How Boris Johnson read the riot act to his new PR chief on Day One

Boris Johnson has given his new communications chief ‘both barrels’ over a disastrous interview in which he declared the Prime Minister was ‘not a total clown’.

While speaking to a news website, Guto Harri had revealed that Mr Johnson sang the disco classic I Will Survive as they discussed his strategy to cling to power.

The interview – which appeared on Mr Harri’s first day as Downing Street director of communications on Monday – was widely mocked.

A Whitehall source said the Prime Minister had read the riot act to Mr Harri, and ordered him not to conduct further interviews. ‘This is not bloody rocket science,’ the source said. ‘What he did yesterday was not helpful in the slightest.

‘The PM gave it to him with both barrels on Monday afternoon, and Guto has now said he will not be talking on the record again. It’s fair to say the PM was not the only person he got it in the neck from.’

A Downing Street source last night denied the Prime Minister had reprimanded Mr Harri over the interview with Welsh language news website Golwg360.

But it is understood that he has agreed not to give further on-the-record media interviews while in post.

Mr Harri is a former BBC journalist who worked as Mr Johnson’s communications chief during his first term as London Mayor.

He was appointed as part of a Government ‘reset’ designed to show that the Prime Minister is taking a renewed grip on No 10 in the wake of the Partygate row.

Journalists were briefed that Mr Johnson was ‘bringing in capable, grown-up people who will make sure the machine works better’. Mr Harri made a combative start, taking on the leader’s nemesis Dominic Cummings on social media.

But he raised eyebrows on his first day by telling reporters as he arrived at No 10 that he had brought staff a gift of mineral water and healthy snacks – an apparent jibe at the alleged party culture in No 10.

His interview, in which he discussed his appointment, raised further questions.

Mr Harri revealed he had asked Mr Johnson whether he would survive the current controversy, adding: ‘Slowly and purposefully, while singing slightly, he finished his sentence by saying, ‘I will survive’.

‘He inevitably invited me to say, ‘You’ve got all your life to live’, and he replied, ‘I’ve got all my love to give’, and so we had a little blast of Gloria Gaynor.’

Mr Harri insisted the Government could recover, saying that although the Partygate revelations had caused ‘a great deal of hurt’ they had ‘nothing to do with the way people voted two years ago’. He added: ‘He is not a total clown, but he is a very likeable character.’

Some ministers are also concerned about comments made by Mr Harri during recent years when he was a frequent media pundit.

The anti-Brexit New European newspaper yesterday claimed that Mr Harri said the Prime Minister now regretted the decision to leave the EU – a claim denied by No 10.

Last week, he told BBC Radio Four’s PM programme that Mr Johnson’s attack on Sir Keir Starmer’s record on Jimmy Savile was a ‘low blow’.

But one Tory source said the arrival of Mr Harri was ‘good news’. The source said: ‘The interview was a misjudgment but Guto is a serious figure who knows the PM well and won’t be afraid to tell him the unvarnished truth.

‘They go back a long way and Boris trusts him – he is someone who can say no to the PM, and that is what he needs.’

Harri’s lobbying for Huawei did not break the rules, No10 insists 

By John Stevens Deputy Political Editor for the Daily Mail

Lobbying by Boris Johnson’s new spin doctor when he was working on behalf of controversial Chinese telecoms giant Huawei did not break any rules, Downing Street insisted yesterday.

Guto Harri requested help from the Prime Minister’s former chief of staff Lord Lister as Huawei tried to stop its equipment being banned from the UK’s 5G mobile phone network. 

According to minutes of a 25-minute video call in June 2020, which was also attended by Huawei executives, Mr Harri asked Lord Lister which ministers could be given a ‘nudge’.

The following month, telecoms firms were ordered by the Government to strip Huawei equipment from 5G networks by 2027 over security fears.

The Prime Minister’s spokesman said yesterday the meeting was ‘within the rules’ and ‘we met with a number of interested parties at that time while that discussion was taking place’.

 Lord Lister reportedly told the executives that Mr Johnson was not ‘anti-China’ and did not want to ban the firm but was ‘caught’ between that instinct and US and Tory pressure.

According to minutes obtained by The Sun, he said ‘We want the technology, we want it rolled out. There’s an American concern and a parliamentary concern. 

‘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.’

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. His spokesman said: ‘It’s in the UK’s interest to have an effective relationship with China.’