The Telegraph have rested a lot on the success of their new podcast The Daily T. Though with negative reactions amongst the public and trailers on social media flopping, it hasn’t got off to a good start. Editorial is now seeking support from their own instead…

The Managing Editor’s office have sent Telegraph personnel an email subjected “Request” begging them to listen and give good reviews, pleading: “it would be great if everyone in the newsroom could help to promote it across their social media platforms when it drops at 5pm. Listen, rate and like!” One source tells Guido:

“When it comes to The Daily T, so far it’s T for ‘terrified’ among the Telegraph’s editors who are panicking that they’ve squandered hundreds of thousands of pounds on yet another idiotic experiment.”

Nervous times at Telegraph towers…

Last month Guido spotted Will Tanner, the PM’s Deputy Chief of Staff and founder of centrist Tory think tank Onward, snooping around Tory safe seats in Essex. Now it’s been reported that Tanner was a guest speaker at a meeting of Stratford Conservatives yesterday. Michael Crick is saying “Tanner is clearly keen to replace Zahawi” in the Tory safe seat…

Tanner’s antics have sparked outrage among many Tory MPs. They’re furious at the idea that “wet” Tanner could be popped into a rare safe seat. One tells Guido:

“So we all get to lose our seats and Tanner has a run at one of the safest in Stratford? He’s been a big part of the problem and we’ve all found him a nightmare to deal with under Rishi. On crime, on the boats, on legal migration he’s dragged his feet over and over again. It’s rotten and cannot be right”.

Another Tory MP says:

“Normally, outgoing PMs wait until the resignation honours list and stick them in the Lords. Tanner is a well known wet and I’m not sure those of us colleagues left after the election will rush to welcome him too warmly.”

Looks like Tanner is planning to stay in politics after the predicted Tory wipeout…

Two months ago Simon Enright, one-time press adviser to the King and Queen, was being tipped to become “Sir Keir Starmer’s king of spin in 10 Downing Street“. According to The Sun’s Harry Cole, Sue Gray was “keen to bring in Simon Enright”, which seemed plausible given he had been providing training and advice to the shadow cabinet.

That didn’t play out, Simon Enright last week left spin-shop Freuds to become the new director of communications for Grant Shapps at the Ministry of Defence. Which means Sue Gray is still looking for a new “king of spin” for Number 10…

She could of course choose a queen, Beth Rigby’s online analysis in what is the unregulated-by-Ofcom “Sky Analysis” (formerly “Sky Views”) section of the channel’s website already reads like she is writing press releases for the Labour Party:

Perhaps the Parliamentary Lobby’s only openly known Labour Party member, Paul Waugh, might get the job assuming he doesn’t want instead to have a second go at becoming the MP for Rochdale.

Could Tom Baldwin reprise the role he did for Miliband? His hagiography of Keir shows his closeness to the principal. They say everyone has a third act in them…

Last week Guido reported on the pied-piper of Walsall Council, Cllr Mike Bird, taking a bunch of Tory councillors with him to his new “Conservative and Independent” group. Bird was suspended for three months following an investigation, though he told Guido that his putsch in Walsall did not mean the Tories had lost control of the council. CCHQ are saying otherwise…

Messages have been sent from CCHQ to the Tory councillors that joined Bird’s Con Indie group telling them they are now being investigated for alleged breaches of the Code of Conduct. The stark messages also say that these former Tory councillors “are in fact sitting in opposition“, “no longer represent the party“, and may have “brought the Party into disrepute“. Will there be more ‘Conservative and Independent’ councils popping up across the country? 

“Common sense” minister Esther McVey is today outlining plans to stop any new civil service jobs dedicated to equality, diversity and inclusivity. She may want to take a look at time spent on being a “Network Chair” within the blob…

The Civil Service currently has over 20 cross-government staff ‘networks’ that are meant to create a “provide a space” for underrepresented groups to feel a sense of community and be supported. They include faith, disability, race and wellbeing networks, from “The Cross-Government Flexible Working”, “Civil Service Stammering Network” to “a:gender”. That’s a lot of safe space…

Network Chairs are members of the blob who are paid up to £81,000 for their day job. An FOI request shows each Network Chair is permitted to spend 20% FTE (full time equivalent) on the role, the value of £16,200 in some cases. That 20% could fund someone to answer the phone to tax payers…

Someone over in CCHQ will be in trouble today as an email sent round encouraging members to submit their registration for this years Conservative Party Conference shared hundreds of email addresses. It appears the CCHQ staffer who sent the round robin didn’t know how to BCC the recipients, CCing them instead. So anyone who has seen the email can also find everyone else on the chain’s addresses. A major breach of GDPR…

Failure to use BCC in email chains has caused trouble for organisations before. The Central YMCA made the same mistake. They were fined £7,500 earlier this year and issued a reprimand by the Information Commissioner’s Office. An expensive blunder…

UPDATE:

A Conservative Party spokesman said: “We are aware of an issue relating to a conference registration email and are currently investigating the cause of this. We apologise to those affected and have self-reported to the Information Commissioner’s Office.”