Welsh broadcaster Guto Harri back working as Boris Johnson’s spin doctor

Guto Harri is back working for Boris Johnson as a spin doctor, it has been reported.

According to Tim Shipman, of The Sunday Times, the Welsh broadcaster and journalist, has been appointed the No10 Director of Communications.

The move to appoint Y Byd yn ei Le presenter Harri, who was Johnson’s PR chief during his tenure as Mayor of London, comes following the resignation of Jack Doyle last week.

In a post on Twitter, Tim Shipman said: “Johnson putting the old gang back together.”

Steve Barclay has been appointed the new Downing Street chief of staff, but he will stay on a minister and create a new Office of the Prime Minister across No 10 and the Cabinet Office, where he is now based, according to The Sunday Times journalist. Barclay replaces Dan Rosenfield in the post.

Candidates for the posts of chief of staff and communications director were reportedly smuggled into No10, with Harri being given his new post after a one-on-one interview with the Prime Minister in his office.

The former BBC technology correspondent Rory Cellan-Jones posted:

Las Vegas 2007 and I suggest to  ⁦@Guto_Harri⁩ that one day Boris Johnson will be PM and it will be his task to dig him out of a huge hole pic.twitter.com/OM5amqnBD4

— Rory Cellan-Jones (@ruskin147) February 5, 2022

The changes to the No10 team come as Johnson struggles to save his premiership, and following a string of high profile resignations from his top team as calls for him to resign from several Tory MPs over the partygate scandal.

The Prime Minister has reportedly dubbed the struggle to save his premiership as “Operation Save Big Dog”.

One senior No10 adviser told The Sunday Times: “He’s [Boris Johnson] making very clear that they’ll have to send a Panzer division to get him out of there.”