One odd thing about my sister's public career is the way that strangers feel able to speculate groundlessly about our family. Wikipedia seems to think that we grew up in a castle with a butler. It is true, however, that we did have a privileged upbringing. As white middle-class children we were privileged as white middle-class children are in our unequal society. An awareness of such inequalities and a desire to do something about them led to my sister's involvement in the Labour party. But we were also very privileged in one particular respect: we had liberal and imaginative parents who encouraged and supported us in what we did. And they still do.
So, of course, I've drawn silly pictures of them for birthday cards and Christmas presents. These are insufficient reflections of the love and gratitude that both my sister and I feel towards two wonderful people.
Proof that our father is a Renaissance man...
