The dastadly Mr Deedes

Aerospace types are steaming about the Government’s poor showing at the recent Paris Air Show. With hefty contracts up for grabs, they expected a Cabinet big beast there to lobby on their behalf. Instead they got junior trade nonentity Mark Garnier. An industry insider moans: ‘Hardly a heavy hitter. And to think barely a year ago, Liam Fox was accusing businessmen of being the ones who were too fat and lazy to crack export markets.’

Apropos this week’s cyber attack, which left city lawyers DLA Piper ‘not knowing what to do with themselves’, staff at advertising giant WPP were also twiddling their thumbs. Some took to Twitter to announce how they were passing the time. Sample tweet: ‘If you’re looking for any WPP employees, they’ll be in the Square Pig, Old Nick or Old Queens Head in Holborn.’

Decent turnout for Bell Pottinger’s 30th anniversary party on Pall Mall this week. Among those supping the City PR firm’s Pol Roger was Brexit minister David Davis as well as the Prime Minister’s de facto deputy dawg, Damian Green. Intriguing sight of the evening: famed White House saucepot Monica Lewinsky monopolising the attentions of David’s Cameron’s wolfish father-in-law, Viscount Astor. Meanwhile across Hyde Park, The Serpentine Gallery’s once-lustrous summer bash appeared to have lost its allure. ‘It was like cougarville,’ wails a guest.

How has mumsyish former City Minister Harriett Baldwin gone down with the defence sector since she was parachuted into the MoD from the Treasury? One executive’s harsh verdict: ‘Totally clueless. She’s already known as Harriett Baldrick.’

Bank of England Governor Mark Carney had an ‘op-ed’ slot in yesterday’s Financial Times, in which he discussed how markets can help climate change. It was so snooze-worthy the FT didn’t even preview it in its news section. What’s climate change got to do with the BoE anyway? Some wonder if Carney’s more focused on a political career when his term ends in 2019.