Carey: Churchill would have failed today

WINSTON CHURCHILL and Clement Attlee would not have succeeded as political leaders today because modern Britain prefers the showmanship of “bounders” like Boris Johnson, according to Lord Carey, the former Archbishop of Canterbury.

The popularity of Mr Johnson, the Foreign Secretary, in Britain, Donald Trump in the US and Vladimir Putin in Russia is a sad indictment of “the dominance of the personality” in politics, Lord Carey said.

He claimed: “Some of the greatest leaders in recent history would not shine today. Where would you place Roosevelt, Truman, Attlee, Churchill, who would find it difficult to stand out [even] with their impressive gifts?”

Recalling the Britain of his younger years, Lord Carey told the Oxford Literary Festival: “Before television was as powerful as it is now, politicians [were] on our doorstep. Whilst this continues, it is a shadow of what it was. And this led to the diminishing of debate and the rise of the charismatic individual.

“We look around and see personalities like Donald Trump in the States, Emmanuel Macron in France, Boris Johnson in the United Kingdom, Putin in Russia, Erdogan in Turkey, dominating the airwaves.”