Boris scraps daily White House-style briefings

Boris Johnson has axed plans for televised White House-style press conferences. The announcement came six months after Allegra Stratton was unveiled as the Prime Minister’s new spokesperson who would lead the daily Downing Street briefings.

Instead, Stratton will become his spokeswoman for COP26, the climate summit, fronting communications both strategically and publicly in the lead up to the event in November. Meanwhile, the No.9 Downing Street briefing room that had been renovated for the press briefings at the cost of £2.6m will be used instead by the Prime Minister, ministers and officials for government communications.

So what’s behind the change in plan? The televised press briefings were the brainchild of Lee Cain, Johnson’s first Director of Communications, who departed the role late last year. The events leading up to his resignation consisted of disagreements over Stratton’s appointment. Cain preferred other candidates for the job, such as the BBC’s Ellie Price. Meanwhile