Steerpike

Perusing the list of declared Boris-backers yesterday, Mr S was struck by the omission of several high-profile names. The erstwhile uber-loyalist Matt Hancock for one: the former Health Secretary was previously one of Johnson's most ardent supporters, in his desperate bid to return to the cabinet. But even more intriguing than the womanizer of West Suffolk's silence was the lack of any kind of public statement from Sir Gavin Williamson, South Staffordshire's answer to Sir Francis Urqhart. Sir Gav of course played a key role in the fortunes of two Tory premiers. In 2016 he was reported to have 'privately vowed' to stop Boris Johnson's bid to become party leader, instead offering his services as parliamentary campaign manager to Theresa May.

Alongside Britain, Estonia has been among Kyiv’s staunchest allies in its efforts to repulse Putin’s forces, delivering more military equipment to Ukraine since February as a portion of GDP per capita than any other country in the world. Kaja Kallas, its prime minister, is in London today and spoke at her country’s embassy. She took questions on a range of topics and didn't hold back - especially when it came to Emmanuel Macron. Kallas was very much singing from the same song-sheet as Kuleba when she effectively accused Macron of appeasing genocide He has tried to position himself as a mediator between Putin and the west throughout this conflict, only to end up being played like a $10 banjo.

Long to reign over us? That’s the question Conservative MPs are pondering this weekend about their leader Boris Johnson. The boos and jeers that greeted him at St Paul’s on Friday were in stark contrast to the warmth and affection exhibited towards the Queen all week. It’s prompted several nervy Tories to consider putting in their letter of no-confidence to Sir Graham Brady – the chairman of the 1922 committee – amid much talk about whether the magic threshold of 54 letters has finally been reached. It has previously been suggested that Sir Graham would not make such an announcement until after the Jubilee festivities had concluded. Will tomorrow be that day? Timing is everything in politics: some of the anti-Johnsonites fear that a vote will come too soon.

Tory plotters have been keen to stress that any plans to oust Boris Johnson as Prime Minister are strictly on hold during the Platinum Jubilee weekend. But that doesn’t mean Johnson’s political woes are going away. The great and the good were at St Paul’s Cathedral for the Queen’s Jubilee Thanksgiving service this morning. While the Monarch herself was unable to attend, Priti Patel, in a bright pink dress and hat, Keir Starmer, in his usual blue lounge suit, and Sadiq Khan, in tow with his wife, were among those in attendance. The event, though, was not exactly the smooth operation that organisers had hoped for. Five Royal Air Force soldiers, who were rigidly standing by as guests walked into the service, collapsed in the cathedral’s grounds.

The economy may be tanking and Boris in peril but MPs were grateful this week for a four day respite to mark the Queen’s platinum jubilee. Many chose to flee Westminster for home pastures elsewhere: Brandon Lewis got to press the flesh at Hillsborough Castle while his backbench colleague Laura Farris snapped pics in Newbury with a Churchill impersonator. But a fair few decided to remain in London to pay tribute to our long-suffering monarch at the Trooping of the Colour on Horseguard’s Parade. Somehow Mr S blagged a ticket - they let anyone in these days - and enjoyed the chance to see our elected Tory masters pay tribute to our unelected ones.

It's Jubilee week in London. Boom times for royal hacks mean tough times for their lobby counterparts. Fortunately, today's publication of the latest edition of the MPs' register of interests is a godsend for story-starved journalists, scrabbling around to write about something that isn't about Harry and Meghan. Perusing the register this morning, Mr S was intrigued to see the name of Channel 4 popping up regularly as a frequent donor to MPs across the House. The public broadcaster has desperately been trying to fight a rearguard action against privatisation in recent months and appears to have launched something of a belated charm offensive to aid that goal.

During the past two years Jesus College has been a regular in the newspaper headlines. The Cambridge University college was last month found to have accepted cash from a 'very high risk' Chinese university for research into China’s prime tool of foreign influence. It came after a string of stories which contrasted the willingness of Jesus to accept donations from controversial Chinese sources with its efforts to remove a historic memorial linked to the slave trade from its chapel. Now though, it seems that the college has been moved to act. According to an email seen by The Spectator, 'following a detailed review by a panel of Fellows, the college has today announced the restructure of the China Centre, including changing its name and funding model'.

This has been Boris Johnson's worst week in politics since last week. Under-fire over partygate, accused of watering down the Sue Gray report and facing yet more letters of no-confidence, inflation and the cost-of-living crisis look set to further erode his standing still further. On Thursday, Rishi Sunak unveiled a package of measures to try to alleviate voters' economic pain, announcing a £400 reduction for energy bills and a £650 for eight million families on benefits. This will be paid for by a £5 billion windfall tax on energy companies. Not all voters though seem that impressed by Sunak's choice.

Politics' longest-running farce is at a close. Sue Gray, that pillar of Whitehall officialdom, has today delivered her report into whether Boris Johnson did indeed break lockdown rules during the pandemic. And while there will no doubt be some relief for those in No. 10 that Gray's inquiries didn't investigate any further parties to those previously reported, some of the details contained in her findings do make for excruciating reading. Below are six of the lowlights from the Sue Gray report.... 1. The Met torpedoed Gray's probe Few institutions emerge well from partygate but the Metropolitan Police probably came out worst.