Interview with John Burton

On September 21 2007, John Burton, Tony Blair's agent, visited Darlington College to talk to us all about his experiences. I recently wrote up the interview with a man who is no stranger to controversy. A thoroughly nice man during his talk, this article compiles many of the stories he told us in a feature style.


THE MAN behind the face of British politics met with students from Darlington College to give a typically charismatic and friendly discussion with a group of local students on Thursday afternoon.

John Burton, who was born and bred in Trimdon, continues to serve as the agent and long-standing ally of former Prime Minister Tony Blair, playing an instrumental part in his election to Sedgefield constituency in 1983.

In a characteristically open discussion which delighted his audience, Burton made the environment his own and was keen to share his enthusiasm for politics, as well as many surprising and humorous insights into the most talked-about politician for the last 10 years.

Burton’s friendship with Blair was cemented on an evening in 1983, in which the Prime Minister-to-be met with several senior members of the Labour Party to discuss his role on Burton’s home turf. The light-hearted mood was set when the meeting was postponed for half an hour due to the European Cup Winners’ Cup Final, in which Aberdeen were playing.

“Obviously, football is something that regularly comes between us,” said Burton. “Tony has always been a big Newcastle fan - and as a Sunderland fan myself, it always laid foundations for quarrels.

“We all know that Sunderland are by far the better team though.”

Burton was a key player in Blair’s succession of John Smith as leader of the Labour Party upon Smith’s sudden death in 1994 of a heart attack.

In the re-election that was later revealed to have sparked Blair and Brown’s rivalry and much-reported lack of cohesion, Burton revealed why Tony Blair was always front-runner for the post.

“Given all candidates had pretty much the same manifesto as Smith, it was all about the persona.

“However, many people felt it was necessary to have an English leader of the Labour Party after 11 years of the opposite. Kinnock was Welsh, and Smith was Scottish. To gain the full attention of the electorate, many Labour members felt it was safer to get Blair in charge.

“The great irony that passes many people by is that Tony was born in Edinburgh!” laughed Burton.

As questions rained in from many students who took immediate interest in Burton’s frank yet funny exchange, the guest started at the beginning - 2 May, 1997, when Blair came to power.

“The first thing that surprised Tony was his necessary embrace with technology,” Burton noted. “He had never used a mobile phone in his life, but on his election in 1997, one was thrust into his hand and was told the call was for him!”

Burton’s understanding of Blair’s integration into the British premiership is unparalleled; with responsibility came the Prime Minister’s security, and as his living arrangements were far from arranged, Mr. Blair moved in with Burton - a situation that lasted 18 months.

From this, Burton was able to give a remarkable insight into his day-to-day dealings as his agent, learning things about his close friend during the early days.

“One surprise will always stay with me,” continued Burton. “Tony was a keen fan of rock music. He was watching a Led Zeppelin video with my son when I handed him a piece of paper containing very important minutes from several meetings.

“He took his eyes off of the screen for 5 seconds after I pushed the paper into his hands. He looked at both sides in that time and handed it back to me, saying “That’s very interesting, John.”

“I got rather annoyed, telling him he had to read it.

“He immediately responded with 5 or 6 of the points outlined on the sheet with amazing accuracy, and followed it with his responses. I was blown away.

“Of course, he would look at everything in intrinsic detail later, but to think he could do that in 5 seconds made me happy that I’d picked such a brilliant man to lead this country.”

When questioned about Blair’s greatest achievements, Burton had no hesitation in his reply.

“There are too many to mention - things we take for granted, like the introduction of minimum wage, the right to four weeks’ holiday for the employed and the right to join a trade union are all up there.

“But the best? The Northern Ireland Good Friday Agreement, without a doubt,” he said. “To think of the problems that the situation had caused for hundreds of politicians over the years, and Blair cracked it.

“When he went before the exit door to prevent the Ulster Unionist representative from leaving, his dedication to a solution was proved.

“Of course, without Bertie Aherne and Bill Clinton’s influence over the agreement, it would have been much more difficult.”

Upon the mention of the former American president, the line of questioning by the audience changed to international relations.

“Clinton was ‘The Man’. He really was. When I met him for the first time, he really commanded respect in the room - his presence really was felt.
“During one piece of TV coverage before a major world conference, Tony and Bill were talking together. The cameras zoomed in on the two of them, and the commentator said “The Prime Minister is conversing with the President of the United States - undoubtedly discussing a major topic,” or something like that.

“I later talked to Tony about it. He’d actually leaned over to ask Bill if he realised all the women in the room were staring at him.

“Bill had jokingly replied “Well Tony, some of us have it and some of us don’t!”

President George W. Bush, however, had a much different impact on Burton.

“He doesn’t come across too good in interviews on TV, but in reality he is a very nice man,” said Burton. “When I first met him, I truly understood the phenomenal presence of the United States.

“For safety, Presidents must travel in one of four Apache helicopters in a convoy. I never thought I’d see them land in Trimdon!

“On the way to Tony’s house, Bush asked me “How many acres does he have?”

Laughing, Burton recounted his response with glee: “Well, Mr. President, he has a front garden… and a back garden.”

Another similar exchange happened upon their trip to the local Labour Club, in which the President asked “What facilities does it have? A swimming pool, tennis courts…?”

“Well, a pool table… and a dart board!”

As the interview came to a close, it was perhaps fitting that the final question centred around what Blair and Burton were doing at the moment.

“Blair has recently become a Middle East envoy with aims to resolve the conflict regarding Palestine - in fact, he called me from Jerusalem last week!

“What I understood through my ten years of work with him was the Muslim world’s treatment of Israel and Palestine. Iraq and Iran aren’t top priority for them - many member states feel it essential to resolve the conflict there first.”

It was confirmed by the BBC on 26 June that this role would necessitate his departure from his parliamentary seat, which he originally intended to keep.

Domestically, Blair has already started several charity organisations, including the Blair Foundation - a local sports charity - and Interfaith.

“The Blair Foundation encourages participation and coaching roles,” said Burton. “Blair’s links with the sporting world have helped immensely, and he’s already gained support from Niall Quinn and former Great Britain ice hockey captain Paul Smith.”

Also gaining the expertise of other local sporting legends such as Steve Cram and Brendan Foster, the organisation focuses on the development of young athletes in the fields of tennis, football, rowing and athletics, particularly for the upcoming 2012 Olympic Games in London.

“Why he chose rowing I don’t know, I thought we were already too good at it!” joked Burton.

Interfaith is currently being developed, in which Blair himself was quoted as aiming to foster “greater understanding” between the three “Abrahamic faiths”.

And what about John’s future?

“You know, in one day in June, I went from the agent of the Prime Minister, to the agent for a local M.P., to nothing!” quipped Burton. “That’s politics for you!”

Now away from the front line of the political battleground, John Burton is currently a key figure in the Sports Foundation, which is based at Blair’s home in Trimdon Colliery - Myrobella House - ending speculation that he was to sell the property.

“I can’t wait to start,” beamed Burton.