Cameron at 10: From Election to Brexit

William Collins

An imprint of HarperCollinsPublishers,

1 London Bridge Street

London SE1 9GF

WilliamCollinsBooks.com

This ebook first published in Great Britain by William Collins 2015

Copyright © 2015 Anthony Seldon and Peter Snowdon

Anthony Seldon and Peter Snowdon assert the moral

right to be identified as the authors of this work

Principal researchers: Jonathan Meakin and Illias Thoms

All profits from Anthony Seldon’s writing are given to charity

A catalogue record for this book is

available from the British Library

Cover photograph © Dan Kitwood/Getty Images

All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. By payment of the required fees, you have been granted the non-exclusive, non-transferable right to access and read the text of this e-book on-screen. No part of this text may be reproduced, transmitted, down-loaded, decompiled, reverse engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereinafter invented, without the express written permission of HarperCollins.

Source ISBN: 9780007575510

Ebook Edition © September 2015 ISBN: 9780007575527

Version: 2016-07-05

Dedication

To Julia Snowdon and Joanna Seldon

Contents

Cover

Title Page

Copyright

Frontispiece

Dedication

List of Illustrations

Dramatis Personae

Introduction to the Paperback Edition: Cameron at 10: 2010–16: The Verdict

1 First Night in Downing Street: 11 May 2010

2 Origin of ‘Plan A’: September 2008– February 2010

3 ‘If we win’: 6–12 May 2010

4 Delivering Plan A: May–October 2010

5 Bloody Sunday Statement: 15 June 2010

6 Chequers Summit on Afghanistan: June 2010

7 Life and Death in the Cameron Family: February 2009–September 2010

8 Coulson Departure: May 2010–February 2011

9 Taking on Gaddafi: February–September 2011

10 AV Referendum: Coalition Buckles: January–May 2011

11 Scottish Referendum Call: May 2011–February 2012

12 London Riots: August 2011

13 The Big Society and Beyond: May 2010–April 2012

14 The EU: Back Burner to Veto: May 2010–December 2011

15 The NHS Debacle: November 2009–September 2012

16 Cameron and Obama: March 2012

17 Omnishambles Budget: March 2012

18 Olympian Summer, Olympian Difficulties: May–September 2012

19 Lords and Boundaries: January–December 2012

20 Halfway Point: Autumn Blues: September–December 2012

21 Cameron Pledges a Referendum: April 2012–February 2013

22 Gay Marriage Saga: October 2011–July 2013

23 Lynton to the Rescue?: January 2013–October 2014

24 Warfare Over Welfare: May 2010–December 2014

25 The Darkest Hour Before Dawn: January–June 2013

26 The Iron Lady’s Long Shadow: April 2013

27 Maximum Danger: Syria Vote: August 2013

28 Essay Crisis Autumn: September 2013–February 2014

29 China Warms, Russia Cools: October 2013–March 2014

30 2014 Budget: Powering the North: March 2014–February 2015

31 The UKIP Challenge: 2013–2014

32 The Gove Reshuffle: July 2014

33 Scotland Decides: September 2014

34 EU Tribulations: January–June 2014

35 Final Autumn: September–December 2014

36 Controlling Immigration: November 2014

37 Farewell Washington: January 2015

38 A Diminished Britain?: September 2014–March 2015

39 The Coalition Endures: November 2014–March 2015

40 ‘If we lose’: March–May 2015

41 ‘The sweetest victory’: 7–8 May 2015

42 Road to Nowhere: May 2015–June 2016

43 Full Circle: 23–24 June 2016

Acknowledgements

Bibliography

Notes

Index

By Anthony Seldon and Peter Snowdon

About the Publisher

List of Illustrations

Frontispiece: Cameron and his team inside Number 10 on the morning after the Scottish Referendum, 19 September 2014. Craig Oliver and Kate Fall are on the left of the picture (© Crown Copyright/Arron Hoare)

Chapter 1: David and Samantha Cameron enter Number 10 after winning the general election, 11 May 2010 (© Andrew Parsons/i-Images)

Chapter 2: David Cameron and William Hague at the Conservative party conference in Birmingham, 30 September 2008 (© Christopher Furlong/Getty Images)

Chapter 3: David Cameron and Nick Clegg inside Number 10 (© Andrew Parsons/i-Images)

Chapter 4: George Osborne leaves 11 Downing Street to deliver his first Budget as chancellor, 22 June 2010 (© ZUMA Press, Inc./Alamy)

Chapter 5: People cheer outside the Guild Hall in Londonderry, Northern Ireland as David Cameron reads a statement on the Bloody Sunday inquiry, 15 June 2010 (© Peter Muhly/AFP/Getty Images)

Chapter 6: David Cameron addresses British soldiers at Camp Bastion in Helmand Province on 11 June 2010 (© Stefan Rousseau/AFP/Getty Images)

Chapter 7: David Cameron embraces his father Ian in Swindon, 18 April 2010 (© Toby Melville/WPA Pool/Getty Images)

Chapter 8: Andy Coulson leaves Number 10 following his resignation on 21 January 2011 (© Oli Scarff/Getty Images)

Chapter 9 : Nicolas Sarkozy speaks to the crowd in Benghazi as David Cameron listens, 15 September 2011 (© Philippe Wojazer/AFP/Getty Images)

Chapter 10: David Cameron before delivering a speech against a proposed change to the UK voting system on 18 April 2011 (© Oli Scarff/WPA Pool/Getty Images)

Chapter 11: David Cameron meets Alex Salmond during talks on the Scottish independence referendum in St Andrews House in Edinburgh, 16 February 2012 (© David Cheskin/WPA Pool/Getty Images)

Chapter 12: David Cameron talks to Acting Borough Commander Police Superintendent Jo Oakley in Croydon on 9 August 2011, following the London riots (© Stefan Rousseau/AFP/Getty Images)

Chapter 13: Steve Hilton arrives in Downing Street on 21 February 2012 (© Peter Macdiarmid/Getty Images)

Chapter 14: David Cameron greets Angela Merkel outside Chequers, 30 October 2010 (© Oli Scarff/AFP/Getty Images)

Chapter 15: David Cameron, press officer Gabby Bertin and operations head Liz Sugg leave after meeting workers at Dudley Ambulance Station on 5 May 2010 (© Oli Scarff/Getty Images)

Chapter 16: David Cameron and Barack Obama in the Rose Garden of the White House, 14 March 2012 (© Mark Wilson/Getty Images)

Chapter 17: George Osborne is shown making his Budget speech on television screens in an electrical store, 21 March 2012 (© David Moir/Reuters/Corbis)

Chapter 18: David Cameron and Boris Johnson in London, 16 April 2012 (© Olivia Harris/AFP/Getty Images)

Chapter 19: David Cameron and Nick Clegg at the Olympic Park, 12 May 2011 (© Pool/Reuters/Corbis)

Chapter 20: David Cameron with his wife Samantha before delivering his speech on the last day of the Conservative party conference in Birmingham, 9 October 2012 (© Matt Cardy/Getty Images)

Chapter 21: David Cameron, Jeremy Heywood and Ed Llewellyn (standing) during a cabinet meeting in the Olympic handball arena, 9 January 2012 (© REX Shutterstock)

Chapter 22: Rainbow flag flies over Victoria Tower in support of gay marriage, June 2013 (© Nicolas Chinardet/Demotix/Corbis)

Chapter 23: David Cameron and Lynton Crosby (© Andrew Parsons/i-Images)

Chapter 24: Iain Duncan Smith leaves Number 10 after a Cabinet meeting, 19 March 2014 (© Paul Marriott/Alamy)

Chapter 25: George Osborne arrives at Downing Street with Rupert Harrison, 28 February 2011 (© Steve Back/REX Shutterstock)

Chapter 26: David Cameron and Margaret Thatcher outside Number 10, 8 June 2010 (© Suzanne Plunkett/Reuters/Corbis)

Chapter 27: David Cameron addresses the House of Commons during the Syria debate, 29 August 2013 (© Pool/Reuters/Corbis)

Chapter 28: David Cameron in Fordgate, Somerset, 7 February 2014 (© Tim Ireland/epa/Corbis)

Chapter 29: David Cameron and Vladimir Putin at the G8 summit at Lough Erne, 17 June 2013 (© Yves Herman/Reuters/Corbis)

Chapter 30: George Osborne delivers a speech in Salford on the Northern Powerhouse in May 2015 (© Christopher Furlong – WPA Pool/Getty Images)

Chapter 31: Douglas Carswell and Nigel Farage in Clacton-on-Sea, 10 October 2014 (© Leon Neal/AFP/Getty Images)

Chapter 32: Michael Gove leaves Downing Street on the day of the reshuffle, 15 July 2014 (© Oli Scarff/Getty Images)

Chapter 33: Cameron and his core team inside Number 10 on the morning after the Scottish Referendum at about 5 a.m., 19 September 2014. Chris Martin, Kate Fall and Ed Llewellyn standing (l–r), George Osborne sitting, Craig Oliver to the right of Cameron (© Crown Copyright/Arron Hoare)

Chapter 34: David Cameron and Jean-Claude Juncker at the EU summit in Brussels, 30 August 2014 (© John Thys/AFP/Getty Images)

Chapter 35: George Osborne leaves the Treasury for Parliament, 3 December 2014 (© WPA Pool/Getty Images)

Chapter 36: David Cameron delivers a speech on immigration in Rocester, 28 November 2014 (Oli Scarff/AFP/Getty Images)

Chapter 37: David Cameron and Barack Obama in the White House, 16 January 2015 (© Ron Sachs/Corbis)

Chapter 38: David Cameron at the NATO summit in Newport, 3 September 2014 (© Ben Gurr – WPA Pool/Getty Images)

Chapter 39: Oliver Letwin and Danny Alexander, 26 February 2013 (© REX Shutterstock)

Chapter 40: David Cameron campaigns in Carlisle, 6 May 2015 (© Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

Chapter 41: David and Samantha Cameron celebrate the general election results, 8 May 2015 (© Andrew Parsons/i-Images)

Chapter 42: David Cameron delivers a speech on the EU at the British Museum, 9 May 2016 (© Jack Hill/WPA Pool/Getty Images)

Chapter 43: David Cameron resigns outside 10 Downing Street, 24 June 2016 (© Dan Kitwood/Getty Images)

Dramatis Personae

The lists below are not exhaustive, and only contain names that appear in the book.

‘LD’ = Liberal Democrat

‘2015’ = Still in position at the time of the 2015 general election

The Quad

CAMERON, DAVID – Prime Minister of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, 2010–15. Leader of the Conservative Party, 2005–15.

CLEGG, NICK – Deputy Prime Minister, 2010–15. Leader of the Liberal Democrats, 2007–15.

OSBORNE, GEORGE – Chancellor of the Exchequer, 2010–15. Shadow Chancellor, 2005–10.

ALEXANDER, DANNY – Secretary of State for Scotland, 12–29 May 2010. Chief Secretary to the Treasury, 2010–15. LD.

No 10 (Officials and Political Staff)

BERTIN, GABBY – Press Secretary, 2005–12. Director of External Relations, 2013–15.

BOWLER, JAMES – Principal Private Secretary, 2010–12.

CASE, SIMON – Private Secretary to the Prime Minister, 2012–13. Deputy Principal Private Secretary, 2013–14. Executive Director, Implementation Group at the Cabinet Office, 2014–15.

CASEY, NIGEL – Foreign Affairs Private Secretary, 2014–15.

CASSON, JOHN – Foreign Affairs Private Secretary, 2011–14.

CHAMBERS, MAX – Policy Unit, 2014–15.

CHATWIN, TIM – Head of Strategic Communications, 2010–11.

COOPER, ANDREW – Director of Strategy, 2011–13.

COULSON, ANDY – Director of Communications, 2010–11.

DOWDEN, OLIVER – Political Adviser, 2010–13. Deputy Chief of Staff to the Prime Minister, 2013–14.

DUNLOP, ANDREW – Special Adviser to the Prime Minister on Scotland, 2011–15.

FALL, KATE – Deputy Chief of Staff to the Prime Minister, 2010–15

FELDMAN, ANDREW – Chairman of the Conservative Party, 2010–15.

FIELD, STEVE – Prime Minister’s Official Spokesman, 2010–12.

FLETCHER, TOM – Foreign Affairs Private Secretary, 2010–11.

FOGES, CLARE – Speechwriter, 2009–15.

GILBERT, STEPHEN – Political Secretary, 2010–15.

GILL, AMEET – Special Adviser, Head of ‘Grid’ Planning, 2010–15.

GLOVER, JULIAN – Speechwriter, 2011–12. Special Adviser, Department of Transport, 2012–15.

HEYWOOD, JEREMY – Downing Street Permanent Secretary, 2010–11. Cabinet Secretary, 2012–15.

HILTON, STEVE – Director of Strategy, 2010–12.

JOHNSON, JO – Head of the Policy Unit, 2013–15. Cabinet Office Minister, 2013–15.

KIDDELL, TIM – Private Secretary to the Prime Minister and Speechwriter, 2010–15.

KIRBY, PAUL – Head of Policy Unit, 2011–13.

KORSKI, DAN – Special Adviser, 2013–15.

LLEWELLYN, ED – Downing Street Chief of Staff, 2010–15.

LOCKWOOD, CHRIS – Deputy Head, Policy Unit, 2013–15.

MANN, LAURENCE – Political Private Secretary, 2010–15.

MARTIN, CHRIS – Principal Private Secretary to the Prime Minister, 2012–15.

MCDONALD, SIMON – Foreign Policy Adviser, 2010–11. Ambassador to Germany, 2011–15.

O’DONNELL, GUS – Cabinet Secretary, 2005–11.

O’SHAUGHNESSY, JAMES – Director of Policy, 2007–11.

OLIVER, CRAIG – Director of Communications, 2011–15.

SALTER, MICHAEL – Political Head of Broadcasting, 2010–15.

SCHOLAR, TOM – Second Permanent Secretary at the Treasury, 2009–13. Adviser, European and Global Issues, 2013–15.

SEDDON, NICK – Policy Unit, 2013–15.

SILVA, ROHAN – Senior Policy Adviser, 2010–13.

SUGG, LIZ – Head of Operations, 2010–15.

WILLIAMSON, GAVIN – Parliamentary Private Secretary to the Prime Minister, 2013–15.

WORTH, SEAN – Special Adviser, 2010–12. LD.

Cabinet

CABLE, VINCE – Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, 2010–15. LD.

CARMICHAEL, ALISTAIR – Secretary of State for Scotland, 2013–15. LD.

CLARKE, KENNETH – Lord Chancellor, Secretary of State for Justice, 2010–12. Minister without Portfolio, 2012–14. Chancellor, 1993–7.

DUNCAN SMITH, IAIN – Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, 2010–15. Leader of the Conservative Party, 2001–3.

FALLON, MICHAEL – Secretary of State for Defence, 2014–15.

FOX, LIAM – Secretary of State for Defence, 2010–11.

GOVE, MICHAEL – Secretary of State for Education, 2010–14. Chief Whip, 2014–15. Lord Chancellor, Secretary of State for Justice, 2015.

GRAYLING, CHRIS – Minister for Employment, 2010–12. Lord Chancellor, Secretary of State for Justice, 2012–15.

GREENING, JUSTINE – Secretary of State for Transport, 2011–12. Secretary of State for International Development, 2012–15.

HAGUE, WILLIAM – Foreign Secretary, 2010–14. First Secretary of State, 2010–15. Leader of the House of Commons, 2014–15. Leader of the Conservative Party, 1997–2001.

HAMMOND, PHILIP – Secretary of State for Transport, 2010–11. Secretary of State for Defence, 2011–14. Foreign Secretary, 2014–15.

HILL, JONATHAN – Leader of the House of Lords, 2013–14. European Commissioner for Financial Stability, Financial Services and Capital Markets Union, 2014–15.

HUHNE, CHRIS – Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, 2010–12. LD.

HUNT, JEREMY – Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport, 2010–12. Secretary of State for Health, 2012–15.

JAVID, SAJID – Secretary to the Treasury, 2012–14. Secretary of State for Culture Media and Sport, 2014–15.

LANSLEY, ANDREW – Secretary of State for Health, 2010–12. Leader of the House of Commons, 2012–14.

MAY, THERESA – Home Secretary, 2010–15.

MCLOUGHLIN, PATRICK – Chief Whip, 2010–12. Secretary of State for Transport, 2012–15.

MILLER, MARIA – Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, 2012–14.

MITCHELL, ANDREW – Secretary of State for International Development, 2010–12. Chief Whip, 2012.

MOORE, MICHAEL – Secretary of State for Scotland, 2010–13. LD.

MORGAN, NICKY – Secretary of State for Education, 2014–15.

PATERSON, OWEN – Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, 2010–12. Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, 2012–14.

PICKLES, ERIC – Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, 2010–15.

SPELMAN, CAROLINE – Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, 2010–12.

STRATHCLYDE, TOM – Leader of the House of Lords, 2010–13.

TRUSS, LIZ – Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, 2014–15.

VILLIERS, THERESA – Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, 2012–15.

WARSI, SAYEEDA – Chairman of the Conservative Party, 2010–12. Minister without Portfolio, 2010–12. Minister for Faith and Communities, 2012–14.

Also attending Cabinet:

GRIEVE, DOMINIC – Attorney General, 2010–14.

HANCOCK, MATTHEW – Minister for Business and Enterprise, Minister for Energy, and Minister for Portsmouth, 2014–15.

LAWS, DAVID – Chief Secretary to the Treasury, 12 May–29 May 2010. Minister for Schools, 2012–15. Minister for the Cabinet Officer, 2012–15. LD.

LETWIN, OLIVER – Minister for Government Policy, 2010–15.

MAUDE, FRANCIS – Minister for the Cabinet Office, 2010–15.

MCVEY, ESTHER – Minister for Employment, 2013–15.

SHAPPS, GRANT – Chairman of the Conservative Party, 2012–15. Minister without Portfolio, 2012–15.

STOWELL, TINA – Leader of the House of Lords, 2014–15.

WILLETTS, DAVID – Minister for Universities and Science, 2010–14.

WRIGHT, JEREMY – Attorney General, 2014–15.

YOUNG, GEORGE – Leader of the House of Commons, 2010–12. Chief Whip, 2012–14.

Other Ministers

BOLES, NICK – Minister for Planning, Department for Communities and Local Government, 2012–14. Minister for Skills and Equalities, 2014–15.

DUNCAN, ALAN – Minister for International Development, 2010–14.

FEATHERSTONE, LYNNE – Minister for the Home Office, 2014–15. Parliamentary Under-Secretary for International Development, 2012–14. Parliamentary Under-Secretary for Equalities, 2010–12. LD.

HERBERT, NICK – Minister for Policing and Criminal Justice, 2010–12.

WEBB, STEVE – Minister for Pensions, 2010–15. LD.

Office of Deputy Prime Minister (All Liberal Democrats)

ASTLE, JULIAN – Special Adviser, 2010–15.

COLBOURNE, TIM – Special Adviser, 2010–13. Deputy Chief of Staff, 2014–15.

MACKENZIE, POLLY – Senior Adviser to the Deputy Prime Minister, 2010–15.

OATES, JONNY – Deputy Communications Adviser, 2010. Chief of Staff, 2010–15.

PIETSCH, LENA – Press Secretary, 2010–15.

REEVES, RICHARD – Director of Strategy, 2010–12.

Whitehall (Treasury, Special Advisers, Civil Servants, Military and Security)

CAINE, JONATHAN – Special Adviser to Owen Paterson, 2010–12. Special Adviser to Theresa Villiers, 2012–15.

CARNEY, MARK – Governor of the Bank of England, 2013–15.

CASEY, LOUISE – Director General, Troubled Families, 2011–15.

CHOTE, ROBERT – Chairman of the Office for Budget Responsibility, 2010–15.

COWPER-COLES, SHERARD – UK Special Representative to Afghanistan and Pakistan, 2009–10.

CUMMINGS, DOMINIC – Special Adviser to Michael Gove, 2011–13.

CUNLIFFE, JON – British Permanent Representative to the EU, 2012–13. Deputy Governor of the Bank of England for Financial Stability, 2013–15.

CUNNINGHAM, FIONA – Special Adviser to Theresa May, 2010–14.

DARROCH, KIM – British Permanent Representative to the EU, 2007–12. National Security Adviser, 2012–15.

DEIGHTON, PAUL – Commercial Secretary to the Treasury, 2013–15.

DEVEREUX, ROBERT – Permanent Secretary, Department of Work and Pensions, 2011–15.

EVANS, JONATHAN – Director General of MI5, 2007–13.

FRASER, SIMON – Permanent Under-Secretary of the Foreign Office, 2010–15.

GEIDT, CHRISTOPHER – Private Secretary to the Sovereign, 2007–15.

HANDS, GREG – Deputy Chief Whip, 2013–15.

HARRISON, RUPERT – Chief of Staff to George Osborne, 2010–15.

HOUGHTON, NICK – Chief of the Defence Staff, 2013–15.

KERSLAKE, BOB – Head of the Home Civil Service, 2012–14.

KING, JULIAN – Ambassador to Ireland, 2009–11. Director General of the Northern Ireland Office, 2011–14.

KING, MERVYN – Governor of the Bank of England, 2003–13.

LAMB, GRAEME – Commander Field Army, 2007–09.

LEWIS, LEIGH – Permanent Secretary at the Department for Work and Pensions, 2006–11.

LYALL GRANT, MARK – British Ambassador to the United Nations, 2009–15.

MACPHERSON, NICHOLAS – Permanent Secretary at the Treasury, 2005–15.

PARKER, ANDREW – Director General of MI5, 2013–15.

PARKER, NICK – Deputy Commander, International Security Assistance Force, 2009–10. Commander-in-Chief, Land Forces, 2010–11. Commander Land Forces, 2011–12.

PATEY, WILLIAM – British Ambassador to Afghanistan, 2010–12.

POWELL, HUGH – Deputy National Security Adviser, 2013–14.

RICHARDS, DAVID – Chief of the General Staff, 2009–10. Chief of the Defence Staff, 2010–13.

RICKETTS, PETER – National Security Adviser, 2010–12. British Ambassador to France, 2012–15.

ROGERS, IVAN – British Permanent Representative to the European Union, 2013–15.

ROGERS, THEA – Special Adviser to the Chancellor, 2013–15.

RUSSELL, BETH – Principal Private Secretary to the Chancellor, 2011–13. Director, Personal Tax, Welfare and Pensions, 2013–15.

SANTS, HECTOR – Chief Executive of the Financial Services Authority, 2007–12.

SAWERS, JOHN – Chief of the Secret Intelligence Service (MI6), 2009–14.

SHEINWALD, NIGEL – British Ambassador to the United States, 2007–12.

SHIPLEE, HOWARD – Director General of the Universal Credit Programme, 2013–14.

STANHOPE, MARK – First Sea Lord, 2009–13.

STIRRUP, JOCK – Chief of the Defence Staff, 2006–10.

STROUD, PHILIPPA – Special Adviser to Iain Duncan Smith, 2010–15.

TIMOTHY, NICK – Special Adviser to Theresa May, 2010–15.

TUCKER, PAUL – Deputy Governor of the Bank of England, 2009–13.

VICKERS, JOHN – Chair of the Independent Commission on Banking, 2010–11.