In June, I went to Oxford to see Rory Stewart, part of the FANE series of talks, because I’ve listened with great interest to the podcast The Rest is Politics, hosted by Stewart and Alistair Campbell.
Many of the podcast’s fanbase and readers of his book, Politics on the Edge, were also in attendance, which became apparent as my husband and I listened to a diverse range of engaged voices discussing their views on his political life.
Dysfunctional system beats Stewart’s honourable intentions
Stewart was interviewed by BBC’s Justin Webb and the first half of the event provided the opportunity for him to share some pivotal moments in his political career, and his insights on UK and global politics, much of which was taken from his book.
His desire to make a difference through his varied ministerial roles was clear, as he recounted numerous examples of seeking to improve the lives of the people. However, despite all his honourable intentions, I was struck by the significant hurdles he faced in trying to get even the simplest things done within government to bring about positive and lasting change.
Whilst MP for Penrith and The Border, he worked tirelessly for over two years with a passionate group of local activists to bring much needed broadband to the constituency. An important visit from Jeremy Hunt, then Secretary of State for Culture, was arranged, to see the area and show his support for the change. The first challenge Stewart faced was from party whips insisting that he be in London for a vote the evening before the visit. When he pointed out that his vote wasn’t required and it would mean he couldn’t get back to the constituency in time for the following morning, he was told that there was an overnight bus he could take.
He overcame this completely unnecessary hurdle and the next day stood ready to receive the secretary of state with members of the local community alongside him. But when Hunt stepped from the car, he was heard to say, “Why am I here? This wasn’t in the calendar. We don’t have time for this.” At which point, he got back in his car and was driven away.
Skills/appointment mismatch
Stewart talked passionately about the need to have individuals with the right experience, knowledge and skills appointed to roles, but that often the exact opposite occurs. He described the time he was called in to see Boris Johnson, then Foreign Secretary, to discuss which international development role he should undertake. Stewart has extensive experience of parts of Asia and the Middle East, including undertaking a two-year walk across Afghanistan, Iran, Pakistan, India and Nepal. He later wrote the best-selling book The Places in Between describing his experiences.
He took the opportunity to remind Johnson of his extensive experience, as valuable consideration in deciding where he might be posted, only for this to be completely ignored and him to be appointed to Africa. Bringing us back to the present day, he talked of how a member of the current Conservative cabinet held five different posts in under two years, making it impossible to claim any level of the required knowledge or expertise to be effective.
Question time
As a hugely engaging and insightful first half came to a close, the audience were asked to submit questions for Rory in the interval, to be answered in the second half. Questions posed were wide-ranging, covering both UK and worldwide political events: how do we bring trust and honesty back into politics? What would a second Trump presidency mean? Why did you decide to run for Prime Minister? What are you most proud of achieving in your political career?
Perhaps the question that raised the most interest was: Would you join the Labour Party? After a lengthy pause, his first words were: “They wouldn’t have me.” He went on to explain that whilst he regularly has productive conversations with the Labour Party leadership, he still senses a clear barrier from many to entertain the idea that he could be trusted, despite resigning from the government and membership of the Conservative Party in 2019.
Reasons to be optimistic
Despite an apparent erosion of democracy across the world in recent years, and the state of politics in the UK today, Stewart is very keen to share his optimism for the future. He cites the significantly increased engagement of more and more young people. The Rest is Politics podcast is highly successful, but he is quick to caution this apparent good news story, highlighting the need for people to connect with politics directly from the source – not just listen to those who report on it. When he asked the audience, it turned out that a sizeable number of them had listened to The Rest is Politics podcast, whilst very few had watched the Grimsby debate between Rishi Sunak and Keir Starmer.
As for me, I feel optimistic too. After the event I spoke with 22-year-old Niles, an undergraduate from Newcastle who had come with his girlfriend Iline. She had bought the tickets as a birthday gift for Niles who is a regular listener to the podcast. “I found Rory’s opinions authentic, and I got the impression he truly believes that not only changes can be made, but that he genuinely desires modifications.
“Most impactful was his ability to use anecdotes to allow the audience, who may not be informed with regards to the inner workings of government, to see under the cloak of the ceremonial and perhaps the grandiose aspects of British politics, to reveal disjointed and ineffective aspects of the political environment. Overall, I was impressed. His communication skills were not only informative, but also entertaining, helping me to learn more about Rory as an individual in addition to his take on modern-day politics.”
A change in attitude
I definitely agree with Niles’ views and my admiration for Rory Stewart has only grown. He desperately wants to make a difference to the lives of people across the UK and is open to talking to members of any party that align to his values and want to do the same. Perhaps my one critical observation is that, while he strongly feels a change of government is needed, he stopped short of discussing the Conservative Party’s failures over the last 14 years. Instead, he chose to focus on the behaviours of individuals within the party and the wider dysfunctional workings of parliament. This is perhaps not surprising, given he remains a traditional Conservative at heart.
For a long time I didn’t find politics at all interesting. This changed when my husband became politically active after the Brexit referendum in 2016 and when I started to listen to an ever-growing group of engaging and insightful commentators, including Stewart. If you’re interested in finding out more, I’d recommend listening to an episode of The Rest is Politics podcast or reading Politics on the Edge. If you like what you hear, share it with others – my life and outlook is definitely richer for it.
