How shocking: Nick Clegg’s £250k spin doctor bill!

Huge scandal in the UK. Punchbag Lib Dem leader Nick Clegg is spending £250,000 on a team of spin doctors to fix his image. How can he get out of this mess?

The Deputy PM is hiring five press and PR aides as he tries to win back public trust after his string of broken election promises.

The civil service team comes on top of five Liberal Democrat special advisers he brought in to Government to fight his corner.

Another six people are being hired to work for a new Government communications unit, despite the Coalition’s promise to end spin.

Adverts on the Civil Service’s internal website admit Clegg is in trouble, saying his team is “constantly learning to improve”.

Former Cabinet Office minister Tom Watson said yesterday: “His career is on life support so it’s no wonder he’s hiring spin doctors.

“But it is not going to fool anyone – advisers can’t undo the damage he has done.”

Craig Oliver blasts Cameron’s coalition

Craig Oliver, David Cameron’s spin doctor has torn the coalition apart by blundering into the war over voting reform.

Craig Oliver flouted a pact under which Government advisers promised not to get involved in the fierce mud-slinging between the Tories and Nick Clegg’s Lib Dems over the alternative vote referendum.

He tried to use his influence as a former BBC editor when he called the corporation to moan about its reporting of the issue, insiders there have revealed.

Mr Oliver, Downing Street’s director of communications, may have also broken strict rules on what politically-appointed special advisers can do, it emerged.

They are only supposed to work on Government policy – which does not include the AV referendum because the coalition is divided. One senior Lib Dem source said yesterday it sounded like “a clear breach of the rules”.

A spokesman for Mr Oliver admitted he had spoken to the BBC about the referendum but denied that the rules had been broken.

He added: “Part of the director of communications’s role is to ensure the Prime Minister’s opposition is properly understood.

“In doing so he operates within the special advisers’ code.”

BBC insiders, meanwhile, say Mr Oliver has been bombarding the Beeb with complaints since he moved to Number 10.

One said: “He spends more time speaking to former colleagues than he did when he worked here.”

Another added: “Craig knows who to call, who is editing at the weekends. He has all their extension numbers.”

Most Lib Dems back AV but the Tories oppose it and the coalition faces lasting damage after both sides accused the other of lying.

Mr Oliver’s actions came to light after coalition in-fighting got worse than ever yesterday.

Mr Cameron claimed hugely expensive vote-counting machines would be needed for AV, where voters can rank candidates in order of preference instead of just picking one.

But Deputy PM Mr Clegg accused opponents of AV of peddling “bilge” and Lib Dem minister Chris Huhne insisted the claim was a Tory lie.

The AV poll was demanded by Mr Clegg as the price of putting the Tories in power.

But polls show the “No” campaign heading for a convincing win.