NEWS ANALYSIS: Boris Johnson changes tack in fight for political survival

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson has promised to shake up operations in his 10 Downing Street office to try to survive his gravest crisis yet over boozy events held at the heart of power during Covid-19 lockdowns.

Key to the organisation changes is a promise he made when he met  Conservative Party MPs in parliament on Monday that he would turn to Australian political strategist Lynton Crosby, who has helped him before and is respected by many Conservative legislators, as an ad hoc “strategic adviser”.

Johnson then reaffirmed his commitment to one of the promises that got him elected in 2019 — “levelling up” Britain to reduce chronic inequality between the affluent south of England and the more deprived north, which was welcomed more widely than expected.

Johnson has sent a clear signal: he is betting on a change of style targeting his administration rather than a change of substance to get through the scandal about alleged staff parties at the prime minister's No 10 Downing Street office while the country was under Covid-19 lockdown.

“He needs to start delivering so people start feeling the benefit,” one veteran Conservative said on condition of anonymity. “Just get stuff done.” Another, who was at the meeting, said: “The penny has dropped.” They said Johnson seemed to have finally understood that for many legislators, No 10 seemed remote, handing down orders without listening to other opinions in the party.

Since becoming prime minister in July 2019, Johnson has taken Britain out of the EU and led it through the Covid-19 pandemic. He has also proved gaffe-prone and now faces calls to resign, including from some Conservatives.

He is not out of the woods. After a failed rebellion by newer MPs fizzled out last month, he is now seeing a steady stream of more senior Conservatives announcing they are calling for him to go.

After the release of an initial report on the lockdown events by senior civil servant Sue Gray citing “serious failures of leadership” and London police launched an investigation into the reported parties, Johnson addressed worried Conservative MPs packed into a room in parliament.

The prime minister apologised, joked, acknowledged mistakes and promised changes to his administration, four of the MPs there told Reuters.

He accepted that his team in Downing Street needed to be more inclusive, his cabinet team of top ministers strengthened and that he had to be more accessible to legislators, many of whom have questioned whether he even knew their names, they said.

‘Strategic advice’

Johnson now plans to create a new office of the prime minister, with a permanent secretary to lead No 10, and to review codes of conduct for government workers.

Central to appeasing his legislators was Johnson’s announcement that Crosby “was going to be asked to give strategic advice”, one of those present said.

Crosby helped Johnson get elected mayor of London in 2008 and win a second term four years later.

Crosby did not immediately respond to a Reuters e-mail request for comment on his plans, which MPs said might involve a member of his team being brought on a more permanent basis into Downing Street.

Crosby is seen as a man who can “focus and bring out the best version of Boris”, the veteran Conservative said, suggesting he could help rebuild relations between Downing Street and restive Conservative MPs.

Another said Crosby and his team would bring “the focus and the discipline to deliver” on policy.

But Crosby also carries risks for Johnson. He has in the past drawn fire over some of his campaign tactics, and his return to favour will not placate all Conservatives.

Johnson also faces other dangers. Intensified scrutiny of his actions will come when police complete their inquiry into the alleged lockdown parties and when Gray’s full report comes out, and he is likely to be confronted by more calls to quit.

Aware of this, Johnson is seeking to reassure his party he will not make any big policy changes to ride out the crisis, but instead, when he can, return to be a tax-cutting, small-state Conservative — after pushing through much criticised increases to some taxes to tackle a health and social care crisis.

Johnson reinforced that message on Wednesday when his government set out its flagship “levelling-up” plan, the extension of a campaign pledge that helped the Conservatives win votes in longtime opposition strongholds in 2019.

Johnson said in parliament that his government must now “get on with the job”. Doing so is vital to his own future.

Reuters