James Cleverly has said his wife had a “veto” over whether he ran for the Conservative Party leadership, after she went through “hell and back” battling breast cancer.
In a moving interview with The Mail on Sunday, Cleverly revealed the couple “made the decision together” after long walks through the Essex meadows with their dogs.
In 2021, Susie Cleverly was diagnosed with breast cancer at the age of 49. This summer she marked two years cancer-free after successful treatment, which her husband says leaves him “eternally grateful” to the NHS.
Cleverly said: “She gets a veto over my political career,” and described the mother of his two children as “incredibly formidable” and “inspiring.”
James Cleverly has said his wife had a “veto” over whether he ran for the Conservative Party leadership.
James Cleverly and Susie Cleverly pictured on the second day of the 2023 Conservative Party Conference
As a former Interior Minister, Foreign Minister and party chairman, he is one of the six candidates with the most experience.
He was keen to stress that, unlike some of his former colleagues, he had not spent his time positioning himself in government to succeed Rishi Sunak: “I had no intention of running.”
But after “discussing” the options with Susie, they concluded he was “best placed” to take over Sir Keir Starmer’s government.
As a former Home Secretary, Foreign Secretary and party chairman, he is one of the six candidates with the most experience. He cut his teeth working with Boris Johnson at City Hall and remained loyal to him even in his final days in Downing Street.
They remain in touch, he said, having lunch shortly before the election and “have been chatting ever since.”
Has Boris given him advice on how to win the race? “Of course we talked about the nature of leadership,” he said, but added: “Private conversations are private.”
Asked whether he would have the former Prime Minister in his cabinet, as his rival Robert Jenrick says he would, he said: “Why not?”
The Braintree MP was quick to trash his successors’ first days in office. The unions have “humiliated” Starmer and shown him to be “naive” when it comes to negotiating, he said.
Referring to the train drivers’ union Aslef, which announced fresh strikes just hours after its members received a 14.25 per cent pay rise, he said: Labour “have been played” and Starmer is “the worst negotiator”.
Susie Cleverly (left) and Lucia Hunt, wife of Chancellor of the Exchequer Jeremy Hunt in Fordham, Cambridgeshire, while on the General Election campaign trail
Cleverly said he still gets up at 6.30am and is busy with the leadership campaign, based in an office in King’s Cross.
In 2021, Susie Cleverly was diagnosed with breast cancer at the age of 49. This summer she celebrated two years cancer-free.
His team has commissioned a survey asking voters what characteristics they want to see more of in their next leader. Topping the list is “integrity,” followed closely by being a “normal, relatable person.”
What’s the most normal thing about him? I asked him.
He described himself as an “open book” to voters, having survived many televised interviews. “I don’t claim to be perfect, but people know what they’re getting.” He added that politics is a job where “life gets a little weird: On Saturdays I can’t push a cart through the supermarket, because I go to community events, I visit businesses.”
Her ideal Friday night, she said, is “watching a movie with Susie and the boys, and having a glass of wine.” My favorite movie is Blade Runner, but Susie likes romantic comedies.
Free time also includes walking his border terriers, Coco and Bea, although until recently this meant being followed by “two armed police officers ten or fifteen metres behind me”.
Cleverly said he still gets up at 6.30am and is busy with the leadership campaign, from an office in King’s Cross. In this regard, he said, he hopes to achieve a “reset” of his party and turn it into an effective opposition. “We need to get our act together and get it done very quickly,” he said.
“We cannot afford to be wrong.”
