Tim Yeo was Conservative MP for Suffolk South from 1983, and
was
chair of the select committee on energy and climate change in the last parliament.
He was environment minister under John Major. He was deselected in 2013, reportedly because local party members felt he did not give the constituency enough attention.
What will leaving the House of Commons be like? Will there be a grieving period?
I wouldn’t say I’ll be bereft. But you are a spectator here at some very interesting events. I’ll miss that. My preference would have been to have stood for parliament one more time, but that was a fairly marginal position. And I knew I wouldn’t be standing over a year ago; not many people have the luxury of a year to transition from one job to another.
What has been the best thing about being an MP?
The single best thing is the variety of people you meet. Only this week, I met [the former president of South Africa] FW de Klerk – we had met once before, and to his great credit, he remembered me – and the French embassy emailed to say that Mme Royal [Ségolène Royal, the French minister for ecology, sustainable development and energy] is coming to London, and that she would like to meet me!
And the worst?
Early on, it was the antisocial hours. Waiting for late votes was pretty boring; there were times when you really wanted to go home. Now, it’s the relentless intrusion of email. I believe that constituents are entitled to a response, but email campaigns facilitate hundreds of emails on the same subject. I can’t say that’s exciting.
Has pressure from the press grown worse?
I’m not sure it’s more intense, and I do think it’s legitimate scrutiny. If you go into public life, you forfeit the right to privacy. It’s not pleasant, but I’ve never thought you should complain about it. But there is a difference between what I call inside and outside journalists. Inside journalists, who work in the lobby, know they won’t get information if they stitch people up. I have had some very close friendships with experienced political journalists, some of whom have given me a lot of help. But journalists with whom you don’t have a long-term relationship treat you differently, and you have to be a lot more careful.
Parliament used to be very boozy. Is it still?
This is a very tightly knit institution. You get to know everyone. If someone is unreliable, you know that. If someone has a drink problem, you know that. You can’t escape. It all gets out. But I think the [increased number of] women have put the drinking in check a bit. I’m not sure there is as much serious drinking, though there are still a few hardened boozers in the Kremlin [aka the Strangers’ Bar, known as the Kremlin because it used mostly to be frequented by Labour MPs].
Has the food improved over the years?
In the Commons, it’s a bit better. It was poor club food when I arrived. But now, everyone has upped their game. They had to, because restaurants in London are so fantastically good and the clubs have improved their food too. I belong to the Garrick, where the food is really rather good. But it’s more expensive [in the Commons], too. The days of subsidisation have gone.
Are there any unlikely political friends you’ll miss?
People might be surprised to hear that Jon Cruddas [the leftwing Labour MP for Dagenham and Rainham in the last parliament], is a very close friend of mine. We both play golf; that’s how it started. Our activists tend to find cross-party relationships hard to understand, but they’re very close and often quite constructive.
What regrets do you have?
I very much regret supporting the vote on the Iraq war. I would have had to resign if I had voted against, but I was also genuinely persuaded by Tony Blair. On the front bench, you’re quite close to the other side. I watched him, and I thought: you’re speaking with real conviction; you know things you can’t tell us. I also regret not getting on with things more swiftly when I arrived. If you want to make a mark here, you need to be pushy from the start. It’s not smart to hide in your office, as I did. Edwina Currie was the pushy one from our intake.
What would you take with you as a souvenir, if you could?
The library. It’s so fantastic. One section would do.
