The most frightening moment of my political life didn’t come at the despatch box or in a grilling on Newsnight. It came in a packed public meeting in 1983 in London. I had just been elected, and a meeting had been organised by the GLC and others in Finsbury Town Hall in my constituency for Gerry Adams, then newly elected, a Sinn Fein MP, but not taking his seat. They invited me as the fresh-faced local MP to speak, and I agreed – because I thought we needed to hear all points of view on Ireland at the time.
When it was my turn to speak, I said firmly but simply: “I cannot accept the use of violence for political ends in Northern Ireland.” The reaction was immediate and ferocious, angry booing that went on for minutes. I gripped the edge of the table to steady myself. I have never felt more afraid in public. But I said what I fervently believed. Even in that hostile room, I knew I was doing the right thing: standing up for a principle that mattered.
