All articles written by Robert Hutton on PoliticsHome.com

05 Jun Parliament

Recipes for disaster: Ed Balls' eight sausage rolls

Politicians making a meal of it. This week: eight sausage rolls for Ed Balls

28 May Economy

Recipes for disaster: David Cameron's Cornish pasty

It’s said that to be a minister in the Home Office is to have an entire staff under you working on things that will force you to resign. But if you think things are any better at the Treasury, you’ve got a lot to learn.

19 May Brexit

Dominic Raab's Pret Special

He doesn't have the same lunch every day. Really.

30 Apr Parliament

Recipes for Disaster: Kemi's steak

Back in 2006, a pollster advised George Osborne that the public generally knew at most three things about any politician, and that he should think what he would like them to be.

17 Apr Political parties

Recipes For Disaster: The Bacon Sandwich

To launch a new column on politicians making a meal of it, there was only one place to start.

03 Jul 2024 Political parties

How handovers work: John Major's final hours in No10

For the first time since 1997, Britain is approaching an election where no one doubts that power is about to change hands. And by happy coincidence, last Christmas saw the release of a memo spelling out how Downing Street prepared for the moment last time around.

20 Dec 2023 Parliament

All must have prizes: Headmaster Hoyle's 2023 school report

As a tumultuous term draws to a close, Robert Hutton hunts though the debris and hands out gongs
Illustrations by Tracy Worrall

03 Oct 2022 History

The Ex-Files: What should former prime ministers do with the rest of their lives?

One day you’re feted by world leaders and fawning staff, the next you’re out on your ear. So what should a former premier do with the rest of their life? Robert Hutton explores the options

15 Jul 2022 Political parties

King of Chaos: Prime Minister Boris Johnson's tenure and departure

“The Prime Minister said: ‘I am more frightened of you having the power to stop the chaos than I am of the chaos. The chaos means everyone will look to me as the man in charge.’” – Dominic Cummings, May 26, 2021

11 Dec 2021 Coronavirus

Corbyn's Covid conundrum: what if Labour had won the 2019 general election?

It is two years since Boris Johnson led the Conservatives to victory at the general election, but one decision might have changed everything. Robert Hutton takes a trip down a parallel timeline.

05 Oct 2021 Political parties

Who Are The Tory Tribes?

The Wets and Drys. The Maastricht Rebels. The Notting Hill Set. The Conservative Party has long done a first class job of factionalism. Whereas Labour splits seem carved in stone, based on decades-old feuds and theoretical arguments, Tory gangs form and break up with great pace, something accelerated in recent years by both the changing demographic of its voters and ease of setting up a WhatsApp group. Robert Hutton reports.

30 Jun 2021 Defence

From seabed to space

First Sea Lord Admiral Sir Tony Radakin has a remit stretching from the ocean floor to the outer hemisphere, along with responsibility for the welfare and wellbeing of more than 30,000 personnel and their families. He tells Robert Hutton he has reasons to be cheerful.

10 Jun 2021 Culture

Field of Dreams: When Politicians and Festivals Meet

Pop festivals and politicians – not an obvious match. But from triumphant appearances on the Pyramid Stage, to hangovers and hasty exits, many MPs have in-the-field experience.

26 Mar 2021 Political parties

The Definitive Guide to Boris Johnson's Buses, Bridges and Boreholes Under the Irish Sea

His cable-car crossing was the most expensive ever built, and his ‘Boris Bikes’ made it into the Oxford dictionary. With proposals on the table for a ‘Boris Burrow’ to connect Scotland and Northern Ireland, Robert Hutton explores Johnson’s quest to secure a lasting legacy.

09 Feb 2021 Education

Adult Lockdown Lessons For Home Schooling

21 Dec 2020 Political parties

How Closely Did You Follow Politics In 2020?

If you want to know how dramatic 2020 has been, the Chancellor of the Exchequer resigned, and this quiz doesn’t have room for a question about it. It might feel like year you want to forget, but before you open a bottle of Speaker Hoyle’s malt to wipe your memory completely, why not find out how much of it you can remember, with our Quiz of the Year? Answers at the bottom of the page.

14 Dec 2020 Coronavirus

The Culture War Report - 2020

16 Nov 2020 Economy

Review: The Powerful and the Damned, by Lionel Barber

Though pacey, entertaining and readable, Lionel Barber’s misleadingly styled – and frequently anodyne – diaries lack any sense of immediacy or candour