UK Politics

Boris Johnson’s new director of communications lobbied No 10’s chief of staff on behalf of Huawei shortly before the Chinese telecoms giant was excluded from the UK’s security-sensitive 5G network, it has been confirmed.Leaked minutes of a 2020 meeting, obtained by The Sun, show that Guto Harri asked whether there were ministers he could “nudge” to preserve the company’s role in the hi-tech project, which was then subject to a security service review.The papers show that then chief of staff Sir Eddie Lister told Harri, representing lobbyists Hawthorn Advisers, that Johnson was “not anti-China” but was “caught” by concerns from the US administration of Donald Trump, as well as British parliamentarians, over the company’s links with the Communist Party regime.Downing Street confirmed that the meeting took place, but said it was legitimate for Mr Harri to undertake work for a client on behalf of his employer.Mr Johnson’s official spokesperson said it was “within the rules” and “obviously we met with a number of interested parties at that time while that discussion was taking place”.Minutes suggested Sir Eddie – now Lord Udny-Lister – said Mr Johnson did not want to ban the firm but was “caught” between that instinct and US and Tory pressure.“We want the technology, we want it rolled out. There’s an American concern and a parliamentary concern,” he said.“There are a large number of MPs across the political divide who have a problem with China. Some are Atlanticists, some over Covid, some over Hong Kong, some over human rights.”Mr Harri asked if there were “any ­ministers we should talk to? Perhaps give a nudge in DCMS (Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport) or Treasury?”, the minutes recorded.Responding to the leak, Mr Johnson’s spokesperson said the PM had described himself as a “Sinophile” but insisted the government had a “clear-eyed” approach to Beijing.“It’s in the UK’s interest to have an effective relationship with China,” the spokesperson said.“That needs to be clear eyed, as the Integrated Review (of foreign and defence policy) makes clear. We need to be able to address disagreements in a frank manner and address some of the challenges that China can pose. And that’s what the prime minister does.”In response to the suggestion that Mr Johnson was forced into the ban by US and Tory political pressure, the spokesman said: “Obviously, we want to ensure the UK has access to the best technology for its citizens.“But we need to balance that against any security concerns raised, any international concerns raised, that’s exactly what we did.“We listened to all sides of the argument. And you can see the action that we took, we planned the purchase of new 5G Huawei equipment and we’re stripping it out from our 5G networks.” More

Jacob Rees-Mogg has been made minister for Brexit opportunities as Boris Johnson kicked off a reshuffle designed to shore up his position following the Partygate scandal.Chief whip Mark Spencer has been moved to Mr Rees-Mogg’s former role as leader of the Commons, with a seat in cabinet.He was replaced as chief whip by Chris Heaton-Harris, who played a leading role in the parallel whipping system set up by the prime minister under the codename Operation Save Big Dog to shore up support as Tory MPs demanded his resignation over parties at No 10.Deputy chief whip Stuart Andrew was moved to Michael Gove’s levelling up department as housing minister. Labour immediately pointed out that the new housing minister voted against their proposals in 2016 to require landlords to make rented properties “fit for human habitation”.The party’s deputy leader Angela Rayner accused Johnson of “reshuffling the deckchairs when he’s already hit an iceberg”, while ignoring debates called by Labour in the Commons on the cost of living crisis and mental health.”Today, the Labour Party frontbench was in parliament proposing measures to tackle food poverty caused by an inflation crisis created in Downing Street and supporting the mental health of our children and young people – vital topics affecting families across the country,” said Ms Rayner.”What was Boris Johnson doing? Reshuffling the deckchairs when he’s already hit an iceberg. Labour is committed to security, prosperity and respect for everyone. Boris Johnson is desperately trying to save his own skin.” Mr Rees-Mogg will be a minister in the Cabinet Office in the newly-created role of minister for Brexit opportunities and government efficiency, and will also retain his seat in the cabinet.He is the first minister to be devoted to Brexit since the resignation of David Frost in December, though responsibility for negotiations with Brussels over issues like the Northern Ireland Protocol remains with foreign secretary Liz Truss.The North East Somerset MP and fervent Brexiteer famously once said that it could be 50 years before the UK reaped the benefits from EU withdrawal.Mr Spencer’s move comes after he came under fire internally over the botched attempt to save Owen Paterson from punishment for breaching lobbying rules, after Mr Johnson was forced into a U-turn by backbenchers angry at being whipped into supporting his old ally.And there was controversy after the vice-chair of the backbench 1922 Committee, William Wragg, spoke to police about whipping practices which he claimed amounted to blackmail, including alleged threats to withdraw government funding from rebels’ constituencies.The shake-up was triggered by Mr Johnson’s decision to appoint Stephen Barclay chief of staff in No 10 as part of his promise to show that Downing Street was changing in the wake of the Partygate affair.The appointment of a minister to a role normally held by a civil servant sparked concern that Mr Barclay would be unable to combine his new duties with the wide-ranging responsibilities of his other job of Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster.Mr Johnson is expected to make further changes today to transfer some of Mr Barclay’s portfolio to other ministers. More

Speaker condemns ‘disgraceful behaviour directed at’ Sir Keir StarmerCommons speaker Sir Lindsay Hoyle has intervened to warn Boris Johnson that his “words have consequences”, after a crowd surrounded Sir Keir Starmer outside parliament last night and heckled abuse, including slurs about Jimmy Savile.Branding the mob’s behaviour “disgraceful”, Sir Lindsay reiterated his criticism of the PM, saying his remarks about Sir Keir’s failure to prosecute Savile last week were “inappropriate” and “only inflame opinions”. Senior Conservative MPs have since said Mr Johnson must apologise and withdraw the false accusations.Updating MPs on Tuesday, Sir Lindsay also revealed he had requested a “situation report” from the Metropolitan Police over the incident, which saw officers rescue Sir Keir in a police car after protestors shouted “traitor” and accused him of “protecting paedophiles”.Downing Street has responded to last night’s events by making clear the PM will not apologise, and announcing a “small” reshuffle of his ministers. Among the moves is Jacob Rees-Mogg, who will be the minister responsible for so-called “Brexit opportunities”.Show latest update

1644331780Michael Ellis being made minister for the Cabinet OfficeMichael Ellis is being made a minister for the Cabinet Office, in addition to his current role as paymaster general, as part of the mini-reshuffle. Tom Batchelor8 February 2022 14:491644330452Downing Street says lobbying by PM’s new communications director for Huawei was ‘within the rules’Downing Street has insisted lobbying of No 10 by Boris Johnson’s new communications director in support of Chinese technology firm Huawei was within the rules, reports PA.Guto Harri reportedly asked Sir Eddie Lister which ministers could receive a “nudge” for his client in 2020.The communications chief was said to have been representing lobbying firm Hawthorn Advisors during the 25-minute video call including Huawei executives on 2 June that year.The following month, telecoms firms were ordered to strip Huawei equipment from 5G networks by 2027 over security fears.Downing Street confirmed a meeting took place, with the Prime Minister’s official spokesman saying it was “within the rules” and “obviously we met with a number of interested parties at that time while that discussion was taking place”.In response to the leak, Downing Street said Mr Johnson had described himself as a “Sinophile” but the government had a “clear-eyed” approach to Beijing.“It’s in the UK’s interest to have an effective relationship with China,” the prime minister’s official spokesman said.“That needs to be clear eyed, as the Integrated Review (of foreign and defence policy) makes clear. We need to be able to address disagreements in a frank manner and address some of the challenges that China can pose. And that’s what the prime minister does.”Tom Batchelor8 February 2022 14:271644329835Former Tory minister says PM’s Savile slur ‘a mistake’Ex-justice secretary Robert Buckland has criticised Boris Johnson over his discredited claim Keir Starmer failed to prosecute Jimmy Savile. “I think it was a mistake,” he said.He told BBC Politics: “It’s a moment for all of us as responsible politicians to take stock, and look ourselves and say, ‘Are we really behaving in a way that sets the right example?’ I think all of us in public life, including the prime minister, need to say enough.”Mr Buckland added: “I want to stop this. We live in times where there is a coarsening of the discourse. There is an angry mob out there.”Adam Forrest8 February 2022 14:171644329312New chief whip and housing minister announcedChris Heaton-Harris MP has been installed as the new chief whip, replacing Mark Spencer, who is replacing Jacob Rees-Mogg as Commons leader. Meanwhile, Tory MP Stuart Andrew is to be the new housing minister in the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, replacing Chris Pincher.Labour has dismissed the mini-reshuffle and changes at No 10 as “shuffling the deckchairs”.Tom Batchelor8 February 2022 14:081644328772Downing Street bought fridge for ‘meeting room’ with taxpayers’ moneyDowning Street bought a fridge for a meeting room with taxpayers’ money around the time No 10 was hosting “wine time Fridays” and other parties, The Independent can reveal.Boris Johnson was urged to “come clean” about how much public money had been spent on the lockdown bashes – a fact which is yet to have been established about the rule-breaking gatherings.Here is the story from our policy correspondent, Jon Stone: Tom Batchelor8 February 2022 13:591644328292Johnson regretted backing Brexit, says new No 10 spin doctorBoris Johnson regretted backing Brexit before the EU membership referendum, his new spin doctor Guto Harri told a senior journalist after the historic vote.The new director of communications told the New European’s editor-in-chief Matt Kelly in 2018 that Mr Johnson knew he had “f***** up” by coming out in favour of the UK’s exit, according to the newspaper.Mr Johnson submitted a column to the Daily Telegraph backing Brexit on the eve of the referedum. But he later admitted he had also written an anti-Brexit column saying Britain should “stay in” the EU.Read the full story here: Tom Batchelor8 February 2022 13:511644327932Opinion: Tories are hoping voters will forget ‘Partygate’ – they won’tWhat do Conservative MPs see in Boris Johnson, asks Marie Le Conte.The question has been asked again and again – and again, and again – over a number of years, but never more so than in the past few weeks. Politically toxic, bad at governing and unable to tame his parliamentary party, the prime minister currently has few things going for him.Read her full piece here: Tom Batchelor8 February 2022 13:451644327651Mark Spencer becomes Commons LeaderMark Spencer has been moved from Chief Whip to Commons Leader as part of Boris Johnson’s reshuffle, No 10 said. Tom Batchelor8 February 2022 13:401644327512Jacob Rees-Mogg made minister for ‘Brexit opportunities’Jacob Rees-Mogg will be the minister responsible for “Brexit opportunities” in the first move confirmed as part of Boris Johnson’s reshuffle.The shake-up of the ministerial team follows the appointment of Stephen Barclay as the prime minister’s chief of staff and comes as Mr Johnson seeks to relaunch his administration following the partygate row.Mr Rees-Mogg, previously the Leader of the House of Commons, will still sit at the Cabinet table in his new role as Minister for Brexit Opportunities and Government Efficiency.
Tom Batchelor8 February 2022 13:381644326834‘Hideous’ mob serves as ‘urgent reminder what is said in parliament reverberates outside’, says ex-minister Caroline Nokes, the former Tory immigration minister, has warned her parliamentary colleagues about the language they use after a mob harassed Sir Keir Starmer and David Lammy outside Portcullis House. She tweeted that “language has consequences” and referred to yesterday’s incident as “hideous”, adding that it served “as an urgent reminder that what is said inside the building reverberates outside”.Tom Batchelor8 February 2022 13:27 More

Downing Street bought a fridge for a meeting room with taxpayers’ money around the time No 10 was hosting “wine time Fridays” and other parties, The Independent can reveal.Boris Johnson was urged to “come clean” about how much public money had been spent on the lockdown bashes – a fact which is yet to have been established about the rule-breaking gatherings.No 10 insisted that the publicly-funded fridge was not involved in the festivities but shadow attorney general Emily Thornberry told The Independent that the government had questions to answer about any potential “misuse of public funds”.The Daily Mirror reported last month that a wine fridge had been “smuggled” into No 10 through the backdoor to hold bottles for the regular gatherings – prompting anger at a time when indoor socialising was supposed to be banned.The regular “wine times” sit alongside the 16 events investigated by top civil servant by Sue Gray, which all took place during May 2020 and April 2021.The government confirmed that the taxpayer-funded fridge had been purchased at some point between April 2020 and April 2021, though did not specify on which date. The fridge apparently expanded the chilled drinks holding capacity in a meeting room in No 10.Labour’s Ms Thornberry said: “We all know that Covid rules were repeatedly broken in Downing Street during lockdown, but we don’t yet know what taxpayers’ money was spent in the process.”Rather than have the answer to that question dragged out of them one pizza delivery or wine fridge at a time, I would urge Cabinet Office ministers simply to disclose any misuse of public funds they have discovered related to the Downing Street parties, and tell us what action has been taken as a result.”The government was last month asked by Ms Thornberry to disclose how much public money was spent on refrigerators for No 10 – but dragged its feet on responding.In its eventual response, Paymaster General Michael Ellis said in a written answer that two fridges had been purchased during the period, one to replace and existing fridge and one apparently to expand the capacity to store drinks in a meeting room.”Downing Street is a working building, including catering facilities and offices for staff; as is common in workplaces including the House of Commons, refrigerators are provided for general staff use,” he said.”One refrigerator was purchased in the financial year for a Downing Street meeting room, and one to replace an existing refrigerator that had reached the end of its working operation.”Notwithstanding, I can confirm that no such public expenditure was accrued in relation to the matters considered in the investigations by the Second Permanent Secretary or connected with associated media reports on this matter.”Sue Gray’s report found that “failures of leadership and judgement” and excessive drinking at work against the backdrop of the pandemic led to events that “should not have been allowed to take place”. She said that other events “should not have been allowed to develop as they did”.The prime minister faced calls to resign following the report, including from within his own party. No 10 is now subject to an investigation by the Metropolitan Police, which could levy fines under Covid-19 regulations.Police reportedly have a photograph of Boris Johnson holding a can of beer at one event, a lockdown birthday party allegedly instigate by his wife Carrie in June 2020. The picture is thought to be one of 300 submitted the Met by Ms Gray’s inquiry – which was asked not to publish details of the events so that it did not prejudice the ongoing police investigation.But full details of the parties may never be released because the prime minister will ultimately control whether evidence submitted by the second permanent secretary ever sees the light of day. More

Boris Johnson regretted backing Brexit before the EU membership referendum, his new spin doctor Guto Harri told a senior journalist after the historic vote.The new director of communications told the New European’s editor-in-chief Matt Kelly in 2018 that Mr Johnson knew he had “f***** up” by coming out in favour of the UK’s exit, according to the newspaper.Mr Johnson submitted a column to the Daily Telegraph backing Brexit on the eve of the referedum. But he later admitted he had also written an anti-Brexit column saying Britain should “stay in” the EU.Mr Harri is said to have told Mr Kelly at the GQ Men of the Year Awards in 2018 that Mr Johnson wishes he “sent the other letter”.The PR man, who formerly worked for Mr Johnson during his time as London mayor, is said to have added: “He knows he’s f***** up massively. Now he’s working out how to get himself out of the mess.”Mr Johnson’s official spokesperson did not deny on Tuesday the details of the conversation reported by The New European.But he added: “The prime minister himself has set out his views on Brexit, not least in a document setting out its benefits to the British people.”It comes as leaked documents suggest that the new director of communications lobbied a former No 10 chief of staff not to ban Chinese technology giant Huawei in the UK.The communications chief was said to have been representing lobbying firm Hawthorn Advisors during the 25-minute video call including Huawei executives on 2 June 2020.Mr Harri asked Sir Eddie Lister which ministers could receive a “nudge” for his client, The Sun reported. Minutes suggested Sir Eddie said Mr Johnson did not want to ban the firm, but was “caught” between two places.Asked if there were “any ministers we should talk to? Perhaps give a nudge in DCMS (Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport) or Treasury?”, the minutes suggested.The following month, telecoms firms were ordered to strip Huawei equipment from the 5G networks by 2027 over security fears.The PM’s spokesman defended Mr Harri’s appointment on Monday, saying: “He provided advice to the clients of a private company. That’s entirely legitimate, it’s in the public domain.”Comments made by Mr Harri criticising Mr Johnson have also surfaced since the announcement of his new role was made on Saturday evening.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 the PM had “weaknesses” to cover and had “always underestimated how critical it is to have a fantastic team around him”.On Monday he gave an interview saying Mr Johnson was “not all that clownish,” and sang Gloria Gaynor’s I Will Survive during a meeting with his new comms chief.Mr Harri has told officials that he had “learnt his lesson” from the interview and would not be doing more, The Independent understands. More

Boris Johnson will today conduct a mini-reshuffle of ministers as part of his shake-up of No 10 following the Partygate scandal.Downing Street confirmed that there would be a “small” redistribution of ministerial roles, but declined to say who was pencilled in for promotion or demotion.Chief whip Mark Spencer is widely tipped for a move, after the disastrous attempt to save former MP Owen Paterson from punishment for paid lobbying. His role could go to Johnson loyalist Chrisopher Pincher, who has led an alternative whipping operation to shore up the PM’s position following Partygate.Mr Spencer could take the leader of the Commons role currently occupied by Jacob Rees-Mogg, though it is thought the North East Somerset is likely to retain his cabinet membership, possibly as a minister without portfolio.The PM’s official spokesperson indicated that the reshuffle – expected to be completed this afternoon – was a consequence of the decision to make Stephen Barclay No 10 chief of staff on top of his job as Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster, requiring some of his responsibilities to be shared out to other ministers. More