Andrew Adonis, Baron Adonis

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Andrew Adonis, Baron Adonis (born 22 February 1963)[1] is a United Kingdom Parliamentary Under Secretary of State in the Department for Education and Skills. He was appointed following the 2005 general election. As he was never a Member of Parliament, for his appointment he was created a life peer, as Baron Adonis, of Camden Town in the London Borough of Camden, to become a member of the House of Lords, on 16 May 2005.

He served as an advisor to Prime Minister Tony Blair in the Number 10 Policy Uniton public service reform from 1998 until his appointment as Parliamentary Under Secretary of State in 2005, and headed the No 10 Policy Unit from 2001 until 2003.

Before joining Tony Blair's staff and the government, Adonis had an academic and journalistic career at Oxford university, the Financial Times and the Observer. His books include A Class Act: The Myth of Britain's Classless Society and studies of the rise and fall of the poll tax and the Victorian House of Lords.

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[edit] Early and private life

Adonis is son of Nicos Adonis, a Greek Cypriot retired postman and former waiter, who immigrated to England in 1959, and Josephine Leadbeater alias Stevens (born 1943), a nurse who has another grown-up son and lives in Norfolk.[2] , Michelle Adonis.[3] He was first named Andreas (the Greek form of 'Andrew').[4] His mother left the family when Andrew was a toddler and has had no communication with him since.[5]

Andrew's father lived on a council estate near King's Cross in London.[6] At the age of three, Andrew was placed in care and lived in a Camden council children's home until the age of 11, when Camden social services funded him to board at the private Kingham Hill School in Oxfordshire, near Chipping Norton.[7] Nicos Adonis remarried twice (when Andrew was eight and twelve) and has more children; he now lives partly in Cyprus.[8]

After Kingham Hill Andrew Adonis went to nearby Oxford University and graduated (with a 1st class BA in modern history) from Keble College, Oxford, subsequently completing a doctorate in 19th century political history at Christ Church, Oxford in 1988.[9] From 1988 until 1991 he was tutor among others of Edward Davey, a Liberal Democrat MP,[10] and held a fellowship in politics at Nuffield College, Oxford.[11] From 1991 to 1996 he was a journalist and leader writer, latterly as Public Policy Editor, at the Financial Times.[12] In 1996, he moved to The Observer as a political columnist and associate editor.[13]

He is married to Kathryn Davies [14] (born 1967), who was one of his undergraduate students during his time as a tutor at Nuffield. Ms. Davies is a graduate of Jesus College, Oxford and worked later for a couple of years in marketing and in public relations at Procter & Gamble, mainly in Germany. Sometimes she officially represents Baron Adonis. [15] She grew up in Royal Tunbridge Wells, but her father Mervyn Davies, a retired teacher, has Welsh origins.[16] The family lives with their eight-year-old son and seven-year-old daughter in Islington, London.[17]

[edit] Adonis influence on public services

In 2003, Patrick Butler, Society editor at The Guardian, ranked Adonis as the eighth "most influential" person in Britain's public services.[18]

Most notable is the ongoing and controversial 5-billion-Pound programme of 200 new secondary schools called "City Academies" by 2010. [19]

Furthermore he is regarded as being influential for the introduction of top-up fees in England.[20]

In June 2005, Lord Adonis was named as one of the key persons in the forced bankruptcy in 2001 of Railtrack.[21]

Over a couple of years Baron Adonis has obtained acceptance because of his academic capacity. He mainly had to receive strong criticism in the media of his policy. In 2005 Edward Davey, a political rival, was "...claiming that Adonis has been "unfairly portrayed in the press."[22]

As Michael White, a political editor at The Guardian, puts it, Adonis became "... a handy hate figure for critics of Tony Blair and the New Labour project". [23] Adonis has driven many of Labour's key education and public service reforms since the 1997 general election.

[edit] Political background

In 2004 Ted Wragg, who was a well known expert on education and journalist, rated Adonis education policy as conservative.[24] In 2006 David Willetts, the Conservative Shadow Education Secretary, said: "I suspect I am the authentic voice of Andrew Adonis. If you want the Andrew Adonis argument for school reform, then you want the Conservative Party to do it."[25]

In fact Adonis joined the Labour Party at age 32 in 1995, after having previously been active in the Liberal Democrats and its predecessor party the Social Democratic Party (SDP).[26] From 1987 until 1991 he was an SDP/Liberal councillor in Oxford.[27]

In 1994, he was selected by Westbury Constituency Liberal Democrats as their Prospective Parliamentary Candidate, but resigned after about 18 months, without fighting an election.[28]

It was openly rumoured that he had "toyed with the idea of joining the Tories before switching to New Labour".[29]

[edit] Political attitude

The discussion of Adonis's education policy clusters frequently in the media on his attitude towards elitism, selection and equality of opportunity. "Despite his background Labour traditionalists regard him as an elitist"[30]. It is undisputed that he and others in government "were themselves beneficiaries of an elitist education"[31].

Adonis himself "insists his detractors mistake his passion for excellence and diversity in public services for elitism."[32]

As a co-author of the book A Class Act, where the elitism of wealth in education is pilloried,[33] Adonis calls for "selection by ability" in schools. [34]

Adonis's strong support for City Academies gave rise to the accusation of introducing a new type of elitism.[35] In October 2005 Martin Bright, his former journalist colleague, writes in the New Statesman: "I have never been able to understand why, after writing so passionately about the injustice of the hierarchy in education, he chose to introduce a new layer through city academies".[36]

[edit] Private involvement in education

Adonis's private involvement in education is discussed throughout the media. In 2003, Adonis and his wife were said to have considered sending their son to the private Deutsche Schule in Richmond[37], London, which was criticised as inconsistent with his political statements.[38] However today, his children attend Canonbury Primary School in Islington, London.[39]

Adonis is charged to have a clear conflict of interest in changing Islington Green School into a City Academy because it is the school he is likely to consider for his children.[40] In December 2005, the Department for Education and Skills announced to pass any decision on the Islington Green School to another minister in the department.[41]

[edit] Accusations of undemocratic operations

In January 2007 Adonis himself regrets "... taking a seat in the Lords, where he lacks the democratic legitimacy ..".[42]

In 2006, a Conservative spokesman openly argued: "... an unelected lord, who is only a minister due to being a Blair favourite ..."[43]

Adonis's move into the Department for Education and Skills "require(ed) him to be elevated to the House of Lords, since he is not elected"[44]

Already in 2005 it was argued that the peerage under Tony Blair since 1997 has been used more strategically and in an undemocratic way in comparison to the former seven years under John Major.[45] Important Cabinet officials have generally only been created life peers upon retirement from the House of Commons. The democratic legitimacy of the House of Lords as a parliamentary institution was challenged by Adonis himself in 1988.[46]

At the time of peerage the then Education Secretary, Ruth Kelly, was described by The Observer as "less than thrilled" over Adonis's elevation.[47]

The prospect of Adonis's Peerage and ministerhood was described by Roy Hattersley, former Deputy Leader of the Labour Party, as an example of Tony Blair's "kamikaze attacks on its the Labour Party's most cherished values" and that the appointment "wins high marks for [its] arrogant insensitivity".[48]

In April 2006, Lord Adonis was named as a key figure in police inquiries into the allegation of peerages for sale.[49]

In January 2006, unnamed Labour Party rebels demand openly to dismiss Lord Adonis from his post as Under-Secretary of State,[50] and Sir Simon Jenkins said that "It is what happens when you put an unelected lord in charge of sensitive social policy." [51]

Adonis himself "... realises he may not survive the change of leader..." after September 2007.[52]

[edit] Publications

  • Andrew Adonis (Editor), Keith Thomas (Editor) (2004). Roy Jenkins: A Retrospective. ISBN. 
  • Andrew Adonis and Stephen Pollard (1997). A Class Act: the myth of Britain's classless society. ISBN. 
  • David Butler, Andrew Adonis & Tony Travers (1994). Failure in British government : the politics of the poll tax. ISBN. 
  • Andrew Adonis (Editor), Tim Hames (Editor) (1994). A Conservative Revolution?: The Thatcher-Reagan Decade in Perspective. ISBN. 
  • Andrew Adonis (1993). Parliament Today. ISBN. 
  • Andrew Adonis (1993). Making Aristocracy Work: The Peerage and the Political System in Britain,. ISBN. 
  • Preston T King, Andrea Bosco & Andrew Adonis (1991). A constitution for Europe : a comparative study of federal constitutions and plans for the United States of Europe. ISBN. 
  • Andrew Adonis (Editor), Andrew Tyrie (Editor) (1990). Subsidiarity: as history and policy. OCLC. 
  • Andrew Adonis (Editor), Andrew Tyrie (Editor) (1989). Subsidiarity: no panacea. OCLC. 

Various New Statesman articles:

  1. Diana restated in modern form the Victorian values which preceded and will post-date the universal welfare state 1996, Andrew Adonis
  2. The Queen: A Biography of Elizabeth II, 1996, Andrew Adonis
  3. Using Europe, Abusing Europeans: Britain and European Integration, (book review), 1996, Andrew Adonis
  4. Our progressives only look dead (prospects for a revival of progressivism in the United Kingdom), 1996, Andrew Adonis
  5. The Castle of Lies: Why Britain Must Get Out of Europe, 1996, Andrew Adonis
  6. Parliament Under Pressure, 1996, Andrew Adonis
  7. The Eurosceptic Reader (book review), 1996, Andrew Adonis
  8. Our classless self-delusion: the old hierarchy may have gone but a new one has taken its place, 1996, Andrew Adonis
  9. This Time: Our Constitutional Revolution, 1996, Andrew Adonis

[edit] References

Adonis, Andrew. "Wedded to a quango Lord" Reprint of Adonis' 1998 article in The Guardian, May 19, 2005
Ahmed, Kamal; Hinsliff, Gaby; Bright, Martin. "How Estelle learnt the toughest lesson of all" Guardian Unlimited, October 27, 2002
Bates, Stephen. "A head for new heigth" The Guardian, May 2, 2006
BBC "Profile: Andrew Adonis" bbc.co.uk, May 9, 2005
Beckett, Francis "Old school tie lives on" New Statesman, June 19, 2006
Beckett, Francis. "The rise of Tony Zoffis" The Guardian, May 11, 2005
Bednell, Christine in: "Lord Adonis visits Harrow" Wimbledon Guardian, October 6, 2005
Bright, Martin. "The politics column - Martin Bright revisits the great education divide" New Statesman, October 31, 2005
Butler, Patrick. "The top 10"The Guardian, September 10, 2003
Charter, David. "The minister, his advisers and the plot to kill Railtrack" Timesonline July 23, 2005
Claire, Christopher. "Dobson slams Labour over'elitist' policies" Scotland on Sunday November 3, 2002
Cohen, Nick. "The best education is still for the rich kids" Evening Standard (London), May 31, 2006
 Cusick, James. "Who knew? Cash for honours" Sundayherald, April 16, 2006
Davies, Caroline. "Blair 'school guru' considers paying" Telegraph, July 27,2003
DODONLINE subscription needed
Elect The Lords. "Lord Adonis comment: A democratic reformer appointed by undemocratic means" Elect The Lords, May 12, 2005
Epolitix "Profile: Andrew Adonis" ePolitix.com, May 9, 2005
Hall, Ben. "'This is not a wacky utopia'" FT.com, January 12, 2007
Happold, Tom. The Guardian article on Adonis's joining Labour "Under the influence" Guardian Unlimited, June 18, 2003
Hattersley, Roy. "Real Labour is not afraid of mutiny" The Guardian, May 9, 2005
Hayes, Dominic. "Minister is stripped of power to turn his local school into city academy" The Evening Standard, December 29, 2005
Hennessy, Patrick "Labour rebels demand sacking of Adonis" Telegraph, January 22, 2006
Hinsliff, Gaby " I won't quit, vows Blair as cabinet rift opens" The Observer, May 8, 2005
Hinsliff, Gaby. "New minster's mother tells: why I left him" The Observer, June 12, 2005
Jenkins, Simon "A simple way to better schools: don'treat them like hospitals" The Sunday Times, January 22,2006
Liberal Democrat History Group. "Adonis prospective Parliamentary candidate, Westbury"
Marre, Oliver. "Adonis in 'conflict of interest' row over Islington academy"The Independent, December 29, 2005
Oakeshott, Isabel. "Man behind top-up fees is more Andrew than Adonis" Evening Standard (London), May 10, 2005
Press Association. "Underperforming"Guardian Unlimited,March 1, 2007
Sylvester, Rachel. "Blair has lost the education battle before it's begun"Telegraph November 21, 2005
The Economist. "Few are chosen; British education" The Economist, July 1, 2004
White, Michael. "Andrew Adonis: elitism jibe denied" The Guardian, January 27, 2005
White, Michael. "MPs urge retreat on unpopular policies" The Guardian, September 2, 2003
Winnett, Robert. "Mother: why I left minister as a toddler" The Sunday Times, June 12, 2005
Woodward, Will."The Guardian profile: Andrew Adonis" The Guardian October 28, 2005
Woodward, Will. "More rebels ready to challenge school bill" The Guardian, May 19, 2006
Wrag, Ted. "Why L-A-B-O-U-R spells Tory" The Guardian July 6, 2004

[edit] External links

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