Good news at last... a baby girl in Downing Street
AFTER the most challenging 24 hours of his prime ministerial career, Boris Johnson had a bundle of joy to celebrate yesterday: the arrival of his seventh child.
Mr Johnson’s wife, Carrie, gave birth to a “healthy baby girl” yesterday morning. Mr Johnson was present throughout, the Press Association reported.
It is the second child the Prime Minister has with his third wife after the birth of their son, Wilfred, in April last year.
Downing Street said that Mr Johnson, 57, would spend time with his family but stopped short of saying he would take a period of paternity leave.
“You can expect the Prime Minister to take some time with his family,” his official spokesman said. “As ever, he has to balance that with his responsibilities as Prime Minister in leading the country, which he will continue to do.”
The spokesman added: “I think there’s a recognition the Prime Minister has a unique role and this is a particularly challenging time for the country and the Prime Minister will continue to lead, as the public would expect, while making time for his family.”
The birth came just hours after Mr Johnson had endured one of his most difficult days in power, which included an ongoing row over Christmas parties in Downing Street and the introduction of new Plan B Covid rules, which has caused a rift in the Conservative Party.
A close friend said the birth had been expected this week. Mr Johnson’s close protection team had swept the hospital in the two hours before the birth.
A source said: “The PM had to go through this week knowing the baby was due to be born on top of everything else.”
In an announcement yesterday, a spokesman for the Johnsons said: “Both mother and daughter are doing very well. The couple would like to thank the brilliant NHS maternity team for all their care and support.”
The couple announced at the end of July that they were expecting their second child together, with Mrs Johnson, 33, having spoken of enduring a miscarriage earlier in the year.
The birth of a sister for Wilfred came the morning after the Prime Minister announced England was entering Plan B to combat the spread of the omicron variant of coronavirus.
Sir Keir Starmer sent his congratulations to the couple on the arrival of their baby, and added: “Wishing your family health and happiness.”
Rachel Johnson, the Prime Minister’s sister, said: “We are thrilled with the safe arrival of a beautiful baby girl.”
The new arrival means Mr Johnson has seven children, including four from his second marriage. It emerged during a court hearing in 2013 that he had fathered a daughter during an affair when he was London mayor in 2009.