Let's not be so Beastly to Poor Old Cherie

29 Mar 2006
Evening Standard

Another Cherie Blair speech, this time in Miami, and yet again she is in the line of fire. Cherie gets a truly terrible press. I am no friend of the Blair project, but Cherie does not deserve the vitriol she gets. When she said nothing in public, the newspapers sniped. Now she makes the occasional speech, journalists subject it to textual analysis trying to find "gaffes".

Meanwhile picture editors try to find the one shot of Cherie with her mouth hanging open, which makes her look ugly and slightly simple. Her clothes and general appearance have been subject to the sort of scrutiny that would make the rest of us slit our wrists. And when - presumably shellshocked by all the criticism - she turned to expensive hairdressers, designer clothes and Carole Caplin, the very same papers that drove her to these stratagems intensified their attacks. To cap it all, she happens to be someone who photographs badly; she is much prettier in real life. Models, actresses and weather girls - all of whom market themselves on their looks - must expect to have their appearance commented on. But I fail to see why it matters what the wife of the Prime Minister wears, as long as she is tidy.

Her critics always overlook her considerable achievements. She is one of the best lawyers of her generation: she came top of the year in her bar exams. She is the first prime minister's wife to pursue a proper career as a leading QC in her field and a part-time judge. Above all, she performs the superhuman juggling act of doing those jobs while bringing up four children and being the Prime Minister's partner. I don't think it is appreciated enough how much of a struggle it must be to raise four children in the goldfish bowl of 10 Downing Street. Making sure that visiting dignitaries do not step on Leo's Lego is the least of it.Adolescence is an awful time. To have to live it out as a prime minister's child is worse, and Cherie should be applauded for moving heaven and earth to protect her children.

Of course she is not without flaws.She is undoubtedly what is best described as "careful" with money, and some of the worst publicity that she has endured has been because of that. But it is unfair to caricature her as greedy. A truly greedy woman would have gone into commercial law, where the big money is. Like her husband, too much exposure to the superrich has not been good for her. You can't imagine Tony and Cherie holidaying in the Scilly Isles every year like Harold and Mary Wilson. And the Blairs will not leave office poor, as the Wilsons did.

But, ultimately, too many people attack Cherie Blair when the person they are really seeking to damage is her husband. I am scarcely a New Labour sycophant, but I think Cherie should be left in peace to enjoy searching for bargains on eBay.




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