I have never known a more
turbulent time in politics. Scarcely a day goes by without another
resignation of some sort. We are in the eye of the storm. However,
it will settle down in time and clarity will eventually prevail. By the
time you read this article the first two rounds of the Conservative leadership
contest will have been completed.
I wish that David Cameron
hadn’t resigned. He did not need to in my view. It was quite
possible for him to put together a negotiating team to manage the outcome of
the EU referendum while staying on to provide some continuity and to help with
relations with other EU countries. However, he didn't want to carry on so
now we must calmly choose a new leader.
I worked for David Cameron for
almost three years including during his own campaign for the Conservative
leadership. From the very beginning I could see that he had the judgement and
temperament to become a really great Prime Minister. It has been
fascinating to see him catapulted from an unknown MP twelve years ago to become
leader of the party and then leader of our country. I have seen him grow
at each stage and as each challenge presented itself. No one is born to
be Prime Minister and there is no special training. You have to learn it
from trial and error on the job. You either have the aptitude to do it, and
manage to overcome obstacles and become stronger after each and every setback
or, rather like Gordon Brown, the job overwhelms you and you get gradually
eroded by it.
While David Cameron will be
disappointed at the way things have ended, I think that history will judge him
well. He took the helm in desperate times and steered the country back to
economic recovery. He was the only Prime Minister I can think of who had the
temperament to make coalition government really work for a full five
years. I am very sad to see him go but it has been a real privilege to
have worked with him.
