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Rishi Sunak’s relentless self-promotion drive has now seen him resorting to sliding into voters’ DMs, as the prime minister used Valentine’s Day for the bizarre launch of a new personal WhatsApp channel.
Dubbed “DM from the PM”, Mr Sunak is claiming to offer voters who follow the WhatsApp channel the chance to “go behind the scenes as decisions are made”.
Two messages claiming to be from the prime minister – who told the Covid inquiry he could not provide his WhatsApp messages from the pandemic because he failed to back them up – were sent to the channel on Tuesday evening, hours before it emerged the UK had tipped into recession.
The PR-heavy push to develop “Brand Rishi” – at taxpayers’ expense – has frequently drawn mockery as it spawned various staged photoshoots and influencer-style adverts for his premiership.
Its latest iteration comes as Mr Sunak’s personal ratings languish near the all-time low of -49 hit in December, according to a YouGov tracker, which has his Conservative Party trailing Labour by 25 points.
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The launch of the WhatsApp channel took a bizarre tone on Tuesday, with Politico reporting that CCHQ aides “walked chocolate-shaped bribes round parliament’s press gallery”, which read: “Valentine’s just got a little sweeter. Get a DM from the PM.”
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Conservative Party subscribers were treated to an equally jarring plea, in the form of a promotional email with the personalised subject line: “Am I in your contact book [first name]?”
The email continued: “If not, you're missing out. I've started an exclusive WhatsApp channel just for my top supporters. And now we've launched it ... No-one else in Westminster is doing this [first name]. So why not get involved?”
Two messages purporting to be from Rishi Sunak were sent to the new channel on Tuesday
(WhatsApp/Downing Street)
An advert for the new service was published on X/Twitter alongside a typically glossy video, with music chosen to further dramatise clips of Mr Sunak as he carries out the role of prime minister – meeting with voters, reading through briefs and sitting on a private jet.
Advertising transparency tracking group Who Targets MeThere noted that “there are some big advantages to” the latest strategy employed by Mr Sunak’s team. “It’s free (no need to buy expensive ads), people tend to read their messages and it could feel quite ‘personal’ if done right.”
“Can they avoid the classic political marketing trap, and avoid pinging people with messages until they hate it and tune out or leave?” the group said.
Two messages were sent on the PM’s channel on Tuesday evening, on the eve of gloomy economic data which Labour said had left Mr Sunak’s key promise to grow the economy “in tatters”.
The first message, which encouraged recipients to “unmute the channel” and “forward this message to your friends and family WhatsApp groups”, read: “Hi there – Rishi here. Welcome to my new channel. It’s where I’ll update you directly on the issues that matter to you.”
The second message, sent less than three hours later, featured a rose emoji and read: “Happy Valentine’s Day. Family is so important to me. It’s the love of my wife and children that sustain me in the most difficult moments in this job. Hope you’re managing to take some time out today with your loved ones.”
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1/ 2Rishi Sunak slides into your DMs with new WhatsApp channel
Rishi Sunak slides into your DMs with new WhatsApp channel
Two messages purporting to be from Rishi Sunak were sent to the new channel on Tuesday
WhatsApp/Downing Street
Rishi Sunak slides into your DMs with new WhatsApp channel
A still from the glossy promotional video advertising Rishi Sunak’s new ‘DM from the PM’ service
Downing Street screengrab
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