The PM: Why ‘unfitness for office’ doesn't matter

INSIDE BRIEFING with Institute for Government

What divides the great Prime Ministers from the mediocre and the just plain bad? And how does Boris Johnson measure up in those stakes? Author of The Impossible Office: The History of the British Prime Minister Sir Anthony Seldon and former Government advisor Salma Shah take us on a deep dive into the harsh realities of the country’s most powerful office. Is Boris Johnson really as bad a PM as Dominic Cummings says he is? And is unfitness for office just a myth?

• “Unfitness for office has never disqualified people as Prime Ministers. The question with Johnson is, was he unfit enough?” – Anthony Seldon

• “One of Prime Ministers’ strengths is a complete lack of self-awareness… Otherwise every day would be a duvet day.” – Salma Shah

• “Every PM who’s been less successful has lacked that clear, ruthless vision. You must either have it – or history must throw it on your plate.” – Anthony Seldon

• “Sajid Javid had a knack of making your believe any decision was yours and not his.” – Salma Shah

• “So much of being a Prime Minister is a confidence trick. If confidence collapses, as it did for Theresa May, it’s all over.” – Anthony Seldon

Presented by Bronwen Maddox with Cath Haddon. Audio production by Alex Rees. Inside Briefing is a Podmasters Production for the IfG.

https://www.instituteforgovernment.org.uk

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