To say that Downing St. has 'a major comms problem' is an understatement
One of the defining characteristics of Boris Johnson’s personality was his ability to do this remarkable thing where at any moment of crisis, he would simply vanish or be absent from the scene.
Rishi Sunak was actually quite similar in the sense that as Chancellor, he began by adopting this strategy of evading scrutiny. It served him well; he was, at one point, believe it or not, liked by a large portion of the general public.
How he maintained his approval ratings throughout 2020, into 2021 and at the beginning of 2022, was by keeping his head down, operating in the backrooms of the Treasury and just occasionally, at crucial points, popping out to announce some scheme or other; it was usually under the veil of some support measure or other to help the economy bounce back from the financial cost of coronavirus: his Kickstart Scheme was an example [it even came with hoodies!], the so-called Winter Economy Plan was another [no hoodies though - sad times].
There were others too; most obviously, the furlough scheme or the far more disastrous, fiscally pointless [and above all else, deadly] Eat Out to Help Out scheme.
In the Spring of 2022, however, things began to go a little pear-shaped for Rishi Sunak.
The Rise & Fall of the Artful Tax Dodger: Old Westminster Skulduggery and Party Political Games in Times of Crisis
As the cost-of-living crisis began to take shape across the UK, Sunak provided his first major announcement on how he would address the problem with his Spring statement in March 2022.
It was a PR disaster. Actually, the more Sunak appeared, the worse he made it.
Compounded by questions over his own tax affairs, conflicts of interest, the tax affairs, citizenship status of his partner Akshata Murthy and her personal wealth, and more superficially when he was challenged by his ability to use contactless payments, Sunak’s approval ratings absolutely tanked; The Myth and Legend of Sunak/‘best chancellor ever’ began to unravel.
Since then, his approval ratings have never really recovered - in fact, they’re actually worse now since becoming Prime Minister.
The reason -