The PM looked concerned.
‘What I ask,’ continued Rafi, ‘is that whoever listens to this tape should consider whether or not spin interfered with the course of events. For example, without the obsession with spin, would the train have been stopped sooner and thus been outside the terrorist’s line of sight? If they agree that the Stratford attack could have been prevented, I ask you to set up a task force to report on how the Civil Service can change the way they and politicians deal with the media, such that the current practice of spinning, giving misleading information and part-truths becomes a thing of the past. As I see it, at the moment too many senior politicians have little more than political research and think tank experience, and have become obsessed with perception rather than practicalities and substance.’
The Prime Minister looked at Rafi. ‘Are you telling me that this tape is evidence that spin by a member of my Government prevented you from stopping a terrorist attack? And that tape in your hand is the only copy?’
Rafi nodded and said, ‘I couldn’t possibly comment Prime Minister, but I can assure you, you don’t want to hear the contents of the tape.’
The PM thought for a few moments. ‘I shall do as you request and if the head of the Civil Service confirms that the contents are as inflammatory as you say, I shall indeed ask him to undertake a full root and branch review of how politicians, their spokespeople and the Civil Service deal with the media.’ He stopped, deep in thought, for what seemed like a long time, but was probably no more than a few seconds.
‘I will go further; if spin has corrupted the system, I will introduce an independent verification process.’ The PM paused. ‘It will be overseen by a select committee, whose members will be chosen by a secret ballot of MPs. This committee will be tasked with bringing into the open blatant spin, barefaced lies, half-truths and white lies. Offenders will have to face this committee and if they are not cleared of wrongdoing, they will have to make a public apology and correct their errors on the record. Furthermore, their apologies will be added alongside the relevant sections of Hansard requiring amendment or clarification. The committee will have teeth to investigate and bring people to account; these powers will include the ability to suspend members of both Houses and, in extremis, debar the individual from public service.’ The PM went silent for a moment, then went on, ‘On reflection, I am prepared to go further and widen the powers of the committee to include all public officials who blatantly deceive in order to further their or their party’s own ends.’
‘Thank you Prime Minister.’
The door to the office opened. ‘Your next meeting is ready to start, Prime Minister.’
‘Thank you, SJ.’
The PM looked at Kate and Rafi, and held out his hand. ‘It’s time for me to be elsewhere. Thank you both again for your help.’
They shook his hand and left.
Back in the hotel suite, Kate put her arms around Rafi’s neck, her warm brown eyes gazing into his.
‘What now?’ said Rafi.
‘Silly question! How about we get some food – I’m starving – and turn in for an early night?’ she said with a wicked glint in her eyes.
‘Great idea. What do you want to eat? The room service menu is impressive.’
‘I’m glad you’re paying,’ she said with a smile. ‘I could eat out for ages on some of these prices.’
‘We deserve some pampering, or at least I thought your orders were: lots of TLC.’
‘That,’ said Kate, ‘could be on the menu for dessert.’
They settled for a light supper. After the meal they snuggled up on the large sofa, enjoying the tranquillity.
‘Would you mind if we paid an impromptu visit to my brother Marcus and my parents on Sunday?’ asked Kate. ‘I think they need a bit of reassuring after the past few days.’
‘Sounds like a great idea. Are you sure we aren’t wanted elsewhere, though?’
‘We’ll no doubt be required tomorrow, but we should be able to slip away on Sunday. I’ll fill you in on my family on the way.’
‘Where exactly do they live?’
‘Just outside Colchester.’
‘Sounds like an excellent idea,’ said Rafi.
The conversation moved on to what they could do during Kate’s two-week break, which was scheduled to start as soon as the terrorist leaders were in captivity.
‘I don’t feel like going far away,’ Kate said.
‘Before this all happened, I’d booked a suite at a hotel in Cornwall for ten days. What do you think?’ enquired Rafi.
‘Is it a very smart hotel?’
‘It’s family run – by all accounts it’s comfortable and has good food,’ said Rafi.
‘But what about the beds?’ queried Kate.
‘They should be fine,’ he replied.
‘They?’ said Kate sleepily. ‘Would it be too forward if we continue to share a bed?’ Kate planted a kiss on his cheek and snuggled up.
Rafi smiled. The prospect of having Kate as a girlfriend appealed.
‘I’d like that,’ he replied. ‘I’ll ring the hotel in the morning.’ He didn’t get a reply; Kate was sound asleep in his arms.
Rafi awoke to the buzzing sound of the bedside phone. He reached over and picked it up. His watch showed the time to be 8.45 a.m. He recognised the voice at the other end but couldn’t initially place who it was. The quietly-spoken woman introduced herself as SJ from Number 10.
‘Could you come in to see the Prime Minister again, please? I’ve arranged for a car to collect you. It’ll be waiting outside your hotel in thirty minutes. Could you make it here for 9.30?’
‘No problem,’ Rafi replied, replaced the phone and sat up.
Rays of daylight crept in though the edges of the curtains and cast a soft warm light around the room. Kate was sound asleep next to him. She looked very comfortable and beautiful. He fought against the urge to give her a hug. They’d been sleeping side by side for two nights and hadn’t even got as far as a cuddle. With regret, he slowly slipped out of bed and made for the bathroom.
On his way out Rafi scribbled Kate a note telling her where he had gone. By 9.10 a.m. he was sitting in a car on his way to Number 10. He arrived early. There was practised calmness in the way people moved around, which disguised the telltale signs of people working under considerable stress.
SJ, whom Rafi had seen several times the day before, apologised, saying that the Prime Minister was running late. ‘Would you like a cup of coffee while you wait?’
‘That would be nice. I seem to have missed breakfast,’ replied Rafi.
‘I’ll see what I can do,’ she said with a smile.
She returned a few minutes later with a tray. On it was a cup of coffee and a croissant. ‘I hope this will help.’
Rafi beamed. ‘Thanks, just what I needed.’ He settled down to the welcome sustenance.
Ten minutes later SJ reappeared. ‘The PM is snowed under at the moment. He’ll see you as soon as he can. I’ve been asked to slot you in ahead of his next meeting. Can I get you another coffee?’
‘No, thanks, I’m fine.’
She bent forward to pick up the tray from the low table just in front of Rafi.
To his surprise, he wondered how such a primly dressed secretary could look so provocative.
‘Do let me know if you need . . . something,’ she said as she stood up and turned to leave.
‘Thank you, I will,’ said Rafi. A few minutes later his thoughts were interrupted by SJ returning.
‘The PM is wrapping up his meeting and will see you as soon as his visitors leave. He’s given me strict instructions to look after you whilst you’re in Downing Street. My offer still stands: if you need someone to help you with anything, please ask,’ she said with a lovely smile. Her soft blue-green eyes made fleeting contact with his.
Rafi looked at her and wondered whether she’d just tried a discrete chat up line or was simply doing her job diligently.
The door to the adjoining
room opened. The PM was standing there ready to greet him – he looked deadbeat. ‘I’m sorry I had to call you in again.’
Rafi had to smile. Despite everything, the PM’s manners were still impeccable.
‘Please take a seat.’ The PM sat opposite him. ‘Rafi, I’d be grateful if you would do me a favour.’
‘Anything, Prime Minister.’
The PM looked at Rafi carefully. ‘The Chancellor and I have brought together a group of energy experts to advise us on where the UK stands post-Stratford. Their brief is to provide us with a coherent new energy strategy.’
He paused to collect his thoughts. ‘If I could explain the problem, we can then discuss how you might be able help. As your friends pointed out last night, the next couple of days will be won or lost on the perception of what we are going to do in the future – the reality will be another matter. We have to get across clear strategies and joined-up thinking. There is no scope for doubt and disagreement. Obviously, we have to deliver the strategies, but inevitably there will be some fine-tuning before they become reality. Firstly, we must get the big picture right and regain the public’s confidence. It is my Cabinet’s opinion that nuclear power has become redundant. I shall be telling the House of Commons on Monday that all our nuclear power stations will be decommissioned as quickly as is feasible and that this process will commence next week. We have to find long-term, environmentally-friendly alternatives and have a solution that does not make us dependent on fickle, or politically corrupt third party energy suppliers. The committee of leading energy experts I spoke of is meeting next door in Number 11. What I am asking of them is a tall order. They have until tomorrow evening to provide the Cabinet with a briefing paper. By the time I stand up in the House on Monday afternoon, I must have a clear view in my mind as to what is possible and practical, and what is not.’
‘How can I help?’
‘This energy committee comprises the movers and shakers in the energy industry together with representatives from the environmentalist and renewables arenas. They have been given the authority to co-opt whoever they deem necessary. The problem is they are not making any headway. I should be grateful if you would join their meeting and see what you can do to get them to work as a team.’
Rafi looked at the PM in a questioning manner.
He picked up on Rafi’s hesitation. ‘Are you wondering why I’m asking you and not someone else? Firstly, you’ve had longer than anyone else to think through the consequences of having no solutions post-Stratford. Secondly, you have proved to be good at thinking under pressure and coming up with workable, practical answers. Thirdly, I am advised that as a fund manager you’ve got a good knowledge of the energy sector and the players in it.’
Rafi nodded.
‘Excellent! Please stir them into action and get them to see the importance of working as a team to produce a coherent strategy – and soon!’
The study door opened and SJ reappeared. Rafi left with his guide. As he was leaving, the PM called across in a quiet voice, ‘Good luck!’
His courteous guide took him through the corridors to Number 11. ‘Here we are,’ she said. ‘Please, give me a ring if I can be of assistance. Just ask the switchboard for SJ and they will find me.’
Rafi looked at her and smiled. ‘Will do,’ he replied. He knocked and entered a sombre room. The room itself was bright, but it was the overpowering solemnity of its occupants that struck him.
‘Good morning,’ he said, ‘I understand you’re expecting me.’
The chairman, a man in his fifties, got up. Rafi had met him before, as his funds had invested in the chairman’s oil company.
‘Welcome. Let me do the introductions.’ The chairman then went on to introduce Rafi to each person sitting around the table.
‘Before we start, Rafi, I’d like to extend to you my thanks and gratitude. Your actions, in addition to saving many lives, have saved my company many hundreds of millions of pounds.’
The chairman sensed that several of those around the table were questioning why Mr Khan was there. ‘It may seem odd to have Mr Khan, a former terrorist suspect, join us. He is here on a strictly confidential basis. The terrorists still believe he is locked up in prison. Rafi has been instrumental in helping the authorities close in on the terrorists. But in case you are still wondering why he is here, let me assure you that he sits amongst us as an equal. As a senior equities fund manager, his knowledge of the financial markets and of the energy sector is substantial.’
He smiled as he looked at Rafi. ‘I bet Mr Khan could tell me what my company’s pre-tax profits were last year and give me its current and prospective earnings per share.’
Rafi looked at the chairman and nodded.
The chairman chuckled. ‘He should do, as his funds are big investors in the energy sector.’
This broke the ice and Rafi breathed a sigh of relief.
The chairman started to brief him. ‘We seem to have reached a bit of an impasse. The impact of Cruden Bay being out of action will have a knock-on affect on downstream products, but thankfully alternative arrangements can be made to cover the shortfall whilst the rebuilding and essential repairs are completed.’
He paused. ‘Our first problem rests with the cessation of nuclear power generation. This will produce a 20% shortfall in electricity generating capacity. Our second problem rests with providing environmentally-friendly solutions to make the UK energy self-sufficient. Put the two together and we need to find alternatives to about half the UK’s energy needs. Mr Khan, before we continue our deliberations, do you have any ideas or observations?’
Rafi hesitated – never before had he been asked to work with such a morose-looking group. He was used to interviewing the chairmen, managing and finance directors of major UK companies, but not to lead their discussions and get a group of hitherto fierce competitors working as a proper team. He looked around the room. The committee members were sitting in their suit jackets around a large oval, mahogany table. The formality was stifling. He sensed that the deadlock was a matter of vested interests and pride. Rafi leant across and asked the chairman, ‘Could we begin with a short break? I have a couple of proposals I’d like to discuss.’
The chairman stood up. ‘I suggest we have a fifteen-minute tea break whilst I bring Mr Khan fully up to speed.’
Rafi noticed one or two members of the committee did not seem pleased by this interruption.
After everybody had left the room he turned to Rafi and said, ‘So, Mr Khan, what do you suggest?’
‘Where have you got to in your discussions?’
‘Well, we’ve resolved the short-term position and are confident that the shortfalls following the attack at Cruden Bay can be met by existing spare capacity and additional short-term imports. But, how to plug the huge medium- to long-term energy gap is the big issue.’
‘Right; here is what I think.’ Rafi hesitated as he gathered together his ideas. ‘Firstly, I think that the atmosphere in here is too formal. I suggest that your committee members be encouraged to take off their jackets and ties.’
The chairman nodded.
‘Also, how’s about we get rid of the large table and replace it with four or five tables, and get people working in small teams? That way, they should generate more ideas and feelings of competition and hostility should be reduced. Thirdly, let’s give each table a flip chart or whiteboard to keep track of what’s being discussed.’
Rafi thought for a short while, then went on to illustrate his other suggestions. ‘I believe your committee will need more resources. How about all those whose companies have in-house research teams arrange for their key staff and researchers to be on call in their offices asap in order to enable them to access data as and when required? Also, we should put like-minded people to work together in small teams, ask them to come up with their ideal solution to the problem and identify any issues associated with their solution. Finally, we should see whether we have the beginnings of a strategy and start the de
bate in earnest!’
Rafi waited for the rebuff but it didn’t come. The chairman looked at Rafi. ‘I’d heard that you were a bright and incisive individual, but I had no idea you were this good!’ He turned to the civil servant who was standing next to him. ‘Please arrange all Mr Khan has proposed.’ He turned to Rafi and said, ‘I’ll brief the committee on what you’ve suggested whilst they finish their coffee. Perhaps, while I’m doing the rounds, you could take the attendance list and the name cards, and group people according to how you’d like them to sit.’
Rafi nodded.
He stacked the name cards in front of him. On the first table he planned to put the two other oil and gas company directors and the head of a large gas-fired power station. On the second, he placed the two owner–managers of UK coal pits, the two former coal union bosses, the boss of a coal-fired power station and the tax specialist. On the third, he grouped the three environmentalists and the two renewable energy experts, whereas on the fourth there would be the committee chairman, the director of a nuclear power company and himself. On the fifth, he would bring on board some senior civil servants to act as expert minute takers, who could come up with their own views on the political practicalities of the proposals.
Rafi spoke to one of the staff tidying the room and asked him to find the chairman. He arrived a few moments later. Rafi put forward the idea of adding three senior civil servants to the existing group.
‘Good call,’ said the chairman. He spoke quietly to the civil servant who had been hovering in the background and left the room with him.
The tables were rearranged. Rafi walked around them, distributed the name cards and straightened the chairs. The room was transformed: the dark mahogany table had gone and been replaced by five circular tables with crisp, white tablecloths.
The chairman ushered his dismal flock back in, some of whom now looked mildly intrigued. He introduced the first newcomer – a permanent secretary from the Treasury – and explained that they would shortly be joined by a colleague from the Energy Ministry and a member of the PM’s staff.
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