By Spy
Resigning from the Cabinet last year might have put an end to Robin Cook’s political ambitions, but it’s done his bank balance no end of good. The former foreign secretary has already added to his backbench salary of £57,485 another £450,000 from the publication and serialisation of his book, The Point of Departure.
Now, Spy hears, Cook is plunging into the lucrative after-dinner speaking circuit. He has signed up with JLA, the leading agency that has Alastair Campbell and William Hague on its books.
Potential clients shouldn’t expect stand-up comedy routines and Rory Bremner-style impersonations from the gingery Scotsman. “Robin still sees himself as a very serious speaker,” I’m told. “Rather than being amusing, like William Hague, he sees himself holding forth on Europe and other geo-political issues.”