When he entered Downing Street five months ago as Boris Johnson’s communications director, Guto Hari drew attention to himself with an interview in which he described his new boss as “not a total clown”.
Now, in the post-mortems and recriminations that inevitably follow the downfall of any prime minister, fingers are being pointed at Harry for a tenure that some have described as almost as blunder-prone as that of his boss.
He was also one of the last people to call on Johnson to “stay and fight” on Wednesday night as it emerged that dozens of ministers had quit and Johnson’s government was crumbling before their eyes.
“He was nothing but loyal to Boris, at least while he was on the payroll. He did the best, loyally, that he could do. But there were tactical misjudgments and he just likes to instruct,” said one Tory aide who witnessed Harry’s modus operandi.
“To be fair to him, he inherited the job when government communications were pretty hamstrung and it would have been an outstanding job if he had been able to turn the ship around at that point.”
Journalists found Harry, who was also Johnson’s communications adviser during his London City Hall, more personable and charming than some government spinners – and happy to pick up the phone. Many also appreciated the colorful quotes he provided for their stories, some of which may have been ill-advised from a PR perspective.
“He’s a very charming guy and I have a soft spot for him, but I’m never sure how seriously he takes the job,” said one senior reporter who has known Harry for decades. Friends of Harry’s say he would prefer to be judged primarily by political journalists and that they respect him.
However, those who know him from No 10 and as special advisers react with rolling eyes when asked about his work for Johnson, describing him as too casual and relaxed about communications work.
Harry was opposed by a government aide to another figure – Deputy Chief of Staff David Canzini – brought in as part of attempts to “restart” operations at No. 10. The aide claimed that Harry was a “complete clown” while Canzini was was very effective and compared the two men to the cartoon characters Pinky and the Brain.
At the Spectator party on Thursday night, with tensions high over Johnson’s resignation, Harry confronted Josh Grimstone, Michael Gove’s special adviser, over the circumstances of Johnson’s “revenge” for sacking the promotion secretary.
A former PR for Rupert Murdoch’s News UK, Harry had moments of effectiveness in Downing Street. Privately, he took credit for killing the Times story that Johnson had tried to get his then-girlfriend Carrie into a £100,000 job at the Foreign Office after she was dropped from the paper for its second edition.
While some senior Conservative MPs credit Harry with removing some of the toxicity of the No 10 from the Dominic Cummings era – and supporters say he successfully steered Johnson towards greater exposure and mass appeal ads – others blamed for contributing to the sense of chaos surrounding Johnson’s communications.
A flashpoint for this was the Chris Pincher affair, when Harry informed the No 10 press team that the former deputy chief whip was vulnerable amid allegations of drunken groping and drew comparisons with the suicide of Iraq war weapons expert David Kelly . This comment was so unpleasant that it was subsequently leaked.
There was also anger among Tory MPs over the organization of Johnson’s impromptu trip to Ukraine last month, which meant he was unable to attend the Northern Research Group conference in Doncaster. While the media had been informed by Harry earlier in the day that Johnson would miss the event as he was in Ukraine, Tory MPs were told by midday to expect the Prime Minister to attend.
“If you have to pin the Doncaster car crash on someone who created an unnecessary trial story that overshadowed and infuriated colleagues, it’s all Guto,” a source said.
The source added: “Guto obviously thinks he is a passenger and is just there for the ride. He has a good looking CV, history with the Prime Minister and seems to tick all the boxes. But in terms of political governance, he has no idea.
Harry’s previous business dealings have also come under scrutiny since he came in at No 10. He was nicknamed ‘Huawei Harri’ because he was joined by Hawthorn Advisers, a PR firm that lobbies for the Chinese technology company. Several other Hawthorn staff later joined the press room.
Harry is said to have rebuffed already frustrated special advisers at a meeting last month where he told them to be as good at getting the government’s message out as he was at informing the press about the content of the meeting. “It was probably meant to sound humble and a bit realpolitik, but it ended up just painting a room full of people as duplicitous bullshit,” said one attendee.
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However, one of the most striking examples of Harry’s MO came during Johnson’s trip to the G7 and NATO summits, when he caused a storm over defense spending.
After Johnson’s civil service spokesman briefed journalists at a hotel in the Austrian Tyrol across the border from the G7 meeting in Bavaria, Harry sat in silence before interjecting into a discussion about whether Johnson could stick to a pledge to increase defense budget above inflation as promised in the 2019 Conservative manifesto.
There was a need for a “reality check” on the promises made before the Covid pandemic and near 10% inflation, Harry said. As reporters scribbled quotes into their notebooks, Johnson’s official spokesman stared at the ceiling, grimly aware that a bad news story had been created. The dispute dogged the rest of the trip, prompting Johnson to use his final NATO press conference to promise an increase in the defense budget to 2.5% of GDP.
Harry was approached for comment.
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