DOCSLIB.ORG

The Origins and History of the Special Adviser, with Particular Reference to the 1964-70 Wilson Administrations

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
The Origins and History of the Special Adviser, with Particular Reference to the 1964-70 Wilson Administrations The origins and history of the special adviser, with particular reference to the 1964-70 Wilson Administrations. Blick, Andrew The copyright of this thesis rests with the author and no quotation from it or information derived from it may be published without the prior written consent of the author For additional information about this publication click this link. http://qmro.qmul.ac.uk/jspui/handle/123456789/1397 Information about this research object was correct at the time of download; we occasionally make corrections to records, please therefore check the published record when citing. For more information contact [email protected] Title: The origins and history of the special adviser, with particular reference to the 1964-70 Wilson Administrations Name of candidate: Andrew Buck College: Queen Mary College, University of London Degree: PhD flzo2 ED%. biJY. Abstract of thesis: Special advisers are temporary civil servants, of party political alignment, appointed on a basis of individual ministerial patronage. Particularly since 1997, there has been much interest in their activities. This work sets out to provide a historical perspective on the subject, which is currently lacking. The long-tenn background to the instigation of the special adviser and the circumstances in which this innovation took place will be discussed. The central focus of this work is upon the period 1964-70, during which, it will be argued, special advisers, as they are now conceived, were first used. Full consideration is given to the subjects of who special advisers were, what they did and why, as well as how they functioned. Their official positions, in terms of matters such as job titles, pay, access to information and rules governing their conduct, will be investigated. Also of importance will be an understanding of their relations with each other, career civil servants and ministers. All of these themes will be extrapolated beyond the period in which special advisers were first used, through to the present day. Most importantly, an explanation of the collective significance of special advisers will be attempted. A core thesis, that they are best understood in terms of their relations with their employing ministers, will be proposed, along with a number of possible alternative interpretations. Primary material, including memoirs, diaries, personal and institutional papers, Public Record Office files and interviews, will form the most important basis for this work. Much of this will be examined for the first time in the context of the special adviser. Secondary 2 sources will also be drawn upon. It is concluded that special advisers were a complex phenomenon and no single interpretation fits them entirely. Nevertheless, the relationship with the employing minister was, at times, extremely important. 3 Contents I Introduction p. 7 II The Permanent Bureaucracy and Outsiders p.38 III Technical Revolutionaries? p.71 IV The First Wave p. 124 V Biographies p. 156 VI Policy p. 190 VII 'The Age of Frivolity was over' p. 232 VIII Policy, Reform and Defeat p. 289 IX Conclusion p. 332 Bibliography p. 365 4 Acknowledgements Firstly, I would like to thank my supervisor, Professor Peter Hennessy of Queen Mary College, London. My studies were made possible by a three-year Studentship awarded by Queen Mary in 1999. Other college staff! would like to thank in particular are Professor John Ramsden, Professor John Miller, Professor Miii Rubin, Dr Mark White, Dr James Ellison and Dr Mark Glancy. I am also grateful to all those who took the time to talk to me about events of a number of decades ago. Two of these, Lord Harris of Greenwich and the Right Hon. the Lord Shore of Stepney have since passed on. Stuart Holland very kindly supplied me with some of his personal papers. The staff of the Public Record Office, Kew, the British Library, St. Pancras, the British Newspaper Library, Colindale, the British Library of Political and Economic Science, Holbom, the King's College Library, Cambridge, the National Museum of Labour History, Manchester and Queen Mary College Library, Mile End, were all extremely helpful. The Wednesday night Institute of Contemporary British History (ICBH) seminars at Senate House provided a forum for the discussion of many relevant matters, as will as giving me the opportunity to present a paper based on my thesis. In addition to this, the ICBH Director, Dr Harriet Jones, provided me with various work opportunities. The Right Hon. the 5 Lord Radice and Graham Allen, MP also gave me employment during the course of my studies, as well as discussing my work with me. Useful suggestions and advice were supplied by June Morris, Visiting Fellow at St. Anthony's College, Oxford, Professor Tony Thirlwall of the University of Kent, Canterbury, Professor George Jones of the London School of Economics and Professor Lord Skideisky of the University of Warwick. All conclusions are, of course, my own. Finally, I would like to thank Nicola Brookbanks and my parents. 6 Chapter I Introduction Special advisers are temporary civil servants, of overt party political alignment, drawn from beyond the career Civil Service, whose appointments are subject to the patronage of individual ministers. They may be in possession of specialist skills or particular experience, drawn from areas such as academia or business. Variously, they provide services including political counsel, expert guidance, contact with the media, and personal assistance. Changes in the party of government are accompanied by wholesale clear-outs of special advisers. If their minister is sacked or shifted to a new portfolio, they may serve the successor, follow their employer to a different office of government, or be forced to leave Whitehall.' Since the 1997 advent of a Labour administration under the premiership of Tony Blair, the role of the special adviser inside British government has received a high level of public attention, often of a critical nature. 2 There has, however, been no specific attempt to investigate the historical origins and development of this phenomenon, an omission which this work sets out to repair. It is intended that the following tasks will be performed. The long- term background will be explained and precedents for the use of aides of this For descriptions of the special adviser see: Harold Wilson, The Governance of Britain (London: Sphere, 1977), pp239-247, Simon James, British Cabinet Government (London: Routledge, 1999), pp22 1-7 and Reinforcing Standards: Review of the First Report of the Committee on Standards in Public L/è, Sixth Report of the Committee on Standards in Public Life, Cmnd. 4557-1 (London: HMSO, 2000), pp68-71. 2 See, for example: Nicholas Jones, The Control Freaks (London: Politico's, 2001). type sought. The circumstances in which the special adviser was instigated, and the motives lying behind this, must be described. A study of the experiment which followed, during the 1964-70 Labour administrations of Harold Wilson, will be conducted. This period has been selected since, as will be shown, it was the crucial, formative, one for the special adviser. Furthermore, a rich archive of primary evidence, including Public Record Office (PRO) files, is now available. This will enable, for the first time, a careful reconstruction of events and the perceptions of those who participated in them. In this context, full consideration will be given to the subjects of who these counsellors were, what they did and why, as well as how they functioned. Their official positions, in terms of matters such as job titles, pay, access to information and rules governing conduct, will be investigated. Also of importance will be an understanding of their relations with each other, career civil servants and ministers. All of these themes will be extrapolated beyond the period in which special advisers were first used, through to the present day. Most importantly, an explanation of the collective significance of special advisers will be attempted. A core thesis will be proposed, along with a number of possible alternative interpretations of the subject. Because of the lack of secondary material dealing expressly with special advisers, these will largely be inferred from the various sources used. They will be considered throughout, with a final judgement in the conclusion. Primary material, including memoirs, diaries, personal and institutional papers, Public Record Office (PRO) files and interviews, will form the most important basis for this work. Much of this will be examined for the first time in the context of the special adviser. Some of it has only very recently become available to historians, or is exclusive to this study. Secondary sources will also be drawn upon. Existing interpretations, in so far as there are any, will be tested. As previously stated, the focus will be upon the 1964-70 Wilson administrations, during which, it will be argued, special advisers, as they are now conceived, were first used. In Chapters II and III reference will be made to earlier periods and in Chapter VIII, the conclusion, the main themes will be examined in the context of selected post- 1970 examples. The central thesis under examination is that special advisers are best understood in terms of their relationships with their appointing ministers. A description of this interpretation follows. As already stated, aides depended upon the patronage of individual politicians for their employment. Special advisers' first loyalties, therefore, were owed to the particular ministers they served.3 The political interests of both were synonymous. The furtherance of the minister's career, even at the expense of others, was likely to be desirable to the counsellor.4 Employing politicians could become reliant upon their For an expression of this view by one of the most important advocates of the use of special advisers, see: Fabian Society Collection (LSE, London), K 66.1, 'Civil Service', 1963.
Load more

Recommended publications
  • Political Ideas and Movements That Created the Modern World
    harri+b.cov 27/5/03 4:15 pm Page 1 UNDERSTANDINGPOLITICS Understanding RITTEN with the A2 component of the GCE WGovernment and Politics A level in mind, this book is a comprehensive introduction to the political ideas and movements that created the modern world. Underpinned by the work of major thinkers such as Hobbes, Locke, Marx, Mill, Weber and others, the first half of the book looks at core political concepts including the British and European political issues state and sovereignty, the nation, democracy, representation and legitimacy, freedom, equality and rights, obligation and citizenship. The role of ideology in modern politics and society is also discussed. The second half of the book addresses established ideologies such as Conservatism, Liberalism, Socialism, Marxism and Nationalism, before moving on to more recent movements such as Environmentalism and Ecologism, Fascism, and Feminism. The subject is covered in a clear, accessible style, including Understanding a number of student-friendly features, such as chapter summaries, key points to consider, definitions and tips for further sources of information. There is a definite need for a text of this kind. It will be invaluable for students of Government and Politics on introductory courses, whether they be A level candidates or undergraduates. political ideas KEVIN HARRISON IS A LECTURER IN POLITICS AND HISTORY AT MANCHESTER COLLEGE OF ARTS AND TECHNOLOGY. HE IS ALSO AN ASSOCIATE McNAUGHTON LECTURER IN SOCIAL SCIENCES WITH THE OPEN UNIVERSITY. HE HAS WRITTEN ARTICLES ON POLITICS AND HISTORY AND IS JOINT AUTHOR, WITH TONY BOYD, OF THE BRITISH CONSTITUTION: EVOLUTION OR REVOLUTION? and TONY BOYD WAS FORMERLY HEAD OF GENERAL STUDIES AT XAVERIAN VI FORM COLLEGE, MANCHESTER, WHERE HE TAUGHT POLITICS AND HISTORY.
    [Show full text]
  • Dinosaurs and Donkeys: British Tabloid Newspapers
    DINOSAURS AND DONKEYS: BRITISH TABLOID NEWSPAPERS AND TRADE UNIONS, 2002-2010 By RYAN JAMES THOMAS A dissertation submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY WASHINGTON STATE UNIVERSITY The Edward R. Murrow College of Communication MAY 2012 © Copyright by RYAN JAMES THOMAS, 2012 All rights reserved © Copyright by RYAN JAMES THOMAS, 2012 All Rights Reserved To the Faculty of Washington State University: The members of the Committee appointed to examine the dissertation of RYAN JAMES THOMAS find it satisfactory and recommend that it be accepted. __________________________________________ Elizabeth Blanks Hindman, Ph.D., Chair __________________________________________ Douglas Blanks Hindman, Ph.D. __________________________________________ Michael Salvador, Ph.D. ii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS This dissertation, not to mention my doctoral degree, would not be possible with the support and guidance of my chair, Dr. Elizabeth Blanks Hindman. Her thoughtful and thorough feedback has been invaluable. Furthermore, as both my MA and doctoral advisor, she has been a model of what a mentor and educator should be and I am indebted to her for my development as a scholar. I am also grateful for the support of my committee, Dr. Douglas Blanks Hindman and Dr. Michael Salvador, who have provided challenging and insightful feedback both for this dissertation and throughout my doctoral program. I have also had the privilege of working with several outstanding faculty members (past and present) at The Edward R. Murrow College of Communication, and would like to acknowledge Dr. Jeff Peterson, Dr. Mary Meares, Professor Roberta Kelly, Dr. Susan Dente Ross, Dr. Paul Mark Wadleigh, Dr. Prabu David, and Dr.
    [Show full text]
  • Discussing What Prime Ministers Are For
    Discussing what Prime Ministers are for PETER HENNESSY New Labour has a lot to answer for on this front. They On 13 October 2014, Lord Hennessy of Nympsfield FBA, had seen what the press was doing to John Major from Attlee Professor of Contemporary British History at Queen Black Wednesday onwards – relentless attacks on him, Mary, University of London, delivered the first British which bothered him deeply.1 And they were determined Academy Lecture in Politics and Government, on ‘What that this wouldn’t happen to them. So they went into are Prime Ministers for?’ A video recording of the lecture the business of creating permanent rebuttal capabilities. and an article published in the Journal of the British Academy If somebody said something offensive about the can be found via www.britishacademy.ac.uk/events/2014/ Government on the Today programme, they would make every effort to put it right by the World at One. They went The following article contains edited extracts from the into this kind of mania of permanent rebuttal, which question and answer session that followed the lecture. means that you don’t have time to reflect before reacting to events. It’s arguable now that, if the Government doesn’t Do we expect Prime Ministers to do too much? react to events immediately, other people’s versions of breaking stories (circulating through social media etc.) I think it was 1977 when the Procedure Committee in will make the pace, and it won’t be able to get back on the House of Commons wanted the Prime Minister to be top of an issue.
    [Show full text]
  • Evaluating the Sociology of First Amendment Silence Mae Kuykendall
    Hastings Constitutional Law Quarterly Volume 42 Article 3 Number 4 Summer 2015 1-1-2015 Evaluating the Sociology of First Amendment Silence Mae Kuykendall Follow this and additional works at: https://repository.uchastings.edu/ hastings_constitutional_law_quaterly Part of the Constitutional Law Commons Recommended Citation Mae Kuykendall, Evaluating the Sociology of First Amendment Silence, 42 Hastings Const. L.Q. 695 (2015). Available at: https://repository.uchastings.edu/hastings_constitutional_law_quaterly/vol42/iss4/3 This Article is brought to you for free and open access by the Law Journals at UC Hastings Scholarship Repository. It has been accepted for inclusion in Hastings Constitutional Law Quarterly by an authorized editor of UC Hastings Scholarship Repository. For more information, please contact [email protected]. Evaluating the Sociology of First Amendment Silence by MAE KUYKENDALL* Introduction Silence is that curious answer to the riddle, "What is golden and disappears when you speak its name?" In the context of First Amendment jurisprudence, Silence is just as puzzling as a riddle. Silence may be used as a verb, as in, to cause a speaker to cease speaking or as a noun, as in, the absence of speaking or sound. In either form, Silence has long been recognized as a rhetorical vehicle for expression. As it is wont to do, Silence often sits quietly in the interstices of First Amendment doctrine. But when she speaks, she roars. When Silence becomes speech, and that speech becomes law, Silence can get a thumping for its unseemly intrusion. The thumping of silence as legal doctrine, such as it has been, was a product of the Court's rescue of the Boy Scouts in Boy Scouts of America v.
    [Show full text]
  • Parliamentary Debates (Hansard)
    Thursday Volume 501 19 November 2009 No. 2 HOUSE OF COMMONS OFFICIAL REPORT PARLIAMENTARY DEBATES (HANSARD) Thursday 19 November 2009 £5·00 © Parliamentary Copyright House of Commons 2009 This publication may be reproduced under the terms of the Parliamentary Click-Use Licence, available online through the Office of Public Sector Information website at www.opsi.gov.uk/click-use/ Enquiries to the Office of Public Sector Information, Kew, Richmond, Surrey TW9 4DU; e-mail: [email protected] 127 19 NOVEMBER 2009 Business of the House 128 we at business questions are the flint she sparks off, we House of Commons share in her reflected glory. May we assume that she is now a subscriber to that publication? Thursday 19 November 2009 May we have a statement on the prospects for the Bills in the Queen’s Speech? On Monday, the right hon. and learned Lady claimed that the majority of the Bills The House met at half-past Ten o’clock in the Queen’s Speech would become law before the next election. We have an absolute maximum of 70 sitting PRAYERS days before Dissolution, and we need to set aside time for debates on the pre-Budget report, as well as ensuring that we have time to discuss other issues, such as [MR.SPEAKER in the Chair] Afghanistan. Given all that, does the right hon. and learned Lady still stand by her original claim, or will Business of the House she admit that there may be difficulties in fulfilling the Government’s commitments? Given the limited time we 10.33 am have left, recess dates have an added significance, so is the right hon.
    [Show full text]
  • Fabian Society
    SOS POLITICAL SCIENCE & PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION M.A POLITICAL SCIENCE II SEM POLITICAL PHILOSOPHY: MODERN POLITICAL THOUGHT, THEORY & CONTEMPORARY IDEOLOGIES UNIT-III Topic Name-fabian socialism WHAT IS MEANT BY FABIAN SOCIALISM? • The Fabian Society is a British socialistorganisation whose purpose is to advance the principles of democratic socialism via gradualist and reformist effort in democracies, rather than by revolutionary overthrow WHO STARTED THE FABIAN SOCIETY? • Its nine founding members were Frank Podmore, Edward R. Pease, William Clarke, Hubert Bland, Percival Chubb, Frederick Keddell, H. H. Champion, Edith Nesbit, and Rosamund Dale Owen. WHO IS THE PROPOUNDER OF FABIAN SOCIALISM? • In the period between the two World Wars, the "Second Generation" Fabians, including the writers R. H. Tawney, G. D. H. Cole and Harold Laski, continued to be a major influence on socialistthought. But the general idea is that each man should have power according to his knowledge and capacity. WHAT IS THE FABIAN POLICY? • The Fabian strategy is a military strategy where pitched battles and frontal assaults are avoided in favor of wearing down an opponent through a war of attrition and indirection. While avoiding decisive battles, the side employing this strategy harasses its enemy through skirmishes to cause attrition, disrupt supply and affect morale. Employment of this strategy implies that the side adopting this strategy believes time is on its side, but it may also be adopted when no feasible alternative strategy can be devised. HISTORY • This
    [Show full text]
  • Download Clinton Email November Release
    UNCLASSIFIED U.S. Department of State Case No. F-2014-20439 Doc No. C05772613 Date: 11/30/2015 RELEASE IN FULL CONFIDENTIAL October 9, 2010 For: Hillary From: Sid Re: Yes, some things: 1. Richard Wolff told me that one of the reasons Jones was summarily executed was payback for dumping Mark Lippert (whom he called "Thing Two," from Dr. Seuss' Cat in the Hat), McDonough's sidekick (whom Jones calls "Thing One"). Of course, Jones had to go to Obama himself to dispose of Lippert. The true cause was that Thing One and Thing Two were leaking negative stories about Jones. McDonough, naturally, has assumed Donilon's post. Obladi, oblada, as John Lennon (who would have been 70) might say. 2. Shaun Woodward is in the Labour shadow cabinet in his former position as Secretary of State for Northern Ireland. Gordon Brown's hatchetman, Charlie Whelan, whose job was to undercut Tony, had worked the unions to vote for Ed Miliband rather than Ed Balls (the one closest to Gordon) in order to beat David--the last scene in the revenge tragedy of Gordon v. Tony. Only 19 percent of the union people voted, but were credited with the full one-third of Labour votes for leader selection, so a minority of a minority threw the election by 1.3 percent to Ed. Then Balls, his wife Yvette Cooper (an MP and former cabinet secretary), and other Brownites ran as a slate for shadow cabinet--the first time the shadow cabinet was to be elected by the constituency. That succeeded to electing them all and shutting out Peter Hain, the former deputy PM, as well as Shaun.
    [Show full text]
  • Particularitiesof Tony Blair' Governments'foreign Policy Decision
    Максим Прихненко . Особливості механізму прийняття зовнішньополітичних рішень … 321 Історико -політичні проблеми сучасного світу : Modern Historical and Political Issues: Збірник наукових статей . – Чернівці : Journal in Historical & Political Sciences. – Chernivtsi: Чернівецький національний університет , Chernivtsi National University, 2016. – Т. 33-34. – С. 321-327 2016. – Volume. 33-34. – pp. 321-327 УДК : 32-327(410) © Максим Прихненко 1 Особливості механізму прийняття зовнішньополітичних рішень в урядах Тоні Блера В статті системно проаналізовано модель прийняття зовнішньополітичних рішень , а також ключові фактори , які впливали на формування та впровадження цих рішень у зовнішньополіти- чний курс Великобританії у якості складової частини загальної моделі лідерства Тоні Блера . Ключові слова Модель лідерства , механізм прийняття рішень , блеризм . Particularitiesof Tony Blair’ governments’foreign policy decision-making process The present article is devoted to the problem of particularities of Tony Blair’ governments’ foreign policy decision-making process. The aim of the paper is to analyze the decision-making model formed by Tony Blair as well as to identify key factors which impacted the process of creation and implemen- tation of foreign policy decisions in the framework of Tony Blair’ leadership model. It was concluded that Tony Blair had formed tree level decision-making system. Rolls of the Parliament and the Gov- ernment in the deliberation process were frustrated. On the other hand, special advisers and so called selective committees impacts were strengthened. This institutes played the role of consulting bodies on specific issues of the agenda. Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs were the driving force of all process. But usually the second one was like the executor of Prime Minister’ decision.
    [Show full text]
  • Rustin Military Collection
    Richard Rustin Military Books Donated 3 October 2009 THE RUSTIN MILITARY COLLECTION The Rustin Military Collection consists of nearly a thousand military books and periodicals collected by Richard E. Rustin during his lifetime. His wife, Ginette Rustin, donated this collection from his estate to the Archive Center and Genealogy Department, Indian River County Main Library, in October 2009 – April 2010. Richard E. Rustin passed away July, 2008. His wife considered him a genius regarding military history. He was a brilliant writer, a former reporter, manager and assistant chief of the New York news bureau. He edited coverage at the heart of the Wall Street Journal’s financial and economic news operations. He served in the U. S. Navy as an officer from 1956 to 1959. The focus of his collection centered on World War I and World War II. The collection also includes books on the Revolutionary War, Civil War, Mexican War, Korean War, and Viet Nam War, among others. Regimental histories and books of detailed campaigns, military science, military equipment and biography predominate. The library is very fortunate to have such a magnificent research collection containing many rare, out of print and hard to find volumes. It should be of great interest to anyone exploring military history. To date, the complete collection has been processed and is available to the public in the Genealogy Department. Use the online catalog at http://www.irclibrary.org or browse the list below. Title Author Publ Date 106th Cavalry Group in Europe J. P. Himmer Co. 1945 10th Royal Hussars in the Second World War 1939-45 Dawnay, D., etc.
    [Show full text]
  • Sir Anthony Seldon [email protected] L Tel
    Dear Dr Rodgers I’m writing to apply for the post of President of the University of the Bahamas. For the last five years, I have been Vice Chancellor (ie President) of the University of Buckingham, Britain’s leading private university, and medical school, founded by Margaret Thatcher in the 1970s. She became Chancellor in the 1990s after she ceased to be Prime Minister. Large numbers of Bahamians are alumni of Buckingham, close to 1000. I travelled out to the Bahamas every year or so I was Vice Chancellor, last visiting just after Hurricane Dorian, and have made a large number of friends in the Bahamas. I would relish making a significant impact for good on the country. My experience to date has I believe eQuipped me well to achieve your strategic objectives, including enhancing financial controls and increasing revenue diversity, boosting UG and PG numbers and engagement, and elevating research, community engagement and national/international profile. Two of my referees are Bahamians. One, Sarah Farrington, is an alumna of Buckingham. The other, financier Kiril Sokoloff, who can also speak about my work on AI and digitalisation in higher education, is not an alumnus. The Bahamas is a country where I feel very much at home. In 2015, I founded the “Universities G20“ a group for presidents of some of the world’s leading private/liberal arts universities. The G20 has a strong focus on the United States, allowing me to build on my close knowledge of and friendships with US university leaders. One of my referees, Grant Cornwell, is President of Rollins University, which was one of the founding members.
    [Show full text]
  • Prologue to a Biography
    Notes Preface and Acknowledgements 1. R. Skidelsky, ‘Introduction’, John Maynard Keynes, Vol. 3: Fighting for Britain 1937–1946 (Macmillan Papermac, 2000), p. xxii. 1 The Caribbean in Turmoil: Prologue to a Biography 1. Lewis Archive, Princeton, Box 1/10; ‘Autobiographical Account’ by Sir Arthur Lewis, prepared for Nobel Prize Committee, December 1979, p. 4. 2. Lewis (1939), p. 5. In the 1920s, the white population in St Lucia and on average across the islands, was relatively low, at about 3 per cent of the population. The proportion was higher than this on islands completely dominated by sugar cultivation, such as Barbados. 3. Lewis (1939), p. 7. On the significance of colour gradations in the social and power structures of the West Indies, see ‘The Light and the Dark’, ch.4 in James (1963) and Tignor (2005) notes: ‘In place of the rigid two-tiered racial system, there had appeared a coloured middle class … usually light skinned, well educated, professional and urban … To this generation, Lewis … belonged’ (p.11). 4. Lewis (1939), p. 5. 5. Lewis (1939), p. 9. 6. The total value of exports from St Lucia fell from £421,000 (£8.10 per cap- ita) to £207,000 (£3.91) between 1920 and 1925, and to £143,000 (£2.65) by 1930 (Armitage-Smith, 1931, p. 62). 7. These data derive from Sir Sydney Armitage-Smith’s financial mission to the Leeward Islands and St Lucia in the depths of the depression in 1931 – undertaken while Lewis was serving time in the Agricultural Department office waiting to sit his scholarship exam.
    [Show full text]
  • The Power of the Prime Minister
    Research Paper Research The Power of the Prime Minister 50 Years On George Jones THE POWER OF THE PRIME MINISTER 50 YEARS ON George Jones Emeritus Professor of Government London School of Economics & Political Science for The Constitution Society Based on a lecture for the Institute of Contemporary British History, King’s College, London, 8 February 2016 First published in Great Britain in 2016 by The Constitution Society Top Floor, 61 Petty France London SW1H 9EU www.consoc.org.uk © The Constitution Society ISBN: 978-0-9954703-1-6 © George Jones 2016. All rights reserved. Without limiting the rights under copyright reserved above, no part of this publication may be reproduced, stored or introduced into a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise), without the prior written permission of both the copyright owner and the publisher of this book. THE POWER OF THE PRIME MINISTER 3 Contents About the Author 4 Foreword 5 Introduction 9 Contingencies and Resource Dependency 11 The Formal Remit and Amorphous Convention 13 Key Stages in the Historical Development of the Premiership 15 Biographies of Prime Ministers are Not Enough 16 Harold Wilson 17 Tony Blair – almost a PM’s Department 19 David Cameron – with a department in all but name 21 Hung Parliament and Coalition Government 22 Fixed-term Parliaments Act, 2011 25 Party Dynamics 26 Wilson and Cameron Compared 29 Enhancing the Prime Minister 37 Between Wilson and Cameron 38 Conclusions 39 4 THE POWER OF THE PRIME MINISTER About the Author George Jones has from 2003 been Emeritus Professor of Government at LSE where he was Professor of Government between 1976 and 2003.
    [Show full text]