133: Jo Phillips

<div>It was a great pleasure to meet award-winning journalist Jo Phillips for my latest Nostalgia Interview. Jo is a political commentator and has worked as a political editor and broadcaster and was press secretary and policy adviser to Paddy Ashdown and has stood for Parliament. She also worked for Bob Geldof for 10 years. Jo is a sailor and gardener and she explains why she sees herself primarily as a journalist.<br> <br> </div> <div>Jo talks about the importance of being curious, and we learn that radio has been her first love. She explains why it sparks the imagination. We also learn about her political interests and leanings, and why politics is not just about Westminster. She has written a book called <em>Why Vote? A guide for those who can’t be bothered</em> – which details the work she has done to get people who wouldn’t normally vote to do so – and talks about why local engagement matters.<br> <br> </div> <div>Jo then reveals how she got to work with Paddy Ashdown and she talks about the importance of his diaries. This was a time when Labour and the Lib Dems discussed working together, and Jo discusses why he was so good to work for and with during his time as Lib Dem leader and when he was High Representative for Bosnia. We talk about the Lib Dems punching above their weight in the 1990s. She talks about the preparation that Paddy Ashdown made for PMQs and the anguish they went through (she was his spinner) before going into the bear pit.<br> <br> </div> <div>Jo recalls Paddy’s reaction when Tony Blair gave his first speech as Labour leader – ‘he’s bloody good, isn’t he?’ She talks about the price the Lib Dems paid in later years for the coalition with the Conservatives and she discusses why one can’t talk about right and left any more and why Britain’s influence in the world has diminished due to Brexit.<br> <br> </div> <div>Jo is a farmer’s daughter and we find out where she got her interest in politics from. We move on to talk about the televising of Parliament and why she thinks the select comm