Yet Another Attack Front? New Book Claims Boris Johnson is 'Mesmerised Puppet' of His Wife Carrie

As UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson continues to weather the storm of political scandals around him, another one awaits. This time, however, it is set to touch upon his personal life and how it may or not be connected with politics.

Boris Johnson and his wife Carrie appear to be in the crosshairs of what has been described by The Sun as an attempt by his political foes to bring the prime minister down by hitting his family with a "brutal weekend" of "deeply unpleasant" personal stories.

“Carrie has for some time been the target of an increasingly brutal briefing campaign to attack and discredit her. It is deeply unpleasant," an unnamed Tory source told The Sun.

The couple has already faced least one such story, as Johnson is portrayed as a "mesmerised" puppet of his wife Carrie in a new bombshell biography by Lord Ashcroft, according to The Daily Mail.

The upcoming book claims that Johnson is in fact a "lonely" man, who allowed his wife to surround him with her friends as senior aides and influence political decisions, while the couple's relationship is "miserable". One of the sources even described their life as "a Greek tragedy".

The bombshell work has sparked ire in the Johnson family, with Carrie's spokesperson blasting the "cruel allegations" as a "calculated attempt by bitter ex-officials to attack Mrs. Johnson". The prime minister himself is reportedly furious about the biography as well - according to the outlet, he believes that Lord Ashcroft has been spun a "tissue of lies" by former No 10 advisers.

In his book, Ashcroft provides an insider look at the alleged influence of Carrie Johnson in Downing Street, and squabbles that followed the appointment of Allegra Stratton to lead No 10 press conferences - something that was followed by chief aide Dominic Cummings' resignation in 2020.

Particularly, the book claims that Carrie used her husband's mobile phone to "try to direct and control events". Additionally, it quoted some unflattering remarks allegedly made by Johnson regarding his family life.

"Don't do anything that's going to make her torture me when I get home," he is claimed to have told aides. "You've just got to help me. My life at home's miserable. You've got to find a way to make this bearable for me."

The spokesperson for the Johnsons dismissed this claim separately.

"Yet more deliberately hurtful smears which are far removed from reality. The opposite is in fact the truth. Mr. and Mrs. Johnson have a very emotionally supportive relationship," the spokesperson said, cited by the Daily Mail.

'No 1 Problem' of Johnson Admin

According to Ashcroft, it is Carrie Johnson's "behaviour" that prevents the prime minister from "leading Britain as effectively as the voters deserve." He alleges that the British first lady has a certain influence on Johnson's political decisions even though Carrie herself has argued that she does not consider herself a public figure and tries "to be as private as [she] possibly can".

His sources insist that Carrie is "the biggest explanation of the dysfunctionality inside Number 10" and "the No 1 problem" for the Johnson administration, while not shying away from tying her to the "partygate" scandal as well. Particularly, Ashcroft referred to her participation in the notorious "garden party" in Downing Street in May 2020.

"As Caroline Slocock, once private secretary to John Major and Margaret Thatcher, pointed out on Radio 4's Woman's Hour: If the PM believed the notorious Downing Street garden gathering of May 2020 was a work event, what was Carrie doing there – unless she is involved in his political decisions?" Ashcroft wonders in his op-ed for the Daily Mail.

The biography is due to be serialised on the Mail on Sunday, as Downing Street continues to muscle through the "partygate" scandal which has already triggered speculations on a possible no-confidence vote Johnson might be facing.

A police investigation into the claims that officials at No 10 were throwing parties in the times of coronavirus lockdown is ongoing. Senior civil servant Sue Gray has already conducted her investigation on the matter, rolling out a damning report that accused Downing Street of "serious leadership failures".

No 10 said it does not deem it appropriate to comment on the matter before the police probe is finished.