Once upon a time, there would have been only one contender for the main story of the coming week – the gathering of the Trades Union Congress in Liverpool. It used to be an event covered with exactly the same focus and...
Read MoreMemo to SJ From AC re: earphones Great to see you looking so well after your liver transplant, and well done on all the new products. Can’t say I understand them all, but judging by the fact you made the top trends on...
Read MoreWas it Atticus Finch who said don’t judge a man until you have tried to walk in his shoes? Or was he just quoting someone from the Bible, or from Shakespeare, who said pretty much everything there was to be said, long...
Read MoreWell, we got a right old debate going yesterday, when I picked over the parody that was Dave’s performance on the BBC News, and the uber-parody of a piece in the Telegraph on so-called Tory Cool. I’m not pretending...
Read MoreIf you’d watched the BBC News last night, you’d have thought Rory Bremner had given up his serious commentator bit and gone back to being a funny impersonator dreaming up lines that no politician, surely, would ever...
Read More
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.