Another lovely footnote in John Campbell’s biography of Roy Jenkins. This time it is about Sir Menzies Campbell. Jenkins wanted him to take over as leader of the Liberal Democrats when Paddy Ashdown stood down in 1999, having long thought highly of him and “probably thinking Charles Kennedy was still too young”.
At this point the now-familiar five-pointed star appears and (John) Campbell adds this footnote:
In 2002, when Campbell was close to leaving politics and applied to join the Scottish bench, Jenkins wrote him a fulsome reference. “I … have the highest possible regard for his qualities, not only as a politician but in a much wider sense, including particularly his judgements on many aspects of human life. He is one of barely two handfuls of people throughout the world whose opinion I would value most highly.”
I guess that puts him “bubbling under” Jenkins’ Top 10 of those whose opinions he “would” value. Nothing there to contradict my assessment of Jenkins as a puffed-up windbag. One of Tony Blair’s mistakes was to have pretended to take his advice, and one of his better judgements was to have not actually done so.
Nevertheless, I shall persevere with John Campbell’s book because he is such an enjoyable writer.
And because I am compiling a “Top 10 Footnotes” for a forthcoming edition of The New Review, The Independent on Sunday magazine. The trick is to find short ones. Ian Moss has already submitted two outstanding examples of the art from AJP Taylor.
Any more gratefully received.
Eagle Eye 