Key allies of Ms Symonds have recently been appointed to key roles (Picture: Wireimage)
A group of Tories have called for an ‘independent inquiry’ into the role of Boris Johnson’s fiancée Carrie Symonds in the ‘governing’ of the UK.
Conservative think tank the Bow Group want officials to probe into Ms Symonds’ ‘position and authority’ within the current administration, amid accusations she is helping to control key Government appointments.
It’s thought she played a key role in the high profile exits of Dominic Cummings and Lee Cain from Downing Street last year.
And yesterday, the Prime Minister’s main adviser on battling Scottish independence, Oliver Lewis, announced he was departing less than a fortnight after being made the head of Downing Street’s Union unit.
Mr Lewis, who like Mr Cummings and Mr Cain was a veteran of the Vote Leave Brexit campaign, is reported to have said his position was made ‘untenable’ by others within Number 10.
Two allies of Ms Symonds, Baroness Finn and Henry Newman, have also been recently appointed as key advisers at the heart of Government.
Dan Rosenfield, who was drafted into Number 10 as Chief of Staff after Mr Cummings’ departure has appointed Baroness Finn as his deputy and Henry Newman as a senior adviser.
The Bow Group – which is backed by Conservative peers Lord Tebbit and Lord Lamont, as well as MPs John Redwood and Sir Bill Cash and former MP Ann Widdecombe – has called for a review into Ms Symonds’ ‘possible influence’ in Government hiring and appointments.
Carrie Symonds tweeted this picture during the 2019 election of herself and her dog with Simone Finn, and Henry Newman – both have now been appointed to Government positions
Boris Johnson and fiancée Carrie Symonds take part in a Zoom call last year – some fear Ms Symonds has undue influence over the PM (Picture: No10 Downing Street)
It said the inquiry should look at her role in Downing Street, details of any official meetings she has attended, and orders given by her to special advisers and civil servants.
The group, which describes itself as the oldest conservative think tank in the world, has objected to the PM’s fiancée’s apparent influence in Government, despite holding no official role.
Chairman Ben Harris-Quinney said Ms Symonds ‘currently holds no official role in the Conservative Party or the Government, yet consistent reports in the press suggest that Ms Symonds is taking a central role in running the country, without any authority or accountability to do so’.
He added: ‘She has not been elected, she has not been appointed, she holds no legal or constitutional powers to make decisions relating to who should hold government posts, to be party to privileged information, or to set the policy direction of the country.
The Bow Group want the inquiry to look at Ms Symonds’ role in the ‘governing of the UK’ (Picture: Getty)
‘It is therefore urgent that a review and inquiry takes place to determine what Ms Symonds’ role in the governing of the United Kingdom is, and has been to date.
‘Failure to clarify Ms Symonds’ position and authority, and to ensure that Ms Symonds is not and cannot take any action in governing the United Kingdom, potentially has huge hazards for the Government, the Conservative Party, and the nation.
‘The public take a very dim view of cronyism, democracy in Britain is and must always be sacred, and no one should be involved in running our country without accountability to the people.’
A spokeswoman for Ms Symonds declined to comment.
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