Edited by Leon Spence, Wednesday 8 October 2025 at 08:13
For anyone interested in Twentieth Century politics this week's episode of The Rest Is History podcast is a great listen, focussing on the fiercely intelligent Enoch Powell, his impressive early life and eventual march to the right on issues of race (whilst maintaining some remarkably enlightened views - for his time - on other social issues).
It's safe to say that irrespective of policy positions Powell was also wildly ambitious, for many years coveting the top job of Leader of the Conservative Party.
Not only is this week's episode interesting, it is also timely for it was released just one day before The Guardian chose to run an expose on the allegedly racist views of another politician seemingly aiming for the top job in the Conservative Party by running to the right on issues of immigration, this time Robert Jenrick.
In their story the newspaper have managed to secure a recording of Mr Jenrick speaking to a Conservative association dinner in the West Midlands with the politician making observations of a brief period of time spent in the neighbourhood of Handsworth. (Coincidentally, at the time of his notorious 'Rivers of Blood' speech Powell was MP for nearby Wolverhampton with the speech itself being delivered in Birmingham. Something of a West Midlands theme?)
Mr Jenrick's comments themselves are not as openly incendiary as Powell's earlier words. Rather than talking of "whip hands" and "rivers of blood" the contemporary politician was recorded saying: "The other thing I noticed there was that it was one of the worst integrated places I've ever been to. In fact, in the hour and a half I was filming news there, I didn't see another white face."
And whilst Mr Jenrick equated the area to being "a slum", in fairness to him he was not calling for any sort of repatriation but, instead, better integration. (Albeit, many would argue that Powell was never explicitly racist either but focussed heavily on the increasingly important issue of immigration.)
The truth is, however, that in years gone by, and not too many at that, (and perhaps with a leader more secure in their role) Mr Jenrick would have been summarily dismissed from the front bench after his comments were reported on. Remember, it is only 11 years since Labour's Emily Thornberry was dismissed from her shadow ministerial position for posting an implicitly disparaging tweet of an England flag during a by-election campaign.
Such has the rhetoric of politics changed that Mr Jenrick's comments were swiftly backed up by many in his party. The party that got rid of Enoch Powell is now actively considering a man with many parallels as leader.
One of the conclusions drawn by Messrs Sandbrook and Holland in this week's episode of their podcast is that, for all of his faults, Enoch Powell was one of the most consequential politicians of the twentieth century. The fact that we still talk about him now is testament to that.
It is entirely possible that Mr Jenrick will become leader of the Conservative Party, but will he become as historically consequential?
Only time will tell. And I have a feeling there's a certain populist politician topping opinion polls that might have a difference of opinion in that regard.
Enoch Powell and Robert Jenrick: the parallels
For anyone interested in Twentieth Century politics this week's episode of The Rest Is History podcast is a great listen, focussing on the fiercely intelligent Enoch Powell, his impressive early life and eventual march to the right on issues of race (whilst maintaining some remarkably enlightened views - for his time - on other social issues).
It's safe to say that irrespective of policy positions Powell was also wildly ambitious, for many years coveting the top job of Leader of the Conservative Party.
Not only is this week's episode interesting, it is also timely for it was released just one day before The Guardian chose to run an expose on the allegedly racist views of another politician seemingly aiming for the top job in the Conservative Party by running to the right on issues of immigration, this time Robert Jenrick.
In their story the newspaper have managed to secure a recording of Mr Jenrick speaking to a Conservative association dinner in the West Midlands with the politician making observations of a brief period of time spent in the neighbourhood of Handsworth. (Coincidentally, at the time of his notorious 'Rivers of Blood' speech Powell was MP for nearby Wolverhampton with the speech itself being delivered in Birmingham. Something of a West Midlands theme?)
Mr Jenrick's comments themselves are not as openly incendiary as Powell's earlier words. Rather than talking of "whip hands" and "rivers of blood" the contemporary politician was recorded saying: "The other thing I noticed there was that it was one of the worst integrated places I've ever been to. In fact, in the hour and a half I was filming news there, I didn't see another white face."
And whilst Mr Jenrick equated the area to being "a slum", in fairness to him he was not calling for any sort of repatriation but, instead, better integration. (Albeit, many would argue that Powell was never explicitly racist either but focussed heavily on the increasingly important issue of immigration.)
The truth is, however, that in years gone by, and not too many at that, (and perhaps with a leader more secure in their role) Mr Jenrick would have been summarily dismissed from the front bench after his comments were reported on. Remember, it is only 11 years since Labour's Emily Thornberry was dismissed from her shadow ministerial position for posting an implicitly disparaging tweet of an England flag during a by-election campaign.
Such has the rhetoric of politics changed that Mr Jenrick's comments were swiftly backed up by many in his party. The party that got rid of Enoch Powell is now actively considering a man with many parallels as leader.
One of the conclusions drawn by Messrs Sandbrook and Holland in this week's episode of their podcast is that, for all of his faults, Enoch Powell was one of the most consequential politicians of the twentieth century. The fact that we still talk about him now is testament to that.
It is entirely possible that Mr Jenrick will become leader of the Conservative Party, but will he become as historically consequential?
Only time will tell. And I have a feeling there's a certain populist politician topping opinion polls that might have a difference of opinion in that regard.