Who will take over the Evening Standard, the ailing London freesheet currently losing £14 million a year? One name floated by those in the know is a certain Boris Johnson. The chatter at the Northcliffe House is that the former PM decided against it, with one old hand suggesting that Johnson thought the paper was not long for this world. A spokesman for Johnson did not deny he’d been offered the role when asked but refused to comment.
It seems Lebedev has his eyes on another former chancellor. Rishi Sunak’s name, too, has been mentioned by one Steerpike conspirator
Johnson would have been a rare catch for proprietor Evgeny Lebedev, a global figure with decades of journalistic experience. Liz Truss must be relieved that her predecessor has so far decided against a return to his old Fleet Street stomping ground. Earlier this week documents appeared on Companies House registering Boris Johnson Ltd, which will reportedly act as a private office to help the ex-PM in his day-to-day duties. Perhaps those duties will include the lucrative after-dinner speaking circuit, an easy way to supplement the £115,000 a year he’s already entitled to claim from the taxpayer.
The Russian oligarch owner certainly has a thing for big-name hires. In 2017, he appointed the former chancellor George Osborne as editor. Just a few years before, Osborne had offered to match donations made to a Standard campaign in aid of Great Ormond Street hospital with taxpayer money. Johnson also has a cosy relationship with the Russian millionaire, making him a life peer in 2020. That decision caused much unease at the time, with reports suggesting concern among the security services.
It seems Lebedev has his eyes on another former chancellor. Rishi Sunak’s name, too, has been mentioned by one Steerpike conspirator, although given Sunak’s own wealth there’s surely a chance that he could just buy the paper if he felt so inclined. Another name in the mix is Dylan Jones, the outgoing editor of GQ. Jones spent 22 years at the helm of the upmarket gents’ mag until publisher Conde Nast decided to merge the operation with its US counterpart. At 62, there’s still plenty of fight left in this old hack. Mr S wonders whether the same can be said for Boris Johnson…
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