Pair exchanged vows at Westminster Cathedral on Saturday, according to newspapers
Boris Johnson has married Carrie Symonds at Westminster Cathedral in a ceremony planned in strict secrecy, according to newspapers.
The pair exchanged vows in front of a small group of close friends and family on Saturday, the Mail on Sunday and the Sun newspaper reported.
Continue reading...Couple have been engaged since late 2019 but had put their marriage plans on hold due to the coronavirus pandemic
Boris Johnson is reportedly to marry his fiancee, Carrie Symonds, in July 2022 after sending save-the-date cards to family and friends, according to the Sun.
They have been engaged since late 2019 but, like many couples, had put their marriage plans on hold due to the coronavirus pandemic with numbers able to attend ceremonies curtailed.
Continue reading...Parliamentary standards watchdog says it is looking into a possible breach of MPs’ code of conduct
Boris Johnson is under investigation over who paid for his Caribbean holiday with his fiancee, Carrie Symonds, during Christmas 2019.
The parliamentary standards commissioner, Kathryn Stone, confirmed on Monday morning that she was investigating a possible breach of the MPs’ code of conduct.
Continue reading...Leader of Scottish Conservatives says PM should ‘of course’ quit if he has not been honest about payments for Downing Street refurb
One of the UK’s most senior Conservatives has broken ranks and called for Boris Johnson to resign if he breached ministerial rules over the refurbishment of a Downing Street flat, amid new claims that undeclared donations have been sought to fund the prime minister’s lavish lifestyle.
Douglas Ross, the leader of the Scottish Conservatives, said on Sunday that Johnson should “of course” quit if he is found to have breached the code by failing to be honest about cash payments from a Conservative donor sought to redecorate his official residence.
Continue reading...Analysis: Boris Johnson’s fiancee has no official role, but has helped shape the personnel and vision of the PM’s office
“She’s buying gold wallpaper,” Boris Johnson is said to have told panicked aides last February of his fiancee Carrie Symonds’ interior decorating plans for their No 11 flat. The costs far exceeded the £30,000 allowance for prime ministers, and apparent attempts last year to cover them by other means – Conservative party funds, a charitable trust and Tory donors – seem to have failed.
As well as Dominic Cummings’ diatribe over the “unethical, foolish and possibly illegal” refurbishment spending saga, Helen MacNamara, the Cabinet Office’s director general of propriety and ethics, was also reported to be strongly opposed.
Continue reading...Behind the Aspinall Foundation is a history of power, riches and links to the Tory party
When Carrie Symonds was welcomed to her job at the wildlife conservation charity the Aspinall Foundation in January, her new boss gushed that she had arrived at an “exciting time” for the organisation. Symonds, said Damian Aspinall, would be a “huge asset to us”.
Coverage of Boris Johnson’s fiancee’s appointment as head of communications focused on her well-publicised love of animals – useful, given the foundation’s charitable mission. It oversees Howletts and Port Lympne wildlife parks in Kent, home to exotic threatened species including rhinos, elephants, gorillas and cheetahs, which are prepared for a return to the wild in Africa.
Continue reading...No 10 does not deny reports that scheme could cover costs of works by PM’s fiancee, Carrie Symonds
Downing Street is trying to set up a charity that could cover the costs of the refurbishment of Boris Johnson’s flat, which he shares with his fiancee, Carrie Symonds.
A No 10 spokesman would not deny reports in the Daily Mail that the prime minister is attempting to set up a charity where benefactors can contribute to the upkeep of Downing Street.
Symonds is understood to have undertaken a substantial redecoration of the flat above No 11 that she shares with Johnson and their baby son, Wilfred. Johnson is known to have joked with Conservative MPs about the cost of the refurbishment.
According to the Mail, the purpose of the charitable fund would be to maintain not just the No 11 flat, but also other parts of Downing Street, including the state rooms, and could therefore be presented as having a wider heritage purpose.
Continue reading...£350-a-day position as government adviser made via ‘direct appointment process’
A close friend of the prime minister and his fiancee was given an official position at the Home Office without the role being publicly advertised, a freedom of information request has revealed.
Nimco Ali, who is reportedly godmother to the son of Carrie Symonds and Boris Johnson, was appointed adviser on tackling violence against women and girls in October.
Continue reading...It’s no surprise Boris Johnson’s fiancee has his ear. But the former spin doctor may be turning into another unelected decision-maker
There could only be one winner. Shimmying across her office rooftop while miming valiantly to a Taylor Swift song, the new Tory MP Dehenna Davison beat a strong performance from veteran London politician Andrew Boff (resplendent in full drag and feather boa) to win the LGBT+ Conservative group’s virtual lip sync battle last month.
And laughing along over Zoom from her living room, her rescue dog Dilyn barking in the background, was Carrie Symonds. The prime minister’s 32-year-old fiancee not only judged the virtual fundraiser in aid of LGBT+ candidates but persuaded her partner to join her briefly on camera. Gone, apparently, was the Boris Johnson who wrote of “tank-topped bumboys” in a 1998 newspaper column. The one who, as London’s mayor, once wore a pink Stetson for Pride is back.
Continue reading...George Eustice says departure of PM’s top aide will have no particular impact on negotiations
The UK environment secretary, George Eustice, has denied that the departure of Dominic Cummings – one of the architects of Vote Leave – will have any impact on Brexit negotiations.
As the Brexit deal deadline approaches, Eustice sought to downplay Cummings’ exit from No 10 by arguing it would not alter discussions with Brussels as UK negotiations are led by David Frost.
Continue reading... After birth of boy Downing Street says PM intends to take paternity leave later this year
Boris Johnson is back at work in Downing Street and is not expected to take paternity leave at the moment, after the birth of his son in the early hours of Wednesday.
The prime minister’s press secretary said he would take paternity leave later in the year, after he and his fiancee, Carrie Symonds, welcomed their child at an NHS hospital in London.
Continue reading...Prime minister and partner, who also lives at No 10, also announced their engagement
Boris Johnson and Carrie Symonds have announced they are expecting a baby and that they have got engaged.
A spokesperson for the couple said: “The prime minister and Miss Symonds are very pleased to announce their engagement and that they are expecting a baby in the early summer.”
Continue reading...The influence exerted on the prime minister by his partner, Carrie Symonds, will be explored in court after permission was granted last week for a judicial review into how the government came to pull a cull on badgers in Derbyshire.
The case could embarrass Boris Johnson and raise questions about the government’s willingness to listen to its advisers when formulating policy.
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