Budapest Post

Cum Deo pro Patria et Libertate
Budapest, Europe and world news

Daily Mail calling? Boris Johnson weighs offers for his return to journalism

Daily Mail calling? Boris Johnson weighs offers for his return to journalism

Outgoing PM expected to find new home for his old trade as journalist after Telegraph cools on his qualities
Three days before he became prime minister, Boris Johnson’s final column for the Daily Telegraph was published: a call for Britain to heed the lessons from the 1969 moon landings and embrace a “can-do spirit” while implementing Brexit.

Such political insight did not come cheap, with Johnson pocketing a £275,000 salary for working 10 hours a month on his weekly opinion pieces.

But, with the Telegraph titles having turned increasingly lukewarm on the prime minister after the Partygate scandal, it may be that Johnson will have to find a new home if he wants to return to journalism after leaving No 10.

He may have other options: multiple sources at the Daily Mail have said Johnson has been approached about writing a column for the paper when he leaves Downing Street.

Such an arrangement could cement the close links between the prime minister and the Mail titles – with potential benefits for all involved. There has been continued speculation that Johnson is preparing to give a peerage to the Paul Dacre – the editor-in-chief of the Daily Mail’s parent company – in his resignation honours list. That could go some way to placating Dacre, after Johnson failed to secure him the job of running media regulator Ofcom.

At the same time, the prime minister is looking for new sources of income, as his salary will halve to £84,000 when he leaves office. He is also dealing with the aftermath of an expensive divorce and the cost of supporting multiple children.

Downing Street declined to comment on whether Johnson had been offered a role by the newspaper, while a spokesperson for the Daily Mail did not return a request for comment.

Johnson had a long association with the Daily Telegraph, where he wrote a weekly column throughout most of his political career. He once described the £275,000 salary for this second job as “chicken feed” – but he may be in search of such scraps of income when he loses the prime ministerial salary.

The current strong relationship between Johnson and the Mail is a rapid U-turn from last autumn, when the newspaper was often critical of the prime minister under former editor Geordie Greig.

Greig was replaced by Ted Verity, an acolyte of Dacre who made clear his disdain for the previous regime. Verity’s wife, Joanne Hegarty, has been friendly with Carrie Johnson – and posted on Instagram about being invited to Number 10 by the prime minister’s wife.

In recent months the Mail has staunchly defended the prime minister over the Partygate scandal, run relentless attack pieces on Tory MPs who criticised Johnson, and done everything possible to ensure Liz Truss beats Rishi Sunak to be prime minister.

Right to the very end, the Mail continued to back Johnson even when other Conservative-supporting publications questioned the prime minister’s ability to stay in power. When he was finally forced out of office by Tory MPs, the newspaper published a front page asking: “What the hell have they done?”

On Monday, the Mail published a front-page comment calling on Tory MPs to drop a House of Commons privileges committee investigation into Johnson. Killing the inquiry would make it easier for Johnson to pursue other lucrative income streams – and ensure he isn’t kicked out of parliament in a recall byelection.

The prime minister is in line for millions of pounds in speaking fees after he leaves office, as well as money from his much-delayed biography of Shakespeare. He is also looking for a new home, after putting the Camberwell home he owns with his wife on the market for £1.6m.

If Johnson joins the Daily Mail, it would end a long association with the Daily Telegraph, which gave him a second chance as a young journalist after he was sacked by the Times for fabricating a quote. Johnson became the Telegraph’s star Brussels correspondent – writing stories about preposterous EU regulations, which paved the way for Brexit – before returning home to be a political columnist and enter politics.

Yet in recent months the Telegraph has been less than supportive on the prime minister, running critical stories and much less enthusiastic editorials than the Daily Mail.
AI Disclaimer: An advanced artificial intelligence (AI) system generated the content of this page on its own. This innovative technology conducts extensive research from a variety of reliable sources, performs rigorous fact-checking and verification, cleans up and balances biased or manipulated content, and presents a minimal factual summary that is just enough yet essential for you to function as an informed and educated citizen. Please keep in mind, however, that this system is an evolving technology, and as a result, the article may contain accidental inaccuracies or errors. We urge you to help us improve our site by reporting any inaccuracies you find using the "Contact Us" link at the bottom of this page. Your helpful feedback helps us improve our system and deliver more precise content. When you find an article of interest here, please look for the full and extensive coverage of this topic in traditional news sources, as they are written by professional journalists that we try to support, not replace. We appreciate your understanding and assistance.
Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Study Finds No Safe Level of Alcohol for Dementia Risk
Trump Says Ukraine Can Fully Restore Borders with NATO Backing
Europe Signals Stronger Support for Taiwan at Major Taipei Defence Show
Germany Weighs Excluding France from Key European Fighter Jet Programme
Cyberattack Disrupts Check-in and Boarding Systems at Major European Airports
Björn Borg Breaks Silence: Memoir Reveals Addiction, Shame and Cancer Battle
When Extremism Hijacks Idealism: How the Baader-Meinhof Gang Emerged and Fell
JWST Data Brings TRAPPIST-1e Closer to Earth-Like Habitability
Trump Orders $100,000 Fee on H-1B Visas and Launches ‘Gold Card’ Immigration Pathway
France’s Looming Budget Crisis and Political Fracture Raise Fears of Becoming Europe’s “Sick Man”
Three Russian MiG-31 Jets Breach Estonian Airspace in ‘Unprecedentedly Brazen’ NATO Incident
European manufacturers against ban on polluting cars: "The industry may collapse"
Turkish car manufacturer Togg Enters German Market with 5-Star Electric Sedan and SUV to Challenge European EV Brands
Christian Brueckner Released from German Prison after Serving Unrelated Sentence
World’s Longest Direct Flight China Eastern to Launch 29-Hour Shanghai–Buenos Aires Direct Flight via Auckland in December
New OpenAI Study Finds Majority of ChatGPT Use Is Personal, Not Professional
The conservative right spreads westward: a huge achievement for 'Alternative for Germany' in local elections
Pope Leo Warns of Societal Crisis Over Mega-CEO Pay, Citing Tesla’s Proposed Trillion-Dollar Package
Poland Green-Lights NATO Deployment in Response to Major Russian Drone Incursion
U.S. and China Agree on Framework to Shift TikTok to American Ownership
Le Pen Tightens the Pressure on Macron as France Edges Toward Political Breakdown
Czech Republic signs €1.34 billion contract for Leopard 2A8 main battle tanks with delivery from 2028
Penske Media Sues Google Over “AI Overviews,” Claiming It Uses Journalism Without Consent and Destroys Traffic
Indian Student Engineers Propose “Project REBIRTH” to Protect Aircraft from Crashes Using AI, Airbags and Smart Materials
One in Three Europeans Now Uses TikTok, According to the Chinese Tech Giant
Could AI Nursing Robots Help Healthcare Staffing Shortages?
NATO Deploys ‘Eastern Sentry’ After Russian Drones Violate Polish Airspace
The New Life of Novak Djokovic
German police raid AfD lawmaker’s offices in inquiry over Chinese payments
Volkswagen launches aggressive strategy to fend off Chinese challenge in Europe’s EV market
France Erupts in Mass ‘Block Everything’ Protests on New PM’s First Day
Poland Shoots Down Russian Drones in Airspace Violation During Ukraine Attack
Apple Introduces Ultra-Thin iPhone Air, Enhanced 17 Series and New Health-Focused Wearables
Macron Appoints Sébastien Lecornu as Prime Minister Amid Budget Crisis and Political Turmoil
Vatican hosts first Catholic LGBTQ pilgrimage
Apple Unveils iPhone 17 Series, iPhone Air, Apple Watch 11 and More at 'Awe Dropping' Event
France joins Eurozone’s ‘periphery’ as turmoil deepens, say investors
France Faces New Political Crisis, again, as Prime Minister Bayrou Pushed Out
Nayib Bukele Points Out Belgian Hypocrisy as Brussels Considers Sending Army into the Streets
France, at an Impasse, Heads Toward Another Government Collapse
The Country That Got Too Rich? Public Spending Dominates Norway Election
EU Proposes Phasing Out Russian Oil and Gas by End of 2027 to End Energy Dependence
More Than 150,000 Followers for a Fictional Character: The New Influencers Are AI Creations
EU Prepares for War
Trump Threatens Retaliatory Tariffs After EU Imposes €2.95 Billion Fine on Google
Tesla Board Proposes Unprecedented One-Trillion-Dollar Performance Package for Elon Musk
Gold Could Reach Nearly $5,000 if Fed Independence Is Undermined, Goldman Sachs Warns
Uruguay, Colombia and Paraguay Secure Places at 2026 World Cup
Trump Administration Advances Plans to Rebrand Pentagon as Department of War Instead of the Fake Term Department of Defense
Big Tech Executives Laud Trump at White House Dinner, Unveil Massive U.S. Investments
×