LONDON — British Prime Minister Keir Starmer has drafted in a senior communications expert from tech giant TikTok as he tries to reboot his struggling Downing Street operation.
James Lyons, a veteran political journalist-turned-comms guru, joins the British government from the Chinese-owned social media firm, where he’s been working as head of policy comms across Europe for more than a year.
Lyons will lead a new strategic communications team inside Downing Street as part of a wider shake-up of Starmer’s top team, after weeks of bad headlines about the government’s performance and dipping poll numbers.
The appointment has raised eyebrows among some China hawks in the British parliament, given TikTok is banned on U.K. government phones amid security concerns.
Tory leadership contender Tom Tugendhat, who was sanctioned by China while working as the Commons foreign affairs committee chair, accused his Labour opponents of playing “fast and loose with our nation’s security.”
“The prime minister’s latest decision to hire someone directly from the Chinese Communist Party’s mouthpiece TikTok demonstrates, once again, that he cannot provide the leadership this country is crying out for,” Tugendhat said.
TikTok insists it has overhauled its data security practices since the ban on use by U.K. government devices was announced, and rejects any link to the Chinese government. The company declined to comment on the record.
Asked about the U.K, government’s stance on TikTok in light of Lyons’ appointment, the prime minister’s official spokesperson said Monday: “The position remains as previously stated.”
Lobby veteran
Lyons previously worked as director of communications for Britain’s National Health Service, where he was heavily involved in the response to the Covid-19 pandemic. Before leaving journalism, Lyons was deputy political editor at the Daily Mirror and Sunday Times newspapers.
The appointment is part of a wider push by Starmer to overhaul his Downing Street operation after Sue Gray’s departure as No. 10 chief of staff, following a spate of negative briefings against her.
Morgan McSweeney, one of Starmer’s closest political aides, has taken over after serving as Starmer’s first chief of staff when he became Labour leader in 2020.
Starmer’s new team is already being offered advice by veterans of the last Labour government, some of whom have voiced concerns about the communications strategy thus far.
Alastair Campbell, who headed up Tony Blair’s comms operation, told the BBC Radio 4 Today program Monday: “Government is harder than opposition. And government is not just about the technocratic delivery of policy and change.
“It’s about the relentless, endless, never-ending conversation that you’re having with the country about what you are trying to do for the country. And I think it’s fair to say that that bit has been largely missing.”
