EVERY exam season, adults on Twitter generously offer their wisdom to young people (who are busy on TikTok and not on Twitter) about how their exam results do not define them. Using the hashtag #NoWrongPath, they document the trials and tribulations of their own career trajectory, re-assuring the young ones that no matter where they start, they will always end up where they need to be.

Maybe the new Number 10 spokeswoman saw the hashtag and was inspired in her own career. After much hype and speculation, Allegra Stratton was announced as the £100k per year spokeswoman for the new White House-style press briefings that Downing Street has decided the country badly needs.

The former BBC Newsnight editor has had a long and successful career in journalism, working at The Guardian as a political correspondent and as a co-host of Peston on ITV. Earlier this year, she quit ITV News and became director of strategic communications at the Treasury for Chancellor Rishi Sunak.

And, it seems, it all went downhill from there. She had long been tipped as the frontrunner for the Number 10 briefings job and – although Downing Street hasn’t officially put out a statement yet – it is being reported as a done deal.

We also still don’t have any confirmation on when the televised briefings will actually begin. Perhaps Boris Johnson is waiting for that sweet spot in the news cycle when the new bridge/boat/hovercraft/ladder to space he says he wants to build is what is making the headlines, rather than his incompetence. We could be waiting a while, if that’s the case.

These briefings are a new – and, some have argued, pointless – endeavour. They are different from the daily (or in the case of the Prime Minister, quarterly) coronavirus briefings. Currently, there are two daily – on the record – lobby briefings for political journalists. We are told that one of these will now be televised and Allegra Stratton will be the woman in charge of answering the questions.

It probably won’t be gripping viewing but it will certainly be interesting. The strategic geniuses in Number 10 see this as a way for government to communicate directly with the public. Crucially – and here’s the really clever part – Boris Johnson won’t be involved. The risk of him saying something stupid because he is too lazy to read his briefing papers is neutralised. Cummings 1, Press 0.

You can see why Downing Street wants to try to emulate the showy, combative theatre of the US press briefings. For a Government that already appears tired and stale – a mere 10 months into its term in office – this is a chance for it to shake things up and give the appearance of competence.

It is telling that of the two televised briefings that are in the pipeline, this is the one that Downing Street seems to be spending its energy on.

Back in September, when Boris Johnson was lured out of hiding to speak about the rising case numbers, he indicated that the shelved UK coronavirus briefings would resume. He said: “At this critical moment, when I know people will be wanting to know the details, I will be providing regular updates through these press conferences.”

As yet, we have had no official confirmation of when the Prime Minister will make good on his promise. There has been speculation that new English restrictions will be brought in on Monday, so perhaps he’ll have the good grace to turn up to work for that.

People in England have been badly let down by Boris Johnson and his government. They have been left in the dark about the spread of the virus and what that means for the weeks and months ahead. That the Prime Minister only shows up when he has good – or grave – news to deliver simply isn’t good enough.

Still, at least all those who are anxiously trying to figure out what is going on and what it means for their jobs and loved ones can take comfort in the fact that Downing Street has a shiny new £100k per year spokeswoman.

If anybody is concerned that a journalist with such an illustrious career might struggle to defend this shambolic Tory Government, they needn’t worry. Allegra Stratton has experience of that, it seems.

In 2012, when she was the editor of BBC’s Newsnight, she was heavily criticised for a shameful interview she conducted with a single mother who was claiming housing benefit. In the interview package, Stratton portrayed the single mother as somebody who was claiming benefits as a “lifestyle choice”. This was despite the fact the woman was actually working full-time and was only having one-third of her rent paid by the council because of the sky-high London costs.

A titbit in Private Eye magazine from the time reported that Stratton had sought potential interviewees that fit with that very Tory narrative, telling one council staff member: “You must have people living on benefits as a lifestyle choice!”

The magazine also reported that she shouted across a crowded office: “People should think about whether they can afford kids before they have them!” I think she’ll fit in just fine, don’t you?