09 May 2023 , 09:56
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Boris Johnson repeatedly denounced Sue Gray as a “psycho” as he raged about the Partygate investigation, his ex-spin doctor has claimed.
Guto Harri revealed the disgraced ex-PM nicknamed her “Psycho Sue” as he became frustrated that his lockdown-busting boozing in No10 was being probed.
In a desperate defence of his former boss, the communications adviser said: “If you’re brutally honest - people don’t want to hear it - there were many people who behaved badly in that period. It was all landed on one guy because he happened to be at the top.”
Referring to the senior civil servant Ms Gray, who has since been appointed as Labour leader Keir Starmer's chief-of-staff, said the former PM "had respected her a lot".
"But by the time I had got there [in No10] he was understandably getting suspicious," he said.
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"By the end we were all extremely suspicious of this woman," Mr Harri told LBC.
Former No10 Communications Director Guto Harri (right) (AFP via Getty Images)Asked how the ex-PM described Ms Gray, he replied: "If I were to one say one word maybe that will be recurring in it [my podcast] Psycho Sue Gray would be part of it.
"You will get the words but towards the end he rightly thought there was no perspective and things were completely out of all proportion".
Mr Harri, who has a new podcast on his time in No10, told how Mr Johnson was planning to remove Rishi Sunak from his role as Chancellor shortly before he resigned.
He said that there was a "fundamental disagreement of policy between the two of them".
"But the Chancellor beat him to it in a way and brought the whole show down," he added, referring to Mr Sunak's decision to quit the Cabinet.
Mr Harri said he had previously thought voters would get to the point where they were “craving” for Mr Johnson to return as PM, although now believes it is "not realistic" for him to make a comeback “but you never know down the line, post-election, who knows”.
Boris Johnson reportedly challenged King Charles over his criticism of the Government's Rwanda policy in June 2022 (Getty Images)Writing in the Daily Mail, Mr Harri claimed Mr Johnson “squared up” to King Charles while he was still heir to the throne after he described his Rwanda immigration as “appalling”.
The ex-spin doctor said Mr Johnson told him he “went in quite hard”, “essentially squaring up to the prince and confronting him about what he – as unelected royalty – had said about the actions of a democratically elected government”.
Mr Harri says Mr Johnson warned the-then Prince of Wales not to give a speech expressing regret over slavery.
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“I wouldn't talk about slavery or you'll end up being forced to sell the Duchy of Cornwall to pay reparations to those whose ancestors built it,” the former PM apparently told him.
Mr Johnson, who attended the King's Coronation at the weekend, disputed his long-standing ally's account.
A source close to Mr Johnson said: "Boris Johnson does not recognise this account and it is inaccurate. It does not accurately reflect any conversation.
"We would never comment on these matters and Mr Johnson deplores any attempt to do so."