The end of an era: The decline and fall of the Tory Party

Mark Fields | Issue 7 | Comment, Magazine

From the Archive

NEW YORK, NY - DECEMBER 15: United Kingdom Minister of State for Asia and the Pacific Mark Field looks on as U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson speaks during a United Nations Security Council meeting concerning North Korea's nuclear ambitions, December 15, 2017 in New York City. On Thursday, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said that the Security Council resolutions on North Korea's nuclear programs must be fully implemented. (Photo by Drew Angerer/Getty Images)

Former MP Mark Field – author of tell-all memoir The End of an Era – reflects on where it all went wrong for his party

I blame my old friend Philip Hammond. We were out celebrating with our wives at a restaurant shortly after I had finally graced the ministerial ranks. Reflecting on the vicissitudes of political advancement, the then chancellor turned to me with his characteristic wry smile: “You do have a remarkable capacity for getting into high-profile scrapes.”

I guess he had my notoriously close friendship with his cabinet colleague and future prime minister Liz Truss, as well as my alleged role in David Cameron’s “Piggate” scandal, in mind. My skirmish at the Mansion House with climate protestors was still to come – ironically enough, this later drama played out only yards away from the top table where Hammond himself and Mark Carney, then governor of the Bank of England and en route to the Canadian premiership, were guests of honour.

So although my time in politics featured only a moderate level of conventional attainment, I probably enjoyed greater prominence and public profile than many who ended up reaching higher rungs on the political ladder. Philip Hammond’s words came flooding back as the bewilderingly swift changes in personnel at 10 Downing Street during summer 2022 persuaded some old friends in the media to make contact with me. Perhaps my political memoir might be of wider appeal? To be honest, I did not need too much persuading; having served in parliament during the torrid …

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