Latest News:

23 April 2012

Ben Hammersley, PM's Ambassador to Tech City, speaks to the Mile End Group about 'The Past, Present and Future of Tech City'

Ben Hammersely, the Prime Minister's Ambassador to East London Tech City spoke to the Mile End Group about 'The Past, Present and Future of Tech City'. Images and Video can be found here

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27 March 2012

Stephen Hammond MP speaks to the Mile End Group on 'The Future of the City of London'

Stephen Hammond, MP, Tony Travers, Visiting Professor, Department of Government LSE and Joris Luyendijk, writer and journalist on the Guardian's Banking Blog spoke on 'The Future of the City of London' to the 80th meeting of the Mile End Group. Images and Video here

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01 March 2012

Ed Balls speaks to the Mile End Group

Ed Balls, MP, in conversation with John Rentoul, Chief Political Correspondent of the Independent on Sunday, William Keegan, Senior Economics Commenator of the Observer and Lord Hennessy of Nympsfield spoke on the topic of 'Being Shadow Chancellor" to the 79th meeting of the Mile End Group. Images and Video here

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03 February 2012

Mile End Group re-write history on the Number 10 website

The Mile End Group attended an official reception at 10 Downing Street on Wednesday 1 February to mark the launch of the new history section of the Number 10 website. The Mile End Group was asked to write fresh biographies for 11 past British Prime Ministers, post 1945, from Clement Attlee to Gordon Brown, as part of a major overhaul of the official Downing Street website. The event, said Dr Davis, was "another example of the unique opportunities our students have to be directly involved in central Government, politics and history." To vist the site click here.

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20 December 2011

New contemporary history Masters covers Blair - Brown years

A unique udergraduate course dissecting the Blair years of British politics is evolving into a Masters module spanning the entire New Labour era at Queen Mary, University of London. Starting in January 2012, the New Labour in Government module, part of the Masters in Modern and Contemporary British HIstory, will examine the UK political landscape from the landslide victory at the polls in 1997 to the Party's election defeat in 2010. Guest speakers and convenors of the 'ultra-contemporary' history course, Dr Jon Davis and John Rentoul, Blair biographer and political commentator in the Independent-on-Sunday, will cover critical topics including UK Foreign policy from Kosovo to Afghanistan and Iraq; Gordon Brown's tenure as Prime Minister and economic policy under New Labour. To find out more, click here.

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18 November 2011

John Rentoul wins 'Political Tweeter of the Year' at the Public Affairs Awards

John Rentoul, the Chief Political Commentator for the Independent on Sunday and lecturer on the Blair Government course has won the Public Affairs, 'Political Tweeter of the Year' award. You can read more about the awards here and follow John on Twitter here.

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21 July 2011

Sir Gus O'Donnell and Lord Armstrong, 'The theory and practice of taking the Cabinet Minutes'

As the paper copies of the Cabinet Minutes came to the Mile End Group in February, it seems appropriate that the last MEG - of the 2010-2011 term - should be a discussion about the developing role of the Cabinet Secretary and 'his' Minutes. The session, chaired by Lord Hennessy, provided a privileged insight into the practicalities of being Cabinet Secretary. In a manner befitting their role, Sir Gus O’Donnell and Lord Robert Armstrong gave a succinct and understated presentation of what taking the Cabinet Minutes actually involves, including an impromptu linguistics lesson from the Civil Service's own 'Guide to Minute Taking'.

View a video of the event here.

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20 May 2011

Tony Blair hosts the last ever Blair Government class.

Read the BBC article on the Blair government course, and meeting with Tony Blair, here or here.

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10 May 2011

David Willetts, 'Inaugural John Ramsden Memorial Lecture, Liberal Conservatism'

Davis Willetts MP, Secretary of State for Universities and Science came to Queen Mary to give the inaugural John Ramsden Memorial Lecture on 'Liberal Conservatism'. The lecture was organised in memory of the late Professor John Ramsden of Queen Mary, and was a resounding success. A convivial speech was punctuated by lively audience participation and a question and answer section chaired by Lord Hennessy.

A video can be viewed here.

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5 April 2011

Guardian, Tom Clark, 'Who better to teach politics than a Miliband?'

"Queen Mary's Mile End Group is bringing in political stars to enliven its teaching of history – and attract funding."

On a shiversome winter evening a few weeks ago, a most unlikely gaggle packed out the People's Palace, Mile End, drawn by an even more unlikely crowd-puller. Young history students and (mostly) old power brokers – including David Owen, Nigel Lawson and David Miliband – rubbed shoulders and listened to the nonagenarian Denis Healey give his thoughts on the chancellorship. The man who helped the ancient statesman's star shine that night is Jon Davis, of Queen Mary, University of London.

Read the full article here (or on the Guardian website).

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4 April 2011

Lord Hennessy and Lord Mandelson, 'Unveiling the Attlee Statue'

The Mile End Group, joined by members of the Attlee family, welcomed distinguished guests once again to the Queen Mary campus to celebrate the unveiling of the ‘Attlee statue’ on college grounds. An eager audience was enchanted by a lecture on “The incomparable Clem”, given by Lord Hennessy on the life and influence of the Labour Prime Minister Clement Attlee. In his capacity as Attlee Professor of Contemporary British History at Queen Mary, Lord Hennessy ‘gave it gusto’ when telling tails of infamous Attlee one liners, and was graceful in describing the rivalry between ‘Clem’ and (Herbert) Morrison (the grandfather of our guest of honour Lord Mandelson). After a short prize giving, of the Attlee Award, to students who gained first class honours in the undergraduate course ‘Cabinet, Premiership and the Conduct of Central Government Since 1945’, Principal Professor Simon Gaskell invited Lord Mandelson to unveil the Attlee plaque and offer his thoughts on Clement Attlee. In unmistakable style Lord Mandelson gave a witty, yet sincere, address that hailed Attlee as a major protagonist in the development of the Labour Party and postwar Britain.

View the video of the event here.

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24 March 2011

Tony Wright, 'The future of the House of Commons'

Tony Wright, the former Labour Member of Parliament for Cannock Chase, presented an enthralling lecture on the future of the House of Commons in the light of Parliamentary reform. Drawing heavily on his own experiences of the House, as Chairman of the Public Administration Select Committee, he outlined the positive aspects of constitutional reform and the significance of this debate for the electorate. This was the fourth lecture in the series of lectures to mark the Parliament Act of 1911 in the Attlee Suite, Portcullis House.

The video of the lecture can be seen here.

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2 March 2011

Baroness Hayman, '1911 Parliament Act and the House of Lords'

The Lord Speaker, Rt Hon Baroness Hayman, gave an outstanding lecture - chaired by Rt Hon Baroness De Souza - on the reform of the House of Lords and process, in the light of the 1911 Parliament Act. This was the third lecture in the series of lectures to mark the Parliament Act of 1911 in the Attlee Suite, Portcullis House.

The transcript of the lecture can be seen here.

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3 February 2011

Lord Hennessy, 'Cabinets and the bomb'

Lord Hennessy gave an enthralling lecture on the 'Cabinets and the bomb.' The Inaugural Sir Michael Quinlan lecture was attended by members of the Quinlan family and other esteemed guests in the Robing Room at the House of Lords. In such exalted settings, Lord Hennessy gave a succinct and impassioned account of the history and importance of Britain's nuclear capabilities. Analysis of the past, and speculation for the future was rounded off by the declaration that "My guess is that in the 2050s there will be a ‘bloody Union Jack’ on top of a British Bomb aboard a Royal Navy submarine somewhere in the North Atlantic."

The transcript of the lecture can be seen here. [Or it can be watched on BBC iPlayer]

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28 January 2011

Guardian, Leader, 'In Praise ... of the Mile End Group'.

"An outgrowth of Queen Mary, University of London, where Prof Peter Hennessy mixes high constitutional theory with low gossip."

The establishment is notoriously rooted in SW1, and rarely glimpsed east of the City. But on a cold January night this week, mandarins past and present joined their former political masters – David Miliband, Nigel Lawson and David Owen – and current students to fill the People's Palace in Mile End. They came to hear 93-year-old Denis Healey discuss being chancellor, under the auspices of an outfit which provides a unique link between the study and practice of politics. The Mile End Group is an outgrowth of Queen Mary, University of London, where Prof Peter Hennessy mixes high constitutional theory with low gossip to reveal how Britain is really run. His former student Jon Davis is steadily institutionalising the Hennessy approach, by persuading arch-insiders to attend group meetings. Time and again, speakers open up – even servants of the security state. The newly ennobled Lord Hennessy's session on nuclear weapons next week is sure to shed light on a few dark secrets. Respect for age is an indispensable part of the mix. The most experienced officials of all are now retired and ready to talk, and so are elder statesmen like Douglas Hurd, who addressed the group the night after Mr Healey with the kind of openness a younger politico could not afford. Now that Whitehall plays musical chairs with top officials, the civil service's institutional memory is weakening. By reconnecting present and past, a group concerned with Britain's hidden wiring is doubling up as a constitutional hard drive.

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27 January 2011

Lord Hurd, 'The Tories and the Lords'

Lord Hurd, former Conservative MP who has acted as Minister of State for Europe, Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, Home Secretary and Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, shared his thoughts on the relationship between the Lords and the Conservative Party - giving specific attention to the possibility of reform in the House of Lords. This was the second lecture in the series of lectures to mark the Parliament Act of 1911 in the Attlee Suite, Portcullis House.

See the full lecture here.

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26 January 2011

The Mile End Group lecture given by Lord Healey on 'Being Chancellor'

An enthralling conversation between Lord Healey, Lord Hennessy and William Keegan on his time as Chancellor 1974-1979 captivated the audience for over an hour. The Mile End Group hosted the event at Queen Mary's Mile End Campus.

The Lecture can be seen here.

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18 January 2011

The Mile End Group appoints a Board

The Mile End Group is proud to announce the appointment of its first 'Board' which will comprise of Lord Adonis, Sir Mark Allen, Professor Simon Gaskell (Chair), William Keegan, Baroness Shephard of Northwold and Sir Kevin Tebbit.

Further information and profiles can be seen here.