It has been mildly comical to hear David Cameron for so long bemoaning the centralising, strategising ways of the Blair government, and now seeking to emulate the systems he decried. As his new Number Ten team gets to work, may...
Read MoreCome on, be fair, it is ages since I did a blog on football. There is only so much I can say about David Cameron’s muddled foreign policy, his failure to explain the Big Society, or the ideological drive behind the cuts,...
Read MoreFor the second time in less than a week – well done Charles Kennedy on re-election as Rector of Glasgow University – I intend to be nice about a Lib Dem. I did not see BBC Question Time last week, but several people...
Read MoreMy God they are still blessed, this Tory government. Can you even begin to imagine the hue and cry, the howling, raging, screeching tone of the papers and the tellybabblers if a Labour government’s handling of the Libyan...
Read MoreI didn’t hear William Hague’s interview on the Today programme – I am a silence person first thing – but the avalanche on twitter suggested he didn’t do terribly well. I thought I would offer a word...
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by
"Your country needs you. Your world needs you. Your time is now."
Our politics is a mess. We have leaders who can't or shouldn't be allowed to lead. We endure governments that lie, and seek to undermine our democratic values. And we are confronted with policies that serve the interests of the privileged few. It's no surprise that so many of us feel frustrated, let down and drawn to ask, 'But what can I do?' That question is the inspiration behind this book. It's a question regularly posed to Alastair Campbell, not least in reaction to The Rest is Politics, the chart-topping podcast he presents with former Tory Cabinet minister Rory Stewart. His answer, typically, is forthright and impassioned. We cannot afford to stand on the sidelines. If we think things need to change, then we need to change them, and that means getting involved. But What Can I Do? provides each of us with the motivation and the tools to make a difference. Opening with an acute analysis of our polarised world and the populists and extremists who have shaped it, it goes on to show how we help transform it. It explains how we can develop our skills of advocacy and persuasion. It draws on Alastair’s long experience, as well as on role models and lessons from history, to offer practical tips on starting and leading a campaign. It offers advice on developing confidence and coping with criticism and setbacks. And it sets out the practical steps by which we can become political players ourselves. Part call to arms, part practical handbook, But What Can I Do? will prove required reading for anyone who wants to help change things for the better.