I had lunch this past weekend with long-time friend Lord Michael Heseltine, former deputy prime minister of the UK. He is indeed the Lion in Winter, now 93 years old, but sharp and passionate. I know Heseltine through Haymarket, his publishing company, which owns PRWeek. We met in 1996 when he was considering whether to launch an American edition of PRWeek. Edelman became the first advertiser (whether Michael or his son Rupert sold that ad I will leave to them).
Heseltine is a member of the House of Lords, having served as a Conservative member of Parliament from 1966 to 2001. He founded Haymarket in 1957; his proudest achievement is CAMPAIGN, the bible of the marketing sector, now in 18 countries. He would stand down from work in the private sector when he held important positions in Government, including Deputy PM, Secretary of State for Environment, then Aerospace, then Defense. He is famously known for his challenge to then Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher in 1990 for leadership of the party because of her Euro-skeptic view, prompting her resignation from office in favor of John Major.
Here are a few of the important points from our luncheon:
- The UK Must Come Back into Europe—Heseltine was very much part of the push to get the UK into the European Union in 1973 as part of the Edward Heath government. He contends that the UK is much better off with trading privileges, labor and capital mobility. He believes that the last decade in Britain has been one of economic underperformance.
- Devolution Works—He led the push for more powerful mayors in key cities such as Liverpool and Manchester, taking powers away from the central government, enabling local supervision of critical services. He knows Andy Burnham, former Mayor of Manchester, very well and rates him highly as a possible successor to Keir Starmer as Prime Minister.
- EU Needs Independent Defense Capabilities—He told me about a visit from an American general in the mid-80s, seeking UK technology for the development of the Star Wars defense shield against Russian nuclear arms. He recognized that the U.S. was cherry-picking technologies from key countries. It would enable the U.S. to leapfrog its European competitors not just in defense, but in the broader technology sector. He turned down the $100 million offer and instead worked with other defense ministers to create the Typhoon fighter jet as an EU project.
- The Hong Kong Turnover—He was deputy PM when Hong Kong was turned over by the UK to China on July 1, 1997. He negotiated a respectable departure for the UK military with the help of the Chinese deputy PM. Both sides recognized the magnitude of the moment and the necessity of dignity for all involved. Heseltine was in Hong Kong for the handover, remembering the words of the British commander to his troops. “Company, depart Hong Kong.”
- The Power of Entrepreneurs—Heseltine proudly showed me the Saatchi & Saatchi ad “Labour Isn’t Working” that propelled Margaret Thatcher to electoral victory in the early 80s. He also showed an ad from the Labour party from the 1920s in the wake of the post WWI recession with a worker asking for help to get a job. His view is reflective of his own experience as an entrepreneur now employing 3,000 people across the world. Give small business owners the chance and they will build something big. He is deeply concerned about the departure of the wealthy from the UK.
- Business/Government Cooperation Imperative—Heseltine is a believer in a constructive partnership between the two sectors. He cited the defense industry as one example of pioneering technology developed by government with business for the space program that later led to semiconductor prowess of the U.S. He also led the right to buy for public housing in the UK...privatization of the council houses in the 90s.
Heseltine and I spoke for more than three hours as he led me on a tour of the grounds of his home, including a giant statue of Vladimir Lenin that he acquired from a newly freed state (Latvia) after the fall of the Soviet Union. We talked about the Omnicom Interpublic merger, the travails of WPP, the end of so many creative agencies (Burnett, FCB, Y&R, Grey, DDB) and the use of AI in communications. I had the same kind of relationship with my father, Daniel, founder of Edelman, who passed in 2013, talking for hours about business, politics and family. It was a day to remember forever.
Richard Edelman is CEO.
