Snakes, ladders and animals in the House

 
denis macshane
Getty
9 April 2013

Denis MacShane, former Labour MP for Rotherham, recounts talking to former Defence Secretary Liam Fox about the Iron Lady. “Liam told me when we were chatting over the Meryl Streep film that a) Mrs Thatcher was very kind to staff etc and b) she always wanted an argument and hated lickspittles.

“Fox had written a conference speech for her and in it wrote: ‘Politics is not a game. If it were it would be snakes and ladders and the Conservatives would offer ladders of opportunity for all to climb while Labour snakes would also bring you tumbling down’.”

MacShane continues: “Mrs T said to him, ‘Thanks, but you know I cannot call Labour snakes. Can you find something else to call them? It’s very good but be a dear and find some other animal I can call the Labour people’.”

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