In the Thick of It: The Private Diaries of a Minister
About this audiobook
As Minister of State at the Foreign Office, Alan Duncan was once described as Boris Johnson’s ‘pooper-scooper’. For two years, he deputised for the then Foreign Secretary, now Prime Minister. Few are more attuned to Boris’s strengths and weaknesses as a minister and his suitability for high office than the man who helped clear up his mistakes.
Riotously candid, these diaries cover the most turbulent period in recent British political history – from the eve of the referendum in 2016 to the UK’s eventual exit from the EU. As two prime ministers fall, two general elections unfold and a no-confidence vote is survived, Duncan records a treasure-trove of insider gossip, giving biting and often hilarious accounts of petty rivalries, poor decision-making, big egos, and big crises.
Nothing escapes Alan’s acerbic gaze. Across these unfiltered daily entries, he builds a revealing and often profound picture of UK politics and personalities. A rich seam of high politics and low intrigue, this is an account from deep inside the engine room of power.
About the author
SIR ALAN DUNCAN was the UK’s Foreign Minister, and the de facto Deputy Foreign Secretary, from 2016 to 2019. He was the Member of Parliament for Rutland and Melton until stepping down in 2019. For the past thirty years, he has been at the centre of British political life. He has been at the heart of every Conservative Party leadership race since John Major succeeded Margaret Thatcher in 1990, spearheading William Hague’s 1997 leadership campaign, and has held senior positions such as Shadow Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, and Shadow Minister for Justice. He was the first ever openly gay Conservative MP, coming out in 2002.
One of UK politics’ most forthright and engaging personalities, Alan is recognised as one of the best-connected and well-informed experts on the Middle East and, as Johnson’s deputy in the Foreign Office, sat in the very midst of everything in government that took place between the EU referendum and the UK’s eventual exit from the EU in January 2020.
