Andrew Rawnsley



Profile:


Full name: Andrew Rawnsley

Area of interest: Politics

Journals: The Observer

Email: [mailto:a.rawnsley@observer.co.uk a.rawnsley@observer.co.uk]

Website: Guardian.co / Andrew Rawnsley

Blog: Comment is free...

Agent:

Networks: Twitter: "andrewrawnsley"



Biography:
Education: Rugby School (scholarship); Sidney Sussex College, Cambridge University: History (first-class Honours)

Career: BBC: 1983/1985; The Guardian: reporter 1985/1987, political sketch writer 1987/1993; The Observer: chief political columnist and associate editor 1993

Current position/role: Chief political commentator, associate editor


 * also writes/has written for:

Other roles: author and broadcaster

Other activities:

Disclosures:

Viewpoints/Insight:

TV/Radio: Channel 4’s A Week in Politics: co-presenter, 1989-97; BBC Radio 4’s The Westminster Hour: principal presenter, 1998/2006; Regular appearances on Today, PM, World at One, World Tonight, News Quiz and other news and current affairs programmes; ITV's The Sunday Edition: co-presenter (with Andrea Catherwood), 2006; Also writes and presents one-off documentaries for Channel 4, including The Rise and Fall of Tony Blair (June 2007)


 * IMDb

Controversy/Criticism:
 * Resigned as editor of PoliticsHome after Lord Ashcroft, the deputy chairman of the Conservative Party, bought a majority holding in the website, see: Editor resigns after Lord Ashcroft buys up political websites - Sam Coates, Chief Political Correspondent, The Times, 23rd September 2009
 * Simon Walters (Mail on Sunday Political Editor) reported that in 'The End of the Party' allegations are made that prime minister, Gordon Brown, physically attacked members of his staff, see: Angry Gordon Brown 'hit out at aide and yanked secretary from her chair' - 31st January 2010

Awards/Honours: Student Journalist of the Year, 1983; Young Journalist of the Year, 1987; Journalist of the Year, C4 Political Awards, 2003; became a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts in 2001

Other:



Books & Debate:

 * Servants of the people: the inside story of New Labour OCLC 44532783 (top ten best-seller in both hard cover and paperback and voted Channel Four Political Book of the Year), 2000

Latest work: The end of the party OCLC 458731872, 2010

Speaking/Appearances:
 * Andrew Rawnsley will discuss his forthcoming book, The End of the Party, at an Observer/Waterstone's event at One Great George Street, London SW1 on Wednesday, 3 March from 7pm. For tickets, contact Waterstone's, Gower Street on 020 7636 1577

Current debate: 

The Observer:
Column remit: Politics

Section:

Role: Chief political commentator

Pen-name:

Email: [mailto:a.rawnsley@observer.co.uk a.rawnsley@observer.co.uk]

Website: Guardian.co / Andrew Rawnsley

Commissioning editor:

Day published: Sunday

Regularity: Weekly

Column format:

Average length:



Articles:

 * they say they have no Plan B, you really should believe them'' - Beguiled by the example of Margaret Thatcher, David Cameron and George Osborne are determined to press on - 30th January 2011
 * loses a tainted friend, Miliband promotes a tricky rival'' - The promotion of Ed Balls will prove to be much more significant for politics than the spiking of Andy Coulson - 23rd January 2011
 * can only win if voters believe they're on the money'' - The British public is not going to hand them the keys to Number 10 until they restore their economic credibility - 16th January 2011
 * and Saddleworth: All three leaders are jumpy about the verdict of the Pennines'' - The Oldham and Saddleworth byelection highlights the challenges facing each of the parties in the year ahead - 9th January 2011
 * and gentlemen, I give you the Westminster Uglies awards'' - Who got the Pants on Fire or the Shameless Hypocrite prizes? How about Opportunist of the Year? Read on - 26th December 2010
 * Cameron's regime is not a million miles from Mao'' - Anywhere you look in Whitehall, there's a secretary of state unleashing upheaval with reforming zeal - 19th December 2010
 * Cameron really should be sharing Nick Clegg's pain'' - The coalition will become increasingly unstable if the Lib Dems feel they are turning into the fall guys for the Tories - 12th December 2010
 * politics is over. But the likes of John Prescott can't see it'' - Nearly all the politicians fronting the campaign against electoral reform are fading blasts from the past - 28th November 2010
 * Miliband needs to change a lot more than his son's nappies'' - It is far too early to start offering the voters detailed policy, but he can prove himself by reforming his party - 21st November 2010
 * reforms in principle, quick and painful cuts in practice'' - Iain Duncan Smith's proposals will take years to make an impact. George Osborne's benefit-slashing will not - 14th November 2010
 * Barack Obama is looking good for a second term in 2012'' - The midterm drubbing for the Democrats masks the many encouraging auguries for the president - 7th November 2010
 * fierce battle behind the scenes for the coalition's soul'' - A raging argument over counterterror laws is putting their commitment to human rights to a crucial test - 31st October 2010
 * the end of the battle over spending, but just the beginning'' - Now we will see whether the coalition can implement these cuts and endure the unpopularity they will bring - 24th October 2010
 * up and smell the burning rubber, Mr Cable and Mr Clegg'' - Betraying their pledges on tuition fees exposes the contradiction which has always lurked within the Lib Dems - 17th October 2010
 * Cameron's ambivalent relationship with the lady in blue'' - The prime minister thinks he can be as radical as Margaret Thatcher without being as divisive. That won't be easy - 10th October 2010
 * Tories are still struggling to come to terms with the new order'' - David Cameron has never really settled the hash with the right in his party. The argument is just waiting to erupt - 3rd October 2010
 * Miliband: You thought fighting your brother was tough. That was the easy bit'' - The new Labour leader's first imperative is to start recovering the party's reputation for economic competence - 26th September 2010
 * Dems: They love the power, but they're not sure about the responsibility'' - As some Lib Dems suffer from buyers' remorse, Nick Clegg will have to remind his party why they chose coalition - 19th September 2010
 * cuts: When ministers talk of lynch mobs, you know they're scared'' - The cabinet is finally beginning to appreciate the scale of the consequences of the Treasury squeeze - 11th September 2010
 * leadership contenders sneer at Tony Blair at their peril. He knew how to win'' - If Labour is ever to be electable again, it still needs to remember the lessons of its longest-serving prime minister - 5th September 2010
 * Obama is down, but it's far too early to count him out'' - Despite an impressive record by the president, discontented American voters are turning against the Democrats - 29th August 2010
 * impressive start by David Cameron, but a start is all it is'' - There's a big potential danger for this government in trying to run before it has fully learned how to walk - 1st August 2010
 * still all smiles at the top, but there's rumbling down below'' - The cabinet spent an awayday at Chequers preparing for the challenges facing the coalition in the weeks ahead - 25th July 2010
 * needs to talk about Gordon. Otherwise it will repeat its failures'' - Its members will not grasp why they lost unless they discuss why Mr Brown was such a catastrophic leader - 18th July 2010
 * of political paradox, I give you the upcoming referendum'' - The battle over electoral reform will present all three main parties and their leaders with extraordinary dilemmas - 4th July 2010
 * worm of anxiety is already eating away at the Lib Dems'' - Nick Clegg can probably handle being disliked or even hated. What he will find unbearable is being seen as a Tory dupe - 27th June 2010
 * Osborne is wearing the trousers in this government'' - The chancellor's forthcoming austerity budget won't win him any friends, but then he's used to that - 20th June 2010
 * their hopes of a great revival, the left got left behind'' - The 'socialist moment' which was supposed to be triggered by the financial crisis is already evaporating - 13th June 2010
 * Clegg sets the test which will make or break this coalition'' - He will stand or fall on whether this government can implement spending cuts without the savagery of the Eighties - 6th June 2010
 * everything New Labour did is not the road to recovery'' - The contenders for the party's leadership need to balance regret about its failures with pride in its successes - 30th May 2010
 * Cameron prefers coalition to being alone with his own party'' - The prime minister is happily centred with the Lib Dems on one wing and the Tory right on the other - 23rd May 2010
 * Victoria would be amused by this Clameron coalition'' - There is a flavour now of the 19th century when circumstances regularly made expedient allies of bitter rivals - 16th May 2010
 * this way a rock and that way a hard place for the Liberal Democrats'' - With Gordon Brown and David Cameron competing to win his favours, Nick Clegg faces a hideous conundrum - 9th May 2010
 * British don't need to be hung up about a hung parliament'' - A coalition with a wider range of support could be much more stable than a weak single party government - 2nd May 2010 (Cif at the polls)
 * 'bigot' episode shows him acting not out of character, but in it'' - On the Brownout Scale of volcanic eruptions this was only a three or four - 29th April 2010
 * 2010: This volcanic eruption has been waiting to blow for many years'' - The shared mistake of the Tories and Labour was to assume that power was a timeshare between them - 25th April 2010
 * not the answers that will win this election, it's the questions'' - The parties unveil their manifestos this week. Don't expect them to be reliable guides to what they'd do in power - 11th April 2010
 * an unvalued chancellor became Labour's priceless asset'' - Even Gordon Brown is now forced to acknowledge that he needs Alistair Darling – the man he tried to sack - 28th March 2010
 * all these emails from Barack Obama make me feel cheap'' - The internet is undermining old-fashioned campaign models and killing traditional forms of propaganda - 21st March 2010
 * Nick Clegg's chance to shine, so he'd better not fluff his lines'' - The Lib Dems have a fabulous opportunity, but will need exceptional discipline during the campaign - 14th March 2010
 * downwind of a senior Tory and you'll smell the anxious sweat'' - It is no longer totally outlandish to wonder if the son of the manse might be the next prime minister - 7th March 2010
 * from my 15 rounds in the ring with the forces of hell'' - It's strange to find yourself publicly denounced by Number 10 and privately encouraged by ministers - 28th February 2010
 * despair, indecision. Inside Gordon Brown's Number 10'' - In the most eagerly awaited political book for years, the Observer's chief political commentator, Andrew Rawnsley, provides a gripping inside account of Labour governments since 2001. Here, in an exclusive extract from The End of the Party, he paints a disturbing portrait of a besieged, tortured and volatile Gordon Brown as he struggles to cope with being prime minister - 21st February 2010
 * should know the full truth about the character of Gordon Brown'' - The prime minister's conduct in office has long been the subject of gossip. The real story needed to be told - 21st February 2010
 * master juggler Cameron is suddenly dropping the balls'' - The unresolved contradictions and tensions within the Conservatives are being exposed even before they have made it to power - 14th February 2010
 * is finally cleaning up its act? Don't count on it'' - Optimists in politics hope that public trust can be regained. But it'll take more than a few MPs in the dock and an election - 7th February 2010
 * v Chilcot. No contest: we and the truth are the losers'' - The country needed answers on Iraq, but this limp inquiry couldn't touch such a consummate performer as the ex PM - 31st January 2010
 * Gordon Brown will have to face the music on Iraq'' - The prime minister as well as his predecessor will have to accept responsibility for the war and its catastrophic aftermath - 24th January 2010
 * Ulster should celebrate its sex and money scandal'' - Hypocritical, sleazy and adulterous – at last Northern Ireland politics looks just like politics everywhere else - 17th January 2010
 * plot was a flop but a revealing one none the less'' - Alistair Darling, Harriet Harman and others left Gordon Brown to shiver for a few hours, exposing their anger with him - 10th January 2010
 * the records tumble at next year's general election'' - The electorate is so disillusioned with our politicians it's likely we'll see new turn-out lows when we choose the new PM - 27th December 2009
 * Humbug! A Christmas ghost story in Downing Street'' - With apologies to Charles Dickens, Gordon Brown is visited by three spirits and the chain-clanking spectre of Tony Blair - 20th December 2009
 * invoked the taxman, the axeman waits for Labour'' - Alistair Darling's pre-budget report has won the government no friends and quite a few new enemies, particularly in the media - 13th December 2009
 * Tories have put all their chips on David Cameron'' - He's been a talented leader of the opposition but the Conservative party's one-man-band approach is beginning to look risky - 6th December 2009
 * Brown's favourite Conservative policy pledge'' - Promising to slash inheritance tax once looked like a brilliant coup for the Tories. Now it's an albatross around their necks - 29th November 2009
 * it's very likely the next parliament will be doubly hung'' - With today's poll suggesting a shrinking Tory lead, David Cameron could find himself governing with a tiny majority or none at all - 22nd November 2009
 * country doesn't want to be led by someone it pities'' - Gordon Brown has attracted near-universal sympathy after the attack by the Sun, but it won't be worth a single vote - 15th November
 * cheers for the world after the fall of the Berlin Wall'' - Millions have become freer and more prosperous since the end of the Cold War but the battle for liberal values goes on - 8th November 2009
 * more people see of the BNP, the worse for the party'' - Nick Griffin's performance on Question Time gave him publicity all right. Voters could see how ridiculous the far-right leader is - 25th October 2009
 * David Cameron turn out to be a one-term wonder?'' - We have been in a period when prime ministers reigned for unusually long stretches. Nothing says this pattern will continue - 18th October 2009
 * parties turn back to politics in primary colours'' - Slick sloganeering and lazy posturing at conference time mask important truths about the task for the next government - 11th October 2009
 * beckons for the Tories, but are they ready for it?'' - David Cameron has brought his party to the brink of government. Now we need more clarity about what he would do with it - 4th October 2009
 * Brown has to break out of the spiral of decay'' - The threat to the prime minister at the Brighton conference is not assassination, but a remorseless slide into irrelevance - 27th September 2009
 * Clegg must blow up David Cameron's love bombs'' - The Lib Dem last night launched his most aggressive attack ever on the Tory leader. It signals an essential change of strategy - 20th September 2009
 * Labour doesn't fight the tide, it will be drowned by it'' - The government has a record to defend and a story to tell, if only it could summon up the energy to take the fight to the Tories - 13th September 2009
 * things Mr Brown did not say about Afghanistan'' - The British army could be broken by another humiliation like the retreat Tony Blair precipitated in Basra - 6th September 2009
 * do you think you are kidding, Mr Cameron?'' - The Tories speak with two tongues when they claim that they can make deep cuts to public spending and improve services - 30th August 2009
 * may never, ever win power on its own again'' - The two-party domination of British politics is coming to an end as more and more disaffected voters reject both of them - 19th July 2009
 * spinner is making the wrong sort of headlines'' - The focus on Andy Coulson has reminded everyone of the centrality of spin to the reinvention of the Conservative party - 12th July 2009
 * to the people! Great idea, Mr Brown, but how?'' - This week, the prime minister will promise to make public services more accountable and responsive to those who use them - 28th June 2009
 * is not the best policy on public spending'' - The Tories are revealing only a bit of the truth about the cuts that will follow the election. Gordon Brown won't even go that far - 21st June 2009
 * triumph and tragedy of the Overlord of New Labour'' - Peter Mandelson has finally satisfied his ambition to be the undisputed, indispensable right-hand man to the prime minister - 14th June 2009
 * in the end the cabinet just didn't have the stomach for a kill'' - Gordon Brown is badly mauled but he survived because his indecisive would-be assassins are ultimately afraid of the alternative - 7th June 2009
 * Lib Dems alone are truly serious about voting reform'' - Whatever Gordon Brown or David Cameron say, their new enthusiasm for changing our political system is deeply unconvincing - 31st May 2009
 * climate of loathing towards all MPs is bad for democracy'' - We should pillory those who deserve it, but an enfeebled Parliament cringeing before the mob will not serve Britain well - 24th May 2009
 * the party'' - A new politics: Independents appeal at moments of crisis, but a healthy democracy needs vigorous parties to nurture real political talent - 20th May 2009
 * right answer to public rage is a purge of the guilty'' - The decent MPs must demand a clear out of the sleazy, both for their own sakes and to save the reputation of Parliament - 17th May 2009
 * scams are atrocious. Worse is the lack of remorse'' - The expenses racket shows politicians have lost their ethical bearings. It seems they no longer care what people think of them - 10th May 2009
 * Brown - why a clever man ends up making a fool of himself'' - Gordon Brown is blundering into self-inflicted debacles because he lacks emotional intelligence and some basic political radar - 3rd May 2009
 * and David are both whistling in the graveyard'' - New Labour is dead. All that is left is the sleaze and spin that voters have always loathed. The New Tory project is buried too - 26th April 2009
 * done, Gordon. Now it's time to come back to earth'' - Mr Brown is glowing after a successful summit where he was in his element. Now he has to focus on being prime minister again - 5th April 2009
 * Brown - more piggy in the middle than global giant'' - The prime minister will have to apply every ounce of psychological pressure to win significant agreements at the G20 summit - 29th March 2009
 * long party is over for the public sector, whoever wins'' - Credit-crunch voters simply won't tolerate their money being wasted on bloated quangos and underperforming services - 22nd March
 * Cameron needs more than a clique of four to succeed'' - The Tory leader promises to restore cabinet government. There's no evidence he will do so from the way he runs things now - 15th March 2009
 * at least didn't treat Brown like a lame duck'' - The prime minister hopes that the success of his Washington trip will convince the G20 that he's not in the departure lounge yet - 8th March 2009
 * bankers are lucky that they are not going to jail'' - The government has been too timid about confronting these failed financiers. It's time that it showed some teeth - 1st March 2009
 * the Tories know what they would do with power?'' - David Cameron will reap the whirlwind if the Conservatives are not properly prepared to take over government - 2nd February 2009
 * cabinet's quarrels are a warning of the storms ahead'' - Behind closed doors, ministers are locked in fierce arguments over the best way to get the voters behind them once again - 15th February 2009
 * greatest moral failure of Tony Blair's premiership'' - Britain's silence when George W Bush sanctioned the use of torture is to the enduring shame of the former prime minister - 8th February 2009
 * Brown, it's time to come down from the mountain'' - Never mind 'British jobs for British workers', it's time for the prime minister to assuage the growing anger in the country - 1st February 2009
 * return of Ken Clarke reveals the Tory leader's fears'' - Mr Cameron, still surprisingly worried about his election prospects, is hoping his party will now look less posh and more tough - 25th January 2009
 * drizzle your pessimism on Obama's grand parade'' - Let's see what this exceptional man can do with power before we decide that he's going to be a complete disappointment - 18th January 2009
 * little words that the prime minister can never say'' - The true answer to how this crisis will unfold is: 'We don't know.' But Gordon Brown would get no credit for admitting that - 11th January 2009
 * year, Gordon Brown will be on another planet'' - I foresee a busy time ahead for all our political leaders. Especially the prime minister who, of course, will be saving the universe - 28th December 2008
 * Brown saved himself. Now he has to save his party'' - The breathtaking reversal in the prime minister's fortunes has astonished his party and disoriented his opponents - 21st December 2008
 * we're going to spend, then let's invest in Britain's future'' - Rather than encourage people to squitter money on imports, the government should build us an infrastructure fit for this century - 14th December 2008
 * threatens to spank the banks who like to say no'' - Gordon Brown may give the public and his party some visceral pleasure by beating up bankers, but it won't solve the credit crisis - 7th December 2008
 * are always leaking. It's insane to arrest one for it'' - The detention of Damian Green makes the government look like a paranoid bully, the Speaker feeble and the Met out of control - 30th November 2008
 * on-off election fiasco would be fatal for Mr Brown'' - The Prime Minister will only kill speculation about going to the country in the spring by unequivocally saying he won't - 23rd November 2008
 * is waiting for Brown to tumble from his tightrope'' - The knives are flashing behind the Shadow Chancellor, but he is playing a longer game with economic credibility at stake - 16th November 2008
 * will want a special relationship with Obama'' - Other leaders may look ridiculous as they jostle to get close to him, but they're right to assume he'll be a two-term President - 9th November 2008
 * Obama's impressive road to the White House'' - Say what you don't like about the length and expense of the presidential race, it is the most intense audition for the job - 2nd November 2008
 * so many scandals, these reckless politicians don't get it'' - Peter Mandelson appears to have learnt nothing about dangerous liaisons with rich men. Neither have the Conservatives - 26th October 2008
 * golden age, and other things they wish they'd never said'' - Mr Brown and Mr Cameron couldn't flatter financiers enough. Now they're scrambling to reposition themselves in a world of bust - 19th October 2008
 * the crisis puts a spring in the Prime Minister's step'' - A re-energised Gordon Brown has been given a second chance to persuade the voters to respect him and listen to him - 12th October 2008
 * really drove Gordon and Peter back together again'' - Two of New Labour's founding fathers are desperate to rescue their creation and save their reputations from oblivion - 5th October 2008
 * Cameron can't be caught naked in front of the voters'' - At a time of such severe financial crisis, the country expects and deserves some proper answers about what the Tories would do - 28th September 2008
 * calls, but will Alan and David seize the moment?'' - A desperate Labour conference will be yearning to see if there's anyone who offers a credible alternative to Gordon Brown - 21st September 2008
 * may be inadvertently giving a hand to Cameron'' - The Lib Dem leader wants to offer a progressive alternative to Labour, but the immediate effect will be to help the Tories - 14th September 2008
 * despairs of Brown, but there is no sign of a Brutus'' - The party can neither make a collective decision to get rid of the beleaguered Prime Minister, nor to rally round him - 7th September 2008
 * Chancellor's chill wind should make Mr Brown shiver'' - Alistair Darling's candid comments on the state of the economy can only add to the precarious position of the Prime Minister -31st August 2008
 * needs Americans to believe that he's one of them'' - In his crucial speech this week, the Democratic contender will have to overcome suspicions that run deep through the US heartlands - 24th August 2008
 * is no doubt about it, this is a full-frontal assault'' - The Foreign Secretary has flaunted his cojones. His challenge dares a weakened Prime Minister to try to chop them off - 3rd August 2008


 * archive



Links:

 * Comment highlights: best of Andrew Rawnsley (The Observer)
 * Wikipedia bio