Sunday Mirror (Northern Ireland)
Don’t get Carried away, girlfriend . . .
Iwas talking to a friend of Boris Johnson’s partner, Carrie Symonds, about the difficulty she’s having defining her role. I feel for her and made sympathetic noises.
On the one hand she’s the UK equivalent of First Lady. Yet without a wedding ring she is in fact only First Girlfriend, which makes the PM sound like he’s 14 and is absurd given all the girlfriends he’s had.
Now a court is about to consider her function during a judicial review into how a badger cull in Derbyshire was called off.
Animal rights champion Carrie is fiercely against such slaughter, and lawyers will explore whether she had any part in that decision.
In fairness, it’s inevitable she’s interested in what her boyfriend is up to in the day job given she’s a political animal herself, having previously headed up the Conservative Party’s PR machine. It’s rumoured she advocated tougher sentences for violent and sexual offenders, having been the victim of one.
But as the country’s unelected First WAG she must avoid the temp
It wasn’t enthusiasm which led Leave. EU’s Arron Banks to celebrate Brexit 13 hours early. It was because on Friday he was in New Zealand – which is 13 hours ahead of
Britain.
Bad enough promoting pals of PM ... definitely not hers too
tation to wag the tail of the old dog who leads us.
She campaigned for her close chum, the failed MP Zac Goldsmith. He was elevated to the Lords after the election. If Carrie had a hand in that she shouldn’t have.
There’s a Cabinet reshuffle coming up. It would be bad enough seeing ministers promoted just because they’re Boris buddies.
But pals of Carrie would be totally unacceptable.
Talking about roles can be risky, as I learned shortly before Tony Blair became PM. I asked lawyer wife Cherie at a party: “Will you be carrying on your legal work when you’re in No10?” She rounded on me angrily: “Did your wife give up her job when you became Political Editor?”
Well, no. But then she wasn’t required at international summits, state occasions or to host endless No10 receptions. Anyway, I was just trying to make conversation, Cherie. Sorry I spoke.
Hillary Clinton clearly influenced husband Bill when he was US president. Laura Bush less so when George Dubya succeeded him.
You can’t imagine her saying over breakfast: “Why don’t you invade Iraq today, dear? And get your mate Tony to help. Anything from the supermarket?”
Sarah Brown was devoted to charity work while husband Gordon was hurling Nokias around, and Samantha Cameron detested political events.
Michelle Obama left Barack to run the country – while Melania Trump looks like she just wants to run from Donald.
Carrie has a good job at environmentalists Oceana. She should concentrate on it.