Sunday 25 October 2009

When Dave was too right-wing for Ken Clarke

Gyles Brandreth's somewhat rambling interview in the Sunday Times does contain a little bit of politics:


When David Cameron was a political adviser to Norman Lamont, and when Lamont was dropped by John Major, his special advisers were dropped as well. I thought it was a mistake to drop him, so I wrote a memo to the new chancellor, Kenneth Clarke. I said, we mustn’t lose this man, he is gold, and I remember having a conversation with Clarke, who was saying he’s Lamont’s man, very right-wing. I said, no no, he was working for Lamont and therefore reflected Lamont, but I think you’ll find he’s our kind of Conservative, a liberal Conservative. Clarke still dropped him. Wouldn’t be persuaded. Wouldn’t. He went. I failed. But it can’t be taken away from me that I spotted him when people hadn’t even heard of him.


Brandreth thinks Clarke was mistaken.

Much of the Conservative Party continues to live in the hope that he wasn't.

Hat tip: Events, dear boy, events

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