Council leader follows family tradition

With her decision to evacuate thousands of people in her borough, Georgia Gould has found herself thrust into the spotlight.

But while she may appear young to have the fate of so many in her hands, the 31-year-old has been well schooled for this moment.

She is the daughter of Philip Gould, Labour’s strategy and polling adviser between 1987 and 2005, when the party went from electoral doldrums to stunning success with Tony Blair. Her mother is Gail Rebuck, a Labour peer and chair of the publishers Penguin Random House UK.

At 24, she became a Labour councillor at the London Borough of Camden, rising to become leader in May this year.

Asked what qualities made her suitable to be leader, she said “tenacious optimism”. Patrick Sawer