Thursday’s cabinet reshuffle may have been minor but the No. 10 shake-up is proving more substantive. Amber de Botton has stepped down as Director of Communications saying ‘it is the right time to move on’.
In her statement, the former broadcast journalist describes No. 10 as ‘a demanding and high pressure place to work – yet the professionalism and talent they display every day is exceptional.’
De Botton’s successor is her former deputy Nerissa Chesterfield. Chesterfield is a long-standing aide of Sunak’s, handling his press operation during his time as chancellor. Prior to that Chesterfield worked for Liz Truss as well as the Institute for Economic Affairs. She is a Brexiteer. It means Sunak has – like with the appointment of Claire Coutinho as Energy Secretary – promoted people he trusts and knows well. It also suggests there won’t be a major change of comms strategy, though Downing Street is moving to a more combative footing.
Booth-Smith told Spads that if they don’t believe the election can be won by the Tories, they should leave
On Thursday the former health adviser Jamie Njoku-Goodwin returned to government as director of strategy, after a period leading UK Music, the industry lobby group.
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