The Eye of the Storm

MPs' expenses in 2009. Phone hacking in 2011. 'Plebgate' in 2012. If a good speech or a ground-breaking new policy fails to get people talking, you can be sure a juicy scandal will do the trick. Our instantaneous news culture of social networks, blogs and Twitter feeds means politicians now, more than ever, can find themselves the focus of every journalist in the country in what seems like the blink of an eye. But behind this hostile media landscape, behind the storm of camera flashes and the clamour of opponents on all sides baying for blood, are the politicians themselves. With the benefit of personal interviews and access to senior officials including Vince Cable, Andrew Mitchell and Jeremy Hunt, Rob Wilson MP details what it's really like to be at the heart of a relentless media onslaught. Describing both the emotional upheaval and the strategies employed as politicians try to navigate through careers seemingly hanging by a thread, Wilson reveals the extraordinary political and personal stories behind the public drama; the real impact on those who live in the eye of the storm.

Auteur

Rob Wilson was elected to Parliament in 2005 after a successful business career. He served as an opposition whip and higher education spokesman before becoming Parliamentary Private Secretary to Jeremy Hunt at the Department of Culture, Media and Sport and later at the Department of Health following the formation of the creation of the Lib Dem - Conservative coalition in 2010. In September 2013, Rob was appointed Parliamentary Private Secretary to the Chancellor of the Exchequer, George Osborne. Rob also wrote a critically acclaimed book on the formation of the coalition government entitled 5 Days to Power: The Journey to Coalition Britain, published by Biteback in 2010.