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Two men returned unobtrusively to parliament yesterday. Both grayer-haired, fuller-cheeked—not to mention significantly thicker wallets—since they first walked the ancient corridors of the Palace of Westminster like ambitious young thrusters many moons ago.
At the time, Ed Balls and George Osborne were the gilded princes of politics. Mr. Balls cut his teeth at the Treasury as Gordon Brown’s terrifying consigliere and mastermind of that infamous gobledegook “neoclassical endogenous growth theory.”
Boy George, meanwhile, was a squeaky bag carrier for William Hague.
Observers at the time confidently predicted that these dynamic young tyros would one day lead their respective parties to a general election. But as is often the case in this cruel, ruthless game, the fickle winds of political fate were not blowing in their favor.
If Mr Balls remains bitter about losing his seat in the 2015 election, he hasn’t shown it. Life in front of the television cameras has softened the face of that snarling creature David Cameron once touchedly described as “the most irritating man in politics.”
Much of what Ed Balls said to the House of Lords Committee on Economic Affairs required an explanatory economics textbook
George ‘six lanes’ Osborne spent much of his time during the session improving his record and destroying his opponents
He and Osborne had been invited to testify before the House of Lords’ Economics Committee on the independence of the Bank of England.
For a former political powerhouse, it was surprising how untribal Mr. Balls came across.
His behavior was more akin to that of a retired geography teacher who shares anecdotes in class than that of a scheming ex-politician out to settle accounts.
Mr. “six lanes” Osborne, on the other hand, spent much of his time improving his record and demolishing his opponents. For all the squillions he makes as an investment banker, it’s clear he hasn’t given up on the game yet.
The couple’s early exchanges were largely consensual. A lot of “George and me” this, or “Ed and me” that. Committee Chairman Lord Bridges (Con) inquired about relations between the Treasury and the Bank of England.
How often do the governor and chancellor speak to each other? Osborne said that in his day he would dine with Sir Mervyn King at least once a month, either at his Downing Street flat or at the Bank of England.
“Better eat and drink better in the Bank,” he joked. ‘A lot of!’ Balls intervened. Totally like that. Sir Mervyn’s gregarious predecessor, Sir Eddie George, is said to have converted a belting cellar. By the way, Owl Sir Merv is on this committee. He asked if the government should “simplify the governor’s remit” so it can focus on monetary policy rather than issues like climate change.
This may well have been a dig at King’s successor in Threadneedle Street, Mark Carney, who seemed to be obsessed with the environment. I’m not sure Sir Mervyn ever warmed to the trendy Mr Carney and his smooth-talking Canadian manners.
Life in front of the television cameras has softened the face of that snarling creature David Cameron once touchedly described as “the most irritating man in politics.”
Much of what Balls said during the session required an explanatory economics textbook. Of the two, Osborne was by far the best performer. Confidence oozed from every pore. To look at him with palms pressed together, dispensing more judgment than an Old Testament prophet, you would assume that this was a man to whom self-doubt was a stranger.
One moment he was heaping praise on Mr Carney (his appointment, natch) for calming markets post-Brexit. The next moment he poured scorn on “political vandals” who threatened to overturn the independence of the Bank of England. Liz Truss and Kwasi Kwarteng.
Incidentally, Mr. Kwarteng is someone Osborne seems to have particular disdain for. The mention of Kwasi’s short-lived occupation of number 11 at one point caused Osborne’s face to break into a grin.
The late Terry-Thomas couldn’t have produced a happier grin.
It wasn’t until the end that they bickered. Osborne again glorified his achievements – this time his banking reforms in 2010 – when rows broke out over the Labor government’s ‘unusual’ decision to allow the Royal Bank of Scotland to buy the pigs-in-a-bag ABN Amro. buy during the banking crisis. crisis. For “unusual,” read “extremely disastrous.”
Wait a minute, Balls said. He claimed that the Bank of England approved the decision at the time. There was a short standoff. Mr. Ball’s eyes bulged like a granny with goosebumps.
After some nervous rocking back and forth, Bridges intervened. “An interesting discussion,” he remarked, desperately trying to get the conversation going.
For a moment, as these two political would-be men awkwardly stared at each other, it was just like old times.