Politicos party, with a wary eye on a tense summer to come

THE happy un-pinged few in politics piled

into Westminster’s gardens last night as tensions crackled beneath the surface.

At the Spectator’s bash we spotted radio presenter Julia Hartley-Brewer browbeating Jacob Rees-Mogg, threatening to “do a Ukip” with a political movement to kneecap Tory support at a future election. Not everyone was convinced. “The idea is mad,” one respected pollster sighed, saying support was too low.

Over in College Gardens, a senior Tory MP predicted political fireworks to come: “there will be a recall of Parliament… we’re still deep into an enduring emergency.” Another minister conceded: “We prepare for every possibility”.

Back in the Spectator garden, former No 10 comms boss Lee Cain declined to follow Dominic Cummings’s lead and dished no dirt on his former colleagues. “I love Boris, I love Dom,” he grinned to us. Munira Mirza, the director of the Policy Unit, went one better when we asked about her reported role in the culture wars. “I love everyone,” she replied. Butter wouldn’t melt.

SINGERS Lily Allen and Lianne La Havas and footballer Eniola Aluko marked the Olympics last night with an Omakase dining experience. Sprinter Linford Christie joined the Omega event in a suave waistcoat. “I had it before Gareth Southgate,” he insisted. Across town, model Daisy Lowe dined with fashion designer Alexa Chung to celebrate Chung’s Mulberry launch. LILY ALLEN LIANNE LA HAVAS ALEXA CHUNG DAISY LOWE ENIOLA ALUKO LINFORD CHRISTIE