George Osborne defends Evening Standard editorship to Tatton constituents

Former Chancellor George Osborne has defended his decision to be the next editor of the London Evening Standard to his Tatton constituents.

In an open letter in the Knutsford Guardian, he said: "Now I have left Downing Street I want to continue to take part in the debate about the future direction of our country.

“No longer being Chancellor gives me time to do that in other ways - yes, in the Chamber of the House of Commons; but also as the editor of a major newspaper, the Evening Standard.”

He drew on comparisons with former editors who were also MPs at the same time, including CP Scott who was editor of the Manchester Guardian and an MP, Ian Macleod who was editor of The Spectator, Richard Crossman who was editor of the News Statesman, and even said that current foreign secretary Boris Johnson had combined both jobs.

He said that that his work in his Tatton consistency was unaffected when he was Shadow Chancellor for five years and then Chancellor for six, but also indicated that if there was opposition to his editorship then he may reconsider.

"I believe this diversity of experience makes our Parliament stronger. I hope you agree and I look forward to continuing to hear what you have to say and to work with you on the problems we face and the great future we can all build.”

Osborne added that he remains committed to the North Powerhouse Partnership, which he also chairs, as it was important to his Cheshire constituency.

Osborne, who will start his editorship in May, will have six jobs that will earn him round £1.5m a year including £650,000 for working one day a week advising BlackRock.

His appointment to succeed Sarah Sands as editor of the Evening Standard, as she heads to the BBC, has drawn criticism from MPs and journalists, as Osborne has no prior journalism experience. He had been rejected from The Times graduate scheme before embarking on a career in politics.

Currently, Parliament's ethics committee is assessing Osborne’s new role and whether there would be a conflict of interest with his job as an MP and if it will impede his ability to edit a major newspaper.

According to the Financial Times, Osborne believes that he will be able to edit the Evening Standard in morning and work on constituency matters in the evening in addition to his adviser job at BlackRock, his public speaking engagements and his recently awarded US Kissinger Fellowship run by the McCain Institute.