Oct 24
Jonathan Mortimer, a Partner at Raworths in Harrogate, provides his book review of:
Theresa May, Baroness May of Maidenhead
The Abuse of Power
The first thing to say is that this is not an autobiography as such.
Baroness May is one of only a few former Prime Ministers is recent times to resist the temptation not to write an autobiography.
Instead, this book concentrates on abuses of power by those in authority whether it may be within social injustice, in international affairs or nearer to home in our Parliamentary system. Such tragedies as Hillsborough, Grenfell are discussed, moving onto the Rotherham sex abuse scandal, stop and search powers and the Salisbury Poisonings amongst many others.
Baroness May exhibits entirely what politicians should be about – being in it for the right reasons, identifying and caring about the issues and trying to resolve the injustices.
Some may say that the writer was more successful as Home Secretary than as Prime Minister. Indeed, there is no doubt that Baroness May draws on her expertise in the Home Office when providing commentary on so many issues which fell within that Department and perhaps that is where she excels in this book. But does the writer touch upon the one issue that impacted upon her premiership?
Baroness May does devote at least a chapter in her book to the issue of Brexit and accepts that her premiership will always be seen in the context of Brexit and her failure to get a deal through the House of Commons. It is not altogether clear how a discussion on Brexit falls within a book on abuse of power but perhaps it was an elephant in the room that simply could not be ignored. Indeed, it was for me the most interesting chapter and the nearest the writer gets to straying upon an autobiography.
It is clear that Baroness May is prepared to concede that she could have made some different decisions with the benefit of hindsight but is more damming of the roles played by others. John Bercow (then Speaker of the House of Commons) is criticised for blatantly taking sides on the debate, the present and former leader of the Labour Party are accused of putting party before the country and the European negotiator Michel Barnier is said to have approached the departure without getting a good deal for both sides.
As Baroness May makes clear in her concluding remarks, so much of what is important in life turns on the attitudes and decisions of individuals who are not always acting in the best interests of those they serve. To expose these problems within our public sector, Parliament and the wider world makes this book perhaps more deserving that your traditional autobiography.
Theresa May is appearing at the Raworths Harrogate Literature Festival on Thursday 10 October 2024 at The Crown Hotel in Harrogate. More details can be found about the event on this link.
Published on 1 October 2024
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