After you, Peter
It was hard to imagine Andrew Adonis completely abandoning Whitehall for the lure the private sector. He covered it for the FT, crafted plans to reshape it in Blair’s policy unit, and then pestered officials (day and night) to implement his vision as a minister.
Now while his former cabinet colleagues are busy setting up “consultancies”, Adonis has decided to take up a berth at the Institute for Government. He clearly can’t leave policymaking alone. It’ll be interesting to see what he does with the outfit, which has a strong reputation but a fondness for Whitehall jargon.
On a side note, he’s decided to postpone publishing his book on the coalition talks, even though he has finished it. “An important historical record but Peter Mandelson has caused enough controversy for the time being,” he tells me. Quite.
Jim Pickard
Kiran Stacey