Tory peer holidays with Reform man Skinner

It’s a hard life for Ross Kempsell, Conservative peer and publisher of the right wing Guido Fawkes website.

Kempsell, who last year stepped down as Boris Johnson’s press advisor, a position he somehow combined with running a political news website, is now working at the Tory think tank Policy Exchange as the lead for its “Future of the Right” project.

But this week, he posted a picture of himself on holiday with a man some consider the future of the right – albeit in another party. Kempsell put a picture of himself on X enjoying the sun with Thomas Skinner, the former Apprentice candidate who made a career out of saying the word “bosh” and who is now an influential voice within Nigel Farage’s Reform.

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My brilliant day out with Nigel Farage, by the Daily Express’s political editor

Rats in a Sack

Skinner joined the Turquoise Tories last year, explaining that “We are the best country in the world and we’ve sort of lost our identity a little bit and there’s so many great people that make us what we are”. He is now widely expected to be a parliamentary candidate for the party at the next general election.

Kempsell captioned the photo of the pair, both shirtless, “We never look when we pour. Easter sun w @iamtomskinner still grafting tho. Have a great week live players”.

No, Rats in a Sack had no idea either, but consulted a young person and was told that “we never look when we pour” is one of Skinner’s catchphrases and refers to his habit of pouring large amounts of vinegar, salt or sauce onto his food without looking at the bottle. “Live players”, meanwhile, refers to people with a proactive, go-getting attitude to life, as opposed to being an NPC (non-playable character, or someone who sits on the sidelines).

Might Kempsell – whose website, long a steadfast Conservative voice, is getting increasingly Reform-adjacent – be about to make the move to Skinner’s party and be its sole voice in the Lords? Either way, having been appointed to the House by Boris Johnson in July 2023 at the age of just 31, he will be making laws for many decades to come. Bosh!