The Margaret Thatcher Interviews: Lord Powell of Bayswater

Lord Powell of Bayswater

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It has been well received in academic journals. Dr Cooper's expertise is increasingly recognised beyond the academy. For instance, Dr Cooper was interviewed live on the BBC news channel about the Reagan-Thatcher relationship following the release of an audio recording of their conversation about the American intervention in Grenada in 10 November Dr Cooper in primarily interested in contemporary American history within a global context.

One of the principle activities of the research group is the organisation of special events for students and the general public.

The group is also responsible for hosting the annual 'Congress to Campus' event, whereby former members of the U. Congress interact with students and the wider community 6 March ; 4 March Dr Cooper is keen to receive undergraduate and postgraduate dissertation proposals on modern and contemporary American and British political history, broadly defined.

In addition to the articles that came of this research, the project led to a monograph.

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It explored the Reagan-Thatcher relationship in a transnational context, with specific reference to domestic policy, testing the strengths and weaknesses of their political bonds. Over thirty interviews with key protagonists and the most recently available documentary material in British and American archives were used.

While a connection between Thatcherite and Reaganite domestic policy is often assumed by commentators, this study revealed the complexity of the Reagan-Thatcher relationship. He is currently developing two projects which will lead to further research outcomes. Our websites use cookies session, persistent, third party, advertising and performance so they function correctly, to help us improve them and for targeted advertising.

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Interview with Lord Powell

I think Britain certainly has a continuing role. I don't see this change in gear that the prime minister sometimes talks about, it is sometimes as though he has only just discovered that Britain has a special international role, more active and higher profile than many other countries. That was very clear to me in my time in diplomacy and later working for Margaret Thatcher and John Major at No I'm glad he has discovered it and sustained it, I think he has done well, acted in the traditions of British foreign policy.

I don't think that there has been some new paradigm that he's discovered. He has very successful nurtured and used the special relationship with the US which is essential to our security, and he has very actively supported the war on terrorism with remarkable articulacy and by his energy and willingness to travel the world in a way that frankly an American president cannot do. When an American president goes abroad several thousand people move and large aircraft fly, and the prime minister can go with a dozen people.

At the same time he has kept the balance with Europe, he is not distant from Europe, he has not made his very strong support for the special relationship a negative factor in a way that previous governments have. I don't think we can possibly say that we have made a decisive difference or taught America a lesson. That would greatly exaggerate our role and our influence. What I think we have done is play a part in the Washington policy debate.

It is using our influence there that counts, and I would say that - in a debate which began between those who wanted to build a coalition and sort out Afghanistan, and those who wanted to go out and bomb everything in sight, bomb Iraq and so on - there is no doubt that our government supported the more gradualist route and that is the view that prevailed in Washington. Increasingly over the last 20 years foreign policy has been drawn more into Downing Street.

It's the effect of many different things. To my mind it is the effect of the needs of the media to visually have someone taking charge of foreign policy decisions. Therefore, you get Margaret Thatcher travelling widely, John Major visiting the gulf both before and after the conflict, Tony Blair's travel round the world.

Institutionally, the number of people working on foreign policy in No 10 is now five time as great as it was in my time and considerably greater even than it was a couple of years ago. Inevitably, at least in perception terms, that puts the Foreign Office a bit in the shade. Jack Straw says that there were two foreign policies when you worked for Margaret Thatcher in No 10?

That's because he hasn't got one, there's only the No 10 one! I think it was always exaggerated - the conflict between No 10 and the Foreign Office. Mostly there was a very good working relationship, but there were issues on which Margaret Thatcher had different views to the foreign secretaries of the day. On missile defence and on Southern Africa you had a strong difference of emphasis.

I think Tony Blair's a great activist, I think he has come in with views about what ought to be done and how things ought to be changed, and some slightly disorganised views about how they ought to be changed - and with absolutely no idea of structures.

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That sounds arrogant on my part - but I think it's a reflection of the fact that the Labour party had been out of power for so long and that he had never been a minister in any department so did not have first hand experience of how departments work and so on. I don't think it has been a conscious accretion of power in No 10, it's been a feeling: Is it heading towards a formal prime minister's department?

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I think it may be. In Mrs Thatcher's time if you wanted to know her view on something you just stuck your head round the door and said 'prime minister, what do you think of this? I think in a prime minister's department that is not going to be possible, there will be channels and levels and hierarchies and units to go through and the process of government will be encumbered. That said, I don't just believe in the status quo, my own preference has always been to see outsiders brought in to do specific jobs in the civil service, on contract at specific periods. I think it is a pity that our conventions don't seem to allow that.

I would much rather see them there than in this plethora of units.

Series featuring Lord Powell of Bayswater

I don't think they are embarrassed about it, I think they feel that if you want to portray yourself as a radical reforming prime minister, then having people around you to help you implement your agenda is nothing to be ashamed of. The question is the effectiveness of it: Does having all these extra units there just demoralise the civil service and make it less effective? That said, I would rate the performance of the Blair government on a professional scale pretty highly, it has been one of the better governments we have had.

I'll say one other thing, I wouldn't rate the quality of cabinet ministers in the Blair government as by any means exceptional and I think that is one of the reasons so much is drawn into the Treasury and No You have had contact with this government since September 11 and with previous governments.

Is the style different? New Labour is not radically different: I think it represents the frustrations that can grow in government: The issues move on but they don't change. Tony Blair is often seen as cautious, focus group man and yet in foreign affairs he does take risks? When you look at Mr Blair's performance you have to separate out various elements. I think he wants Britain to be a major player on the world scene.

That is part of our national tradition and I am glad he shares it. You couldn't have said of the Labour party that it shared that vision and I think he does. I think he is a man of considerable sincerity and I think he is moved by the problems of African countries. I would say rather cynically that his rhetoric, his sincerity outstrip our ability to do anything about these problems.

I think he has a political management problem, in order to keep his country together on the really big issues - the war on terrorism, the development of ballistic missile defence and many other issues, he has to put it all in the context of this much larger vision embracing Africa and Clare Short and aid - that helps him in his management problem. I certainly don't meet him regularly but I have seen him from time to time, both privately and once or twice carried out some modest functions for him.

I went to see President Assad. No, I don't think it was a great embarrassment, that was the media. There is no point in the prime minister going around the world talking the people he agrees with. You go out there to talk to the hard cases and persuade people to take a different point of view. So full marks for him going to Syria, no British prime minister in office has been before.

President Assad is a man who wants to bring change in Syria but he has a very difficult task to change a deeply rooted regime and it is no surprise to me that if there is going to be a public press conference he is going to say some things that are unacceptable to us. I am mightily relieved that Mr Blair has made the effort to get on well with President Bush and I think he made the transition extremely skilfully. He is well connected on the foreign policy and defence front, I have been at conferences with him.

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