Is Dominic Cummings' ally Cleo Watson set for Downing St return?

2022-12-20

Is Dominic Cummings’ ally Cleo Watson set for Downing St return? Former Boris Johnson aide is tipped to work for Rishi Sunak’s wife in move that risks riling supporters of ex-Prime Minister

Cleo Watson is now being lined up to make a Westminster comeback
There are rumours she could be appointed as a spin doctor for Rishi Sunak’s wife
Miss Watson served as deputy chief of staff to former PM Boris Johnson
She left No 10 just a fortnight after Mr Cummings quit in a behind-the-scenes power struggle

A key ally of Dominic Cummings could make a surprise return to Downing Street, sources claimed last night.

Cleo Watson, who served as an aide to Boris Johnson, has been writing an X-rated novel since she left government.

But she is now being lined up to make a Westminster comeback – with rumours that she could be appointed as a spin doctor for Rishi Sunak’s wife, Akshata Murthy. Miss Watson’s height saw her dubbed the ‘gazelle’ next to ‘pit pony’ Mr Cummings as the pair arrived for work together in Downing Street during the Covid pandemic.

She served as deputy chief of staff to Mr Johnson, but left No 10 just a fortnight after Mr Cummings quit in a behind-the-scenes power struggle. Miss Watson said her time in Downing Street was up after the ex-PM told her: ‘I can’t look at you any more because it reminds me of Dom.’

Cleo Watson, who served as an aide to Boris Johnson, has been writing an X-rated novel since she left government

Government sources denied she would be working for Miss Murthy, but did not rule out that she could make a return to Downing Street in another role.

Miss Watson worked with Mr Cummings on the Vote Leave campaign in 2015, and he invited her to join No 10 when Mr Johnson became prime minister.

After leaving the post, Miss Watson was asked to work on the COP26 climate change summit, but her closeness to chief aide Mr Cummings meant she was viewed with suspicion by some.

Mr Cummings was highly critical of Mr Johnson and over the summer he was linked to Mr Sunak’s Tory leader campaign – claims denied by Mr Sunak’s team. Appointing Miss Watson risks angering Johnson allies.

Government sources denied she would be working for Miss Murthy, but did not rule out that she could make a return to Downing Street in another role

‘Cleo was responsible for so much of the briefing against Boris,’ said one. ‘This shows how much Cummings really is pulling Rishi’s strings. Cleo was actually the one who organised the birthday cake for Boris – the one that ended up with him being fined – then briefed the media about it.

‘She was one of the chief plotters against Boris and now she’s being rewarded for it. It’s not even subtle. It’s sickening actually.’

The development comes after Mr Sunak hired Amber de Botton, who was head of UK news at ITV, as his chief of communications.

Her team at won an award for an explosive series of Partygate stories that helped to bring about Mr Johnson’s downfall. After the summit last November, Miss Watson began writing her debut novel, Whips, a raunchy tale of sex and scandal in Downing Street that is due out in May.

She describes the book as a ‘Matt Hancock arse-grab of debut novels’ because it is ‘truly cringeworthy, but nonetheless gripping’. Characters romp on desks in their Commons offices, in the Press room and at Chequers, the Mail revealed last month.

One scene involves a female MP giving evidence to a select committee while being entertained by a remote-controlled sex toy.

While it is said to be a work of fiction, the novel is heavily drawn from Miss Watson’s experiences, and several of the characters appear to be based on real figures, including Mr Johnson and Mr Cummings.

In an article lifting the lid on her time in No 10 for Tatler magazine, published in September, Miss Watson said the deputy chief of staff job was like being ‘Boris’s nanny’.

She wrote: ‘At the start of the pandemic, testing was limited so, like everyone else, the PM regularly had his temperature taken.

‘This was generally done by me, towering over him (with or without heels – I generally found it useful to be physically intimidating in the role of nanny).’

Miss Watson could not be reached for comment last night.

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