Boris Johnson’s right-hand ‘man’ has been revealed – and it might surprise those who thought Dominic Cummings was pulling the strings of the ex-Prime Minister. In a new book set to be released next month titled Johnson at 10: The Inside Story, authors Anthony Seldon and Raymond Newell said Boris’s wife Carrie was the voice behind several of his decisions. The book claims Carrie was offered a junior ministerial post in the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport to “appease her”.
The authors added: “We are saying that for all Cummings’ bluster when push came to shove Boris listened to Carrie. Symonds was beginning to focus back on politics. As she adjusted to her new reality in the very different and restricting world of the Downing Street flat, and to the birth of her first child, Wilfred, it became clear to her that Cummings was no longer an asset.
“The departures of Javid and then of Mark Sedwill had unsettled her confidence in him, no longer perceiving him to be a strategic necessity as he was in the summer of 2019. Her relationship with Cummings deteriorated further after Johnson’s illness.”
Dominic Cummings served as the senior advisor to Boris before he resigned on November 13.
The book further outlined Carrie’s “allies were on the warpath”.
The book also claims that Cummings had come up with a nickname for Carrie – “Princess Nut Nut”.
The pair reportedly had a damaged relationship after a conflict of interest.
“Cummings believed that Johnson was most useful as a vessel, while Symonds’ firm views often didn’t chime with Johnson’s”, the book said.
“Both inspired great loyalty in their teams, but they also struck fear in those around them.”
READ MORE: Emmanuel Macron has become China’s puppet in Europe
An aide told the authors that people found Carrie “difficult, precious and scary”.
Carrie married Boris Johnson in 2021 and has two children with the former PM – Wilfred and Romy.
She worked as a Conservative Party media official and an environmental activist, and remains a senior advisor to the ocean conservation charity Oceana, and is a patron of the Conservative Animal Welfare Foundation.