David Lammy will be the first Labour foreign secretary succeeding a Conservative government since Robin Cook in 1997, if his party triumphs in the general election. On his arrival in office, Cook’s first two acts were to expand the Foreign Office newspaper subscription list to include the Racing Post, and, perhaps more momentously, give an interview to the Observer hailing “an end to xenophobia”.
Lammy will be less bothered about racing tips, but he is tempted to send a broadly similar signal to Cook’s about how the UK under Labour is going to reconnect with the world.
