Robin Harris (author)
Encyclopedia
Dr. Robin Harris is a British
author and journalist. He has written for The Daily Telegraph
and Prospect
. He has a doctorate in modern history from Oxford University
.
Harris was Director of the Conservative Research Department
from 1985 to 1988 and a member of the Prime Minister's Policy Unit from 1989 to 1990. He helped draft the Conservative Party
manifesto for the 1987 general election
.
It was initially thought that Margaret Thatcher's record in government should be recorded by Harris and John O'Sullivan
in a political biography covering her premiership titled Undefeated. What eventually happened was that Thatcher hired Harris to write most of her memoir The Downing Street Years. In that memoir Thatcher wrote that Harris was "My indispensable sherpa in the enterprise of writing this book" and that "Without his advice and help at every stage, I doubt that we could have reached the summit". Harris also helped Thatcher write her book Statecraft: Strategies for a Changing World and continues to advise Thatcher.
Harris courted controversy when he wrote a pamphlet
(A Tale of Two Chileans) in 1999 defending General Pinochet
's coup d'état
against the Marxist President of Chile Salvador Allende
. In an interview with fellow journalist Andy Beckett in 2000 Harris says: "It was a polarising thing. I was on the Right, and I thought it was a bloody good thing it had happened".
In March 2006 he attacked Conservative leader David Cameron
in an article for Prospect for what he sees as Cameron's repositioning of the party to the Left. He favourably compared the Chancellor of the Exchequer
Gordon Brown
to Thatcher and claimed both are "immensely able, a workaholic, driven by values from a Protestant upbringing" but that in an election against Brown, Cameron "may look unprincipled and insubstantial".
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
author and journalist. He has written for The Daily Telegraph
The Daily Telegraph
The Daily Telegraph is a daily morning broadsheet newspaper distributed throughout the United Kingdom and internationally. The newspaper was founded by Arthur B...
and Prospect
Prospect (magazine)
Prospect is a monthly British general interest magazine, specialising in politics and current affairs. Frequent topics include British, European, and US politics, social issues, art, literature, cinema, science, the media, history, philosophy, and psychology...
. He has a doctorate in modern history from Oxford University
University of Oxford
The University of Oxford is a university located in Oxford, United Kingdom. It is the second-oldest surviving university in the world and the oldest in the English-speaking world. Although its exact date of foundation is unclear, there is evidence of teaching as far back as 1096...
.
Harris was Director of the Conservative Research Department
Conservative Research Department
The Conservative Research Department is part of the central organisation of the Conservative Party of the United Kingdom. It operates alongside other departments of Conservative Campaign Headquarters at 30 Millbank, London SW1....
from 1985 to 1988 and a member of the Prime Minister's Policy Unit from 1989 to 1990. He helped draft the Conservative Party
Conservative Party (UK)
The Conservative Party, formally the Conservative and Unionist Party, is a centre-right political party in the United Kingdom that adheres to the philosophies of conservatism and British unionism. It is the largest political party in the UK, and is currently the largest single party in the House...
manifesto for the 1987 general election
United Kingdom general election, 1987
The United Kingdom general election of 1987 was held on 11 June 1987, to elect 650 members to the British House of Commons. The election was the third consecutive election victory for the Conservative Party under the leadership of Margaret Thatcher, who became the first Prime Minister since the 2nd...
.
It was initially thought that Margaret Thatcher's record in government should be recorded by Harris and John O'Sullivan
John O'Sullivan (columnist)
John O'Sullivan CBE is a leading British conservative political commentator and journalist and currently Vice President and executive editor of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty....
in a political biography covering her premiership titled Undefeated. What eventually happened was that Thatcher hired Harris to write most of her memoir The Downing Street Years. In that memoir Thatcher wrote that Harris was "My indispensable sherpa in the enterprise of writing this book" and that "Without his advice and help at every stage, I doubt that we could have reached the summit". Harris also helped Thatcher write her book Statecraft: Strategies for a Changing World and continues to advise Thatcher.
Harris courted controversy when he wrote a pamphlet
Pamphlet
A pamphlet is an unbound booklet . It may consist of a single sheet of paper that is printed on both sides and folded in half, in thirds, or in fourths , or it may consist of a few pages that are folded in half and saddle stapled at the crease to make a simple book...
(A Tale of Two Chileans) in 1999 defending General Pinochet
Augusto Pinochet
Augusto José Ramón Pinochet Ugarte, more commonly known as Augusto Pinochet , was a Chilean army general and dictator who assumed power in a coup d'état on 11 September 1973...
's coup d'état
Coup d'état
A coup d'état state, literally: strike/blow of state)—also known as a coup, putsch, and overthrow—is the sudden, extrajudicial deposition of a government, usually by a small group of the existing state establishment—typically the military—to replace the deposed government with another body; either...
against the Marxist President of Chile Salvador Allende
Salvador Allende
Salvador Allende Gossens was a Chilean physician and politician who is generally considered the first democratically elected Marxist to become president of a country in Latin America....
. In an interview with fellow journalist Andy Beckett in 2000 Harris says: "It was a polarising thing. I was on the Right, and I thought it was a bloody good thing it had happened".
In March 2006 he attacked Conservative leader David Cameron
David Cameron
David William Donald Cameron is the current Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, First Lord of the Treasury, Minister for the Civil Service and Leader of the Conservative Party. Cameron represents Witney as its Member of Parliament ....
in an article for Prospect for what he sees as Cameron's repositioning of the party to the Left. He favourably compared the Chancellor of the Exchequer
Chancellor of the Exchequer
The Chancellor of the Exchequer is the title held by the British Cabinet minister who is responsible for all economic and financial matters. Often simply called the Chancellor, the office-holder controls HM Treasury and plays a role akin to the posts of Minister of Finance or Secretary of the...
Gordon Brown
Gordon Brown
James Gordon Brown is a British Labour Party politician who was the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Labour Party from 2007 until 2010. He previously served as Chancellor of the Exchequer in the Labour Government from 1997 to 2007...
to Thatcher and claimed both are "immensely able, a workaholic, driven by values from a Protestant upbringing" but that in an election against Brown, Cameron "may look unprincipled and insubstantial".
Publications
- The Conservative Community: The Roots of Thatcherism - and its Future (Centre for Policy StudiesCentre for Policy StudiesThe Centre for Policy Studies is a British right wing policy think tank whose goal is to promote coherent and practical public policy, to roll back the state, reform public services, support communities, and challenge threats to Britain’s independence...
, 1989). - A Tale of Two Chileans - Pinochet and Allende (Chilean Supporters Abroad, 1999).