How to Write a Parliamentary Speech is a practical guide to effective speechwriting. In this guidebook, Paul Richards deploys his thirty years' experience writing parliamentary speeches to offer a complete breakdown of the form. From the Maiden Speech to the resignation farewell, Richards explains, in clear terms, the mechanics beneath every speech an MP will ever have to make.
But this is more than just a manual; it is a book full of affection for the language and processes of Parliament. If you want to understand the institution at the heart of the country, you need look no further than the way people within it speak. Many handbooks have been written on speechwriting, but this is the first in 800 years on parliamentary speechwriting.
Paul Richards is a speechwriter, author, broadcaster and trainer. His first paid political job was in Parliament in 1991 as a policy adviser to a member of the shadow Cabinet, and he has worked in and around Parliament ever since. Paul was a special adviser to the previous Labour government, in three departments, under two Prime Ministers.
Paul has been a parliamentary candidate at the 1997, 2001 and 2024 general elections and candidate for Police and Crime Commissioner in Sussex in 2021 and 2024. He serves on the executive of the Fabian Society and has written multiple Fabian pamphlets and articles. His books include a collection of Tony Blair's speeches and articles, entitled Tony Blair in His Own Words, and a guide to using the media, titled How to Be a Spin Doctor.
Paul Richards holds an MA in Victorian Studies (with distinction) from Birkbeck, University of London. He is a member of the UK Speechwriters' Guild, the National Union of Journalists (NUJ), the entertainment union Bectu, the Reform Club and Ronnie Scott's.
He lives in Eastbourne with his family, in Sussex by the sea.
