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  • Published: 4 July 2023
  • ISBN: 9781529153347
  • Imprint: Hutchinson Heinemann
  • Format: Trade Paperback
  • Pages: 336
  • RRP: $40.00

But What Can I Do?

Why Politics Has Gone So Wrong, and How You Can Help Fix It





A masterclass on how to achieve real change

'Your country needs you. Your world needs you. Your time is now.'

Our politics is a mess. Leaders who can't or shouldn't be allowed to lead. Governments that lie, and seek to undermine our democratic values. It's no surprise that so many of us feel frustrated, let down and drawn to ask, 'But what can I do?'

That question is the inspiration behind this book. It's a question regularly posed to Alastair Campbell, not least in reaction to The Rest is Politics, the chart-topping podcast he presents with Rory Stewart. His answer, typically, is forthright and impassioned. We cannot afford to stand on the sidelines. If we think things need to change, then we need to change them, and that means getting involved.

But What Can I Do? provides each of us with the motivation and the tools to effect change for the better. It draws on Alastair's long experience to offer practical tips on putting together and leading a campaign team. It provides priceless advice on developing confidence and coping with criticism and setbacks. And it sets out the practical steps by which we can become political players ourselves. Part call to arms, part practical handbook, But What Can I Do? will prove required reading for anyone who wants to make a difference.

  • Published: 4 July 2023
  • ISBN: 9781529153347
  • Imprint: Hutchinson Heinemann
  • Format: Trade Paperback
  • Pages: 336
  • RRP: $40.00

About the author

Alastair Campbell

Alastair Campbell was born in Keighley, Yorkshire in 1957, the son of a vet. Having graduated from Cambridge University in modern languages, he went into journalism, principally with the Mirror Group. When Tony Blair became leader of the Labour Party, Campbell worked for him first as press secretary, then as official spokesman and director of communications and strategy from 1994 to 2003. He continued to act as an advisor to Mr Blair and the Labour Party, including during subsequent election campaigns. He now splits his time between writing, speaking, politics in Britain and overseas, consultancy and charity, as chairman of fundraising for Leukaemia and Lymphoma Research, and a leading ambassador for the mental health campaign Time to Change.

He lives in North London with his partner of thirty-five years, Fiona Millar. They have three children. His interests include running, cycling, bagpipes and Burnley Football Club. He has published six volumes of diaries, including the number one Sunday Times bestseller, The Blair Years, a memoir on depression, The Happy Depressive, and three novels.

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Praise for But What Can I Do?

It is everything a manifesto should be: heartfelt, hectoring, impassioned, rousing. Piers Morgan will likely hate it on principle, and Boris Johnson may choose to tear out its pages to use the next time he has a heavy cold. But whatever you think of Campbell himself, the intent here seems entirely pure, honourable even. It's hopeful too, and hope's a valuable commodity these days.

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