Although it may have seemed as though the majority of MPs had enough on their plates over Christmas with floods, revenge reshuffles and the war on terror, it turns out that they also had time to edit a magazine. This week’s edition of the women’s weekly Stylist is ‘made by politicians’.
The issue includes a recipe for cinnamon buns from environment secretary Liz Truss, as well as David Cameron giving a rundown of his ‘work life’. As for Labour, there is Jeremy Corbyn on his ideal bicycle — the £475 Raleigh Criterium, no less — and Gloria De Piero on the pros of buying Chardonnay from Aldi.
Perhaps Mr S’s favourite section, however, is the ‘beauty section’ which is edited by none other than Diane Abbott. The shadow international development secretary has written a feature on her ‘hair evolution’. In this, she writes about her decision to have an afro in her student days:
‘Sometimes you have a hairstyle because you like it, and sometimes it’s a statement. My decision to cut my hair off and have an afro was political — it was about celebrating black power. It was also the era of feminism and accepting who you really were.’
Abbott — who once found herself fighting Chairman Mao’s corner during a discussion on This Week — says she has since opted for some hairstyles for purely aesthetic reasons, as she is aware that people will always comment on her appearance. She says that this means that no matter how ‘insightful’ her answers are on television shows like Question Time, people rarely pick up on them:
‘I’ve been an MP for 28 years now and I’m used to the fact that I can go on Question Time and no matter how thrilling or insightful my answers are, people still comment on my appearance instead — even my own friends!’
However, while Steerpike rarely has cause to write about how ‘insightful’ Abbott’s comments are, it’s not because he is too busy writing about her appearance.
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