Rory Stewart

Rory Stewart is a British author, academic, broadcaster, and former politician. He served as the Member of Parliament for Penrith and The Border from 2010 to 2019, holding ministerial positions in the British Cabinet under Prime Ministers Theresa May and Boris Johnson. Following his political career, he has become a prominent media figure, co-hosting the podcast The Rest Is Politics with Alastair Campbell and serving as a senior fellow at Yale University.

Early life and education

Rory Stewart was born in Hong Kong and spent his early childhood in Malaysia and Singapore. His father, Brian Stewart, was a senior official in the British Secret Intelligence Service and Diplomatic Service. Stewart was educated at Dragon School in Oxford and later at Eton College. He read Classics and Philosophy, Politics and Economics at Balliol College, Oxford, graduating with a first-class degree. During his time at the University of Oxford, he was a contemporary of future political figures like Boris Johnson and David Cameron.

Political career

Stewart began his career in public service as a British Army officer in the Black Watch before joining the Foreign and Commonwealth Office. He served as a Deputy Governorate Coordinator in the Coalition Provisional Authority in Maysan, Iraq, following the 2003 invasion of Iraq. Elected as a Conservative MP in 2010, he served on the Foreign Affairs Select Committee and as chair of the Defence Select Committee. In government, he was appointed Minister of State for International Development in 2017 and later Minister of State for Prisons and Probation. He was a vocal critic of a no-deal Brexit and was expelled from the Conservative Party in September 2019 after voting against the government to block it. He subsequently stood as an independent candidate in the 2019 Conservative leadership election and later for Mayor of London in 2021.

Post-political career and media work

Since leaving politics, Stewart has pursued a career in academia and media. He is a senior fellow at Yale University, where he teaches at the Jackson School of Global Affairs and the Yale Law School. He co-founded the non-profit organization the Ethical Dairy and has written for publications like The Guardian and The Times. His most prominent media role is as co-host, with former Downing Street Director of Communications Alastair Campbell, of the highly successful podcast The Rest Is Politics. He also presented the BBC television series The Marches and authored the book Politics On the Edge.

Views and political positions

Stewart is known for his One-Nation Conservative outlook and pragmatic internationalism. He was a staunch opponent of Brexit, advocating for a second referendum, and criticized the foreign policy approaches of both the United States and the United Kingdom in Afghanistan and Iraq. On domestic issues, he has advocated for prison reform, rural affairs, and environmental stewardship, emphasizing localism and community-based solutions. His political philosophy often contrasts with the populist and nationalist trends within modern Conservative politics.

Personal life

Stewart is married to Shoshana Clark, an American-born international development worker, with whom he has two sons. The family divides its time between a farm in Cumbria and the United States. An avid walker, he famously undertook a solo trek across Afghanistan in 2002, which formed the basis for his award-winning book The Places in Between. He is a trustee of the Royal Geographical Society and has served on the board of the Turquoise Mountain Foundation, which he helped establish to preserve traditional arts in Kabul.

Category:1973 births Category:Living people Category:Alumni of Balliol College, Oxford Category:Conservative Party (UK) MPs for English constituencies Category:Independent politicians in the United Kingdom Category:Members of the Parliament of the United Kingdom for English constituencies Category:UK MPs 2010–2015 Category:UK MPs 2015–2017 Category:UK MPs 2017–2019