Former chancellor George Osborne had been appointed editor of the London Evening Standard, its owner Evgeny Lebedev has announced on Twitter.
1/ Thrilled to announce the new editor of the @EveningStandard is @George_Osborne…
— Evgeny Lebedev (@mrevgenylebedev) March 17, 2017
2/ …I am proud to have an editor of such substance, who reinforces The Standard's standing and influence in London…
— Evgeny Lebedev (@mrevgenylebedev) March 17, 2017
3/… and whose political viewpoint – socially liberal and economically pragmatic – closely matches that of many of our readers…
— Evgeny Lebedev (@mrevgenylebedev) March 17, 2017
4/… George is London through and through and I am confident he is the right person to build on the fantastic legacy of Sarah Sands.
— Evgeny Lebedev (@mrevgenylebedev) March 17, 2017
Not only will Osborne be taking up a new role – replacing Sarah Sands, who is leaving to join the BBC – he’ll be holding on to his job as an MP.
1/ EXCLUSIVE: @George_Osborne APPOINTED EDITOR OF THE LONDON EVENING STANDARD (ES). Will continue as MP.
— Amol Rajan (@amolrajanBBC) March 17, 2017
The announcement was surprising to say the least and left people feeling somewhat confused.
It is fair to describe Downing Street spokesman as speechless when asked about @George_Osborne editing Evening Standard in morning lobby
— Jessica Elgot (@jessicaelgot) March 17, 2017
My threshold for being shocked just rose a little more: George Osborne new Editor of Evening Standard. And it's not even fake news.
— Andrew Neil (@afneil) March 17, 2017
George Osborne is the editor of the Evening Standard? What? pic.twitter.com/2a9zJBCIuP
— Malcolm Coles (@malcolmcoles) March 17, 2017
Osborne briefly worked as a freelance journalist for the Daily Telegraph’s Peterborough diary column after failing to gain a place on The Times trainee scheme in 1993. After that he committed to his political life, working on John Major’s unsuccessful election campaign team in 1997 and speech writing for William Hague. He became the MP for Tatton in 2001, rising to the position of chancellor in David Cameron’s coalition government in 2010.
Has George Osborne got his shorthand?
— Matt Withers (@mattwithers) March 17, 2017
Osborne coming into journalism like pic.twitter.com/5Qf61hCwIW
— Mike Hills (@mikewhills) March 17, 2017
Congratulations to @George_Osborne who 20 years after applying to become a journalist has finally made it
— Jane Merrick (@janemerrick23) March 17, 2017
The whole of journalism twitter finding out who the new @standardnews editor is pic.twitter.com/7qJcCyJ68z
— Stephanie Boland (@stephanieboland) March 17, 2017
The news of Osborne’s new role, along with his lack of journalistic experience, made some Twitter users feel like they may be under the influence of something nefarious.
Has this room been flooded with hallucinogenic gas without me realising? Is this really happening?
— Helen Lewis (@helenlewis) March 17, 2017
How we all feel rn pic.twitter.com/Mkz1lJMYP3
— Paul Oswell (@Shandypockets) March 17, 2017
Not only is it a surprising choice, the fact that he intends to remain an MP led one Labour MP to raise questions about a potential conflict of interests. Osborne also acts as a consultant in the city.
Always wondered what the term for a collective of conflicts of interest is …now I know…it's an Osborne of interests…
— stellacreasy (@stellacreasy) March 17, 2017
Not to mention, it does seem kind of impractical, geographically speaking.
How can you be Editor of the LONDON Evening Standard and be an MP in CHESHIRE?
— Mark Ferguson (@Markfergusonuk) March 17, 2017
Just when you thought the world couldn’t get any stranger.
