liberal Democrats are attempting to amend the government’s tax bill to stop freeports extending the “London laundromat” across the country.Tabled by Lib Dem peer Baroness Susan Kramer, it would mean freeports could only qualify for tax relief if they establish a public register of business owners operating there.It comes as Labour urged the government to crackdown on illicit finance and called on the Conservative to return donations “from those who have made money from Russia or have alleged links to the Putin regime”.Transparency International UK and other anti-corruption groups have previously warned that the government’s plan to expand freeports pose a major risk of money laundering.Although the governing bodies bidding to establish a freeport currently have to set up a register of beneficial ownership, it doesn’t have to be made public – raising fears that “Kremlin-linked oligarchs” and kleptocrats from elsewhere could exploit the ports.Peers will vote on Monday on Baroness Kramer’s move to close the loophole. She told The Independent: “We risk opening our doors even further to Kremlin-linked oligarchs at the moment when we should be putting a stop to this interference.”Urging the government to get behind her amendment to the National Insurance Contributions Bill, and claiming cross-party support for the move, she said: “Freeports must not become a hotbed for criminal activity and money laundering.”Baroness Kramer added: “The sunlight of transparency will act as a deterrent to Russian oligarchs and others who want to flood their dirty money into this country.”Meanwhile, shadow foreign secretary David Lammy and shadow chancellor Rachel Reeves wrote to government ministers urging a crackdown on illicit finance. The pair said it was “shameful” for Britain to be described as “the money-laundering capital of the world”.Sir Keir Starmer’s party wants to see a new registration scheme for foreign agents, the rules on political donations tightened up and reform to Companies House registration to prevent fraud.Mr Lammy and Ms Reeves wrote to foreign secretary Liz Truss and chancellor Rishi Sunak, saying: “We believe we must take a broad range of robust steps to address these deficiencies and the Conservatives must do more including with the donations it receives.”Tory ministers have argued that only individuals with British citizenship are allowed to make donations to parties, and are properly registered with the Electoral Commission.Earlier this week Treasury minister Simon Clarke denied the idea that the UK was compromised by suspected dirty Russian money, claiming British politics was “fundamentally clean”.Mr Clarke said: “No-one has taken money from the Russians. Let’s be very clear about this. One needs to be a UK national to make a donation. Any such donations are declared and properly scrutinised.”The government has been under pressure to set out its plan to tackle the influx of dirty money after Tory peer Lord Agnew – who dramatically quit as efficiency tsar – claimed ministers had rejected the chance to put forward anti-fraud legislation.And Tory MP John Penrose warned it would be “about as popular as a cup of cold sick” if a long-awaited Economic Crime Bill was delayed or ditched following reports it was being kicked into the long grass.Challenged on the issue at PMQs this week, the prime minister promised it would be brought forward in the third session of this parliament, set to begin as early as May. More

Cabinet minister Kwasi Kwarteng has denied that Carrie Johnson has “undue” influence at No 10, as details from Conservative peer Lord Ashcroft’s upcoming biography of the prime minister’s wife appear in the press.According to details from the book published in the Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday, Mr Johnson allegedly voiced frustration at the way his wife tried to exert influence over the running of No 10.Downing Street has rejected claims contained within the book, while culture secretary Nadine Dorries condemned the attacks on Ms Johnson.Mr Kwarteng said it was clear that Ms Johnson had “political views” – but dismissed the idea she had too much say at Downing Street.“Carrie is a really strong supporter of the prime minister. She has political views, like many people, and she’s allowed to have those views,” the business secretary told Times Radio.The minister added: “Contrary to what I’ve read about the Ashcroft book … the reportage is that somehow she has got undue influence – I don’t think that is true. The prime minister has been in politics for 25 years and has a pretty strong set of ideas.”Asked if there was an element of sexism to questions over the extent of her influence, Mr Kwarteng said: “I wouldn’t say that. But it’s interesting that when the spouse is someone in their thirties and has got open positions that are well-known, people feel free to criticise them.”Asked what he meant by “interesting”, the minister replied: “Well, I don’t think it’s sexist. I’m not going to go down the route of saying, ‘Oh well it’s sexist’. But her views are under scrutiny in a way that perhaps other prime minister’s spouses weren’t.”Lord Ashcroft’s book First Lady: Intrigue at the Court of Carrie and Boris Johnson is set to be released next month as the PM fights to save his premiership amid the Partygate scandal.A Downing Street has said the book contains claims which are untrue. Ms Dorries has also accused Mr Johnson’s opponents, including former No 10 staff, of trying to smear his wife in a bid to oust him.The culture secretary said the claims had been made “by vengeful and mendacious men who were once employees in No 10 and is an insight into their warped minds.”Lord Ashcroft responded: “Only a fraction of the book has been published so far. Taken as a whole, it is fair, objective and meticulously researched.”Ms Johnson’s friend Henry Newman is reportedly set to leave No 10 as part of the shake-up in staff and operations, as the prime minister tries to convince backbenchers his premiership can be reset. More