Daniel Hannan

Daniel Hannan
Daniel Hannan
Born	Daniel John Hannan; September 1, 1971 (age 55); Lima, Peru
Occupation(s)	Author, journalist, politician
Years active	1990s–present
Known for	Member of the European Parliament (1999–2020), founding president of the Initiative for Free Trade, adviser to the Board of Trade, member of the House of Lords

Daniel John Hannan, Baron Hannan of Kingsclere (born 1 September 1971) is a British author, journalist, and political figure. Affiliated with the Conservative Party, he represented South East England as a Member of the European Parliament (MEP) from 1999 until 2020. In 2021, he was appointed to the House of Lords, where he aligns with the Conservative whip. Additionally, he became an adviser to the Board of Trade in 2020. Hannan is also the founding president of the Initiative for Free Trade.

From 2009 to 2018, Hannan held the position of first secretary-general for the Alliance of Conservatives and Reformists in Europe (ACRE). He co-established Vote Leave, a key campaign group advocating for the UK's departure from the EU during the 2016 referendum, serving on its board throughout and maintaining a high-profile public presence. He concluded his tenure in the European Parliament following Brexit in 2020.

His writing has appeared in The Sunday Telegraph, International Business Times, ConservativeHome, and Washington Examiner. He has also contributed articles to Daily Mail, The Guardian, The Daily Telegraph, The Sun, The Spectator, and The Wall Street Journal. Hannan serves as editor-in-chief of The Conservative, a quarterly publication dedicated to centre-right political philosophy. Moreover, he has authored multiple books.

Early life

Born on 1 September 1971 in Lima, Peru, Hannan’s mother was Scottish and worked at the British Embassy there. His father, with roots in Ulster as an Irish Catholic, received his education in the UK and served with the North Irish Horse regiment of the British Army in Italy during the Second World War. Raised on his family’s farm near Lima, Hannan attended Winchester House School and later Marlborough College in England.

He pursued studies in modern history at Oriel College, Oxford, where he engaged actively in university politics, including serving as President of the Oxford University Conservative Association in 1992. While still an undergraduate, he founded the Oxford Campaign for an Independent Britain in 1990, opposing deeper integration within the EU—a viewpoint that shaped his future political path.

On 12 September 1992, Hannan organized a demonstration at an EU finance ministers’ summit held in Bath against UK participation in the European Exchange Rate Mechanism. Shortly after, on Black Wednesday, three days later, the pound was withdrawn from this mechanism. Hannan later connected this outcome to his protest in an article published by The Daily Telegraph.

Early political career

Following his graduation in 1993, Hannan became inaugural director of the European Research Group, a body representing Conservative MPs with Eurosceptic views chaired by Michael Spicer. Between 1994 and 1995, he acted as Chairman of the National Association of Conservative Graduates. In 1996, he joined The Daily Telegraph as a leader-writer under editor Charles Moore, producing editorials until 2004 and continuing to contribute columns and blogs afterward. Hannan also wrote for The Spectator and various international outlets. In 1997, he provided advice and drafted speeches for then Shadow Foreign Secretary Michael Howard.

During the Conservative Party’s 2001 general election campaign while serving as an MEP, Hannan prepared speeches for party leader William Hague. He relinquished his roles at both the European Research Group and Conservative Graduates by 1999.

Member of the European Parliament

Hannan secured a seat in the European Parliament during the 1999 elections. His initial move was to publish a provocative piece in The Daily Telegraph that revealed the substantial expenses and allowances claimed by MEPs.

In 2000, he initiated a public campaign backing the "No" side in Denmark's vote on adopting the euro. Although The Guardian initially alleged that he coordinated this campaign from his parliamentary office, it was later verified that he operated from his personal residence. Eventually, Denmark rejected the euro.

Hannan achieved re-election as the leading Conservative candidate for South East England in 2004, 2009, and 2014, each time securing his spot through postal ballots conducted among party members.

By December 2018, Hannan’s attendance record placed him at 738th out of 751 MEPs in terms of participation in roll call votes within the European Parliament.

Campaign against the Lisbon Treaty

A significant and enduring aspect of Hannan’s tenure as an MEP was his persistent advocacy for a referendum on both the European Constitution and subsequently the Lisbon Treaty. He consistently concluded his speeches with the Latin phrase "Pactio Olisipiensis censenda est", invoking Cato the Elder's well-known expression.

When no referendum materialized, Hannan employed parliamentary rules to keep attention on his cause. At that time, MEPs were permitted up to 60 seconds to speak following votes during "Explanations of Vote." In 2008, he arranged for a coalition of Eurosceptic MEPs from various countries to speak after every vote, always urging a referendum on Lisbon.

This approach caused delays, leading President of the European Parliament, Hans-Gert Pöttering, to claim discretionary authority to prohibit such interventions if they seriously disrupted proceedings. After Hannan exceeded his allotted speaking time, he was cut off and had his microphone turned off by Luigi Cocilovo, one of the Parliament’s Vice-Presidents.

Hannan compared this treatment to actions taken in 1930s Germany, condemning the majority’s disregard for parliamentary protocols and likening it to the Ermächtigungsgesetz. Following this, EPP leader Joseph Daul initiated efforts to expel him. Citing fundamental disagreements over European integration, Hannan departed from the group on 20 February 2008 and served as an independent member until joining the ECR after the 2009 elections.

Having opposed membership in the EPP prior to his election, Hannan reunited with colleagues in the ECR Group in 2009 and was appointed as the first Secretary-General of its associated Euro-party, AECR, which was later renamed ACRE.

During his tenure as Secretary-General, ACRE faced scrutiny regarding its use of EU funds for events considered marginally related to EU matters. On 10 December 2018, leaders within the European Parliament demanded that ACRE reimburse €535,609 (£484,367) spent on questionable activities. These included €250,000 allocated for a three-day luxury event at a beach resort in Miami and €90,000 for a trade summit held at an upscale hotel near Lake Victoria in Kampala. Parliamentary authorities suggested that Hannan might have redirected EU funding intended for ACRE toward other initiatives such as his free-trade think tank, the Initiative for Free Trade (IFT), and Conservatives International.

"The "Devalued Prime Minister" Address

On 24 March 2009, following Gordon Brown's speech to the European Parliament prior to the 2009 G20 London summit, Daniel Hannan delivered a pointed three-minute critique of Brown's handling of the 2008 financial crisis. He ended by dubbing Brown "the devalued Prime Minister of a devalued government," a phrase reminiscent of a 1992 comment by then-Labour leader John Smith aimed at Prime Minister John Major.

This address rapidly gained traction on YouTube, surpassing three million views and becoming, within two years, the platform’s most-viewed video featuring a UK politician. This viral success significantly boosted Hannan's international recognition, particularly across American audiences.

In the wake of this exposure, Hannan frequently appeared on US television channels such as Fox News, featuring on shows hosted by Sean Hannity, Glenn Beck, and Neil Cavuto. During discussions around the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, he consistently criticized the British National Health Service, characterizing it as granting "life and death decisions to a state bureaucracy."

Hannan expressed surprise at how widely his speech resonated, noting that he had voiced similar criticisms previously. He welcomed the outcome, emphasizing how digital platforms empower voices beyond traditional media gatekeepers—a development he regarded as beneficial for libertarian viewpoints.

Advocacy for EU Departure

As one of the founders of the Vote Leave campaign, Hannan was instrumental in the 2016 EU membership referendum. The The Guardian referred to him as "the man who brought you Brexit," while the Financial Times attributed the origins of the Brexit movement to his Oxford-based Campaign for an Independent Britain.

Together with Douglas Carswell, Hannan maintained Tory Eurosceptic momentum by advocating a constructive, internationalist rationale for Brexit, contrasting with Nigel Farage’s more isolationist stance. In 1992, he co-founded the European Research Group alongside Tory dissenters opposing the Maastricht Treaty, taking on its secretary role.

The group’s deliberately neutral name belied its opposition to both the single currency and the authority of the ECJ. Hannan also contributed to forming the Congress for Democracy, which united diverse Eurosceptic elements including trade unionists and supporters from UKIP.

On social media, Hannan cautioned against alarming EU nationals regarding their status after Brexit, despite government mandates requiring them to seek "settled status" to remain in the UK.

In 2015, he asserted that serious talks about exiting the single market had not yet commenced. However, seven years later in a Daily Telegraph opinion piece, he conceded that staying within the single market would have circumvented numerous difficulties—an acknowledgment critics perceived as a significant concession given his persistent pro-Brexit stance.

Hannan clarified that his consistent position favored leaving the EU but rejoining the European Free Trade Association to retain certain single market advantages. He emphasized that achieving broad agreement on exit terms was crucial. He argued that with a prime minister fully committed to Leave succeeding Cameron, Brexit could have been realized earlier and more effectively. Conversely, Theresa May’s focus on preserving freedom of movement impeded progress, empowered extreme factions, and curtailed chances to reform residual EU regulations.

By 2016, Hannan envisioned a post-Brexit Britain thriving by 2025 in sectors such as biotechnology, legal services, education, audiovisual media, financial services, and software—industries reinvigorated and globally competitive—while portraying the EU as stagnant.

Detractors like Zoe Williams in The Guardian and Jonn Elledge in New Statesman criticized Hannan’s timing and political caution, arguing he only forcefully articulated these views when politically secure and tended to attribute Brexit’s difficulties to Remainers.

The Conservative

In September 2016, Hannan introduced The Conservative, a quarterly publication accessible both in print and online. He outlined its guiding principles as follows:

After the European Parliament

Between September 2020 and August 2024, Hannan held the position of advisor to the British Board of Trade. In December 2020, Prime Minister Boris Johnson put forward his name for a life peerage. Subsequently, on 25 January 2021, he was ennobled as Baron Hannan of Kingsclere, linked to Kingsclere in Hampshire.

Localism

Hannan champions localism, advocating for financial independence for municipal authorities. He proposes substituting VAT with a localized sales tax determined by individual councils.

Together with 27 Conservative MPs elected in 2005, he co-wrote Direct Democracy: An Agenda for a New Model Party, which called for significant decentralization, direct elections for decision-makers, and the replacement of the NHS with private insurance schemes. These concepts were further developed across six pamphlets entitled The Localist Papers, which were published serially in The Daily Telegraph during 2007.

Nationalism

Hannan supports national sovereignty and challenges the belief that "nationalism causes war". He has been labeled both a "British nationalist" and a "British Gaullist". During a debate preceding the EU Referendum, he argued that nationhood carries the responsibility to safeguard freedoms passed down from ancestors. He advocates for close ties among "English-speaking nations" sharing "Anglosphere characteristics".

When Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn proposed returning the Elgin Marbles to Athens, Hannan criticized him for exhibiting "national masochism", suggesting Corbyn tends to prioritize other nations over Britain. Hannan also reproached former Downing Street press secretary Alastair Campbell for "cheering for the other side" after Campbell aligned with Irish Taoiseach Leo Varadkar's views, while Campbell accused Hannan of dominating patriotic discourse.

In an article for Prospect Magazine, journalist Philip Collins described Hannan’s approach as warmly traditional, implying his nationalism is more emblematic than confrontational.

Electoral reform

Hannan supports mechanisms such as ballot initiatives, recall elections, fixed-term parliaments, local and national referendums, open primaries, and the elimination of party lists. He advocates replacing the UK's First Past The Post electoral system with Single Transferable Vote.

Economic policy

In March 2011, Hannan criticized anti-austerity demonstrators for overlooking the long-term fiscal burden imposed on future generations. As a proponent of the 2016 Brexit 'leave' campaign, he frequently writes about the UK's international trade opportunities after departing from the EU. In September 2017, he established the London-based Institute for Free Trade (IFT), a free-market think tank designed to address gaps in UK trade expertise post-Brexit. The IFT’s advisory board features notable Brexit supporters including former Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott and ex-Home Secretary Michael Howard. Although the organization briefly altered its name due to legal constraints, it eventually reverted to its original title.

Hannan advocates for a globally open trading UK after Brexit and endorses joining the Trans-Pacific Partnership, despite trade specialists questioning its feasibility given existing EU single market arrangements.

Additionally, he serves on the International Board of Students for Liberty, an international nonprofit dedicated to promoting classical liberalism and free-market economics.

Foreign policy

Hannan conveys profound respect for the United States and identifies as an Atlanticist, endorsing the US alongside other Anglosphere countries. He champions free trade and criticizes the European Union for its restrictive trade policies with nations such as China, India, and Ethiopia.

He opposed the 2003 invasion of Iraq initiated under Tony Blair and also rejected British military involvement in Libya. Hannan has advocated for redirecting British foreign policy emphasis away from the EU towards stronger ties with the United States and the Commonwealth.

During the 2008 US presidential race, he supported Democrat Barack Obama, cautioning that a McCain administration risked "imperial overstretch" and calling for American troop withdrawal from Iraq. Nevertheless, he later expressed regret over this endorsement, labeling it his "single most unpopular post," and in 2012 backed Mitt Romney, warning that Obama's policies reflected troubling trends he had observed within the European Parliament.

In the 2016 US election, Hannan criticized both leading candidates as unsuitable and recommended casting a vote for Libertarian candidate Gary Johnson.

Social policy

Hannan opposes what he terms "victimless crimes" and advocates for drug decriminalisation, beginning with cannabis and potentially extending to heroin if initial reforms prove successful.

Health care

Hannan has voiced criticism of England's NHS, highlighting issues such as low survival rates for cancer and stroke patients, risks of hospital-acquired infections, and ongoing waiting list problems. When discussing the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act on American television, he remarked that he "wouldn't wish [the NHS] on anyone." In response, David Cameron distanced himself from these comments, reaffirming the NHS as a key priority.

Writing in The Telegraph, Hannan outlined his preference for a Singapore-style personal health-care account system over nationalised healthcare, citing international statistics on survival outcomes and waiting times. He stressed that as a backbench MP, he often expresses independent views that do not necessarily reflect those of party leaders like Cameron.

In 2015, contributing to The Washington Examiner, Hannan argued that public support for the NHS was partly due to "passive conscription" by left-wing groups opposing his critiques. He warned American readers that defeating Obamacare was essential to prevent a comparable healthcare scenario in the United States.

Enoch Powell

In August 2009, Hannan drew criticism after commending Conservative figure Enoch Powell as "someone who understood the importance of national democracy, independence, free markets, and small government."

Nonetheless, Hannan disagreed with Powell’s stance on immigration, stating, "I think Enoch Powell was wrong on immigration... Being an immigrant myself, I appreciate Britain's understated cosmopolitanism."

In an article for The Telegraph, Hannan praised Powell’s habit of challenging prevailing orthodoxies and addressing audiences as intelligent adults. He compared Powell to Rowan Williams, noting that both encountered controversy yet maintained their integrity by refusing to oversimplify their perspectives.

Chequers proposal

The UK Government’s approach to its future relationship with the EU, outlined at Chequers, was released as a White Paper on 12 July 2018 and subsequently discussed in the House of Commons. In July 2018, Hannan shared his perspective on the Chequers Proposal in his Telegraph column. Diverging from both the Government’s stance and that of the ERG, he encouraged MPs to back the proposal despite its imperfections, provided it was not further diluted. He contended that "an imperfect departure is preferable to either a hostile breakdown or a more subservient relationship."

Hannan interpreted the Government’s position as essentially aiming for an arrangement akin to those the EU maintains with Moldova and Albania—transitional steps towards eventual full membership. He rationalized accepting EU regulations on goods rather than services by pointing out that half of UK goods exports are destined for the EU, compared to 37% for services. Given that most goods standards are internationally established, adhering to EU standards on goods was viewed as a practical compromise.

UKIP

In early 2012, Hannan proposed in the Daily Telegraph that the Conservative Party consider forming a partnership with the UK Independence Party (UKIP), suggesting this would be more advantageous than an alliance with the Liberal Democrats. He also indicated that a Conservative–UKIP coalition might materialize sooner than anticipated, reflecting evolving political trends and growing Eurosceptic influence.

Good Friday Agreement

Hannan has expressed in The Daily Telegraph that although the Good Friday Agreement initially received widespread acclaim, its shortcomings have become increasingly evident over time. Nevertheless, his criticism has been challenged for containing factual errors and has been labeled reckless by those concerned about potential negative effects on Northern Ireland’s peace process.

Disputed statement about Fianna Fáil

In January 2019, Hannan wrote in The Daily Telegraph that Irish political party Fianna Fáil "won every Irish election" between 1932 and 2008. While Fianna Fáil did secure the highest vote share in all those elections, it failed to form government in six instances.

This assertion led to online ridicule, with some Twitter users adopting the hashtag "#HannanIrishHistory" to share inaccurate facts about Irish history. Hannan, who is partly Ulster Catholic himself, responded by highlighting his academic background, noting he achieved a Double First in Modern History from Oxford and emphasizing that historians often have varying interpretations of historical events.

COVID-19 pandemic

Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, Hannan argued that the virus's threat to the general public was overestimated. He criticized the UK government's restrictions on public movement. Alongside other notable 'lockdown sceptics' such as Lord Sumption and Toby Young, he cautioned that comprehensive lockdowns would severely restrict civil liberties and harm economic activity. Hannan first voiced these opinions in February 2020 on ConservativeHome and maintained this position throughout the lockdown period.

Personal life

Hannan is fluent in English, French, and Spanish.

He is an advocate for bullfighting and has authored pieces endorsing the tradition in outlets such as the Telegraph. In 2004, he participated in a training program at a bullfighting school located in California, engaging in a tienta to evaluate the breeding qualities of fighting bulls. Additionally, he has contributed to La Divisa, an English-language bullfighting publication produced by the UK-based Club Taurino of London. Reports from April 2022 revealed that he had written on bullfighting for The Critic magazine under the alias Christopher North.

Awards and distinctions

In 2009, Hannan was awarded the Bastiat Prize for Online Journalism in recognition of his blog with the Telegraph, as well as the Speech of the Year award at the 2009 Spectator Awards for his address concerning Gordon Brown delivered in the European Parliament.

He received the Columbia Award from the Washington Policy Centre in 2012 and was honored with the Paolucci Book Award from the Intercollegiate Studies Institute in 2014. Hannan was also shortlisted for the Orwell Prize in blogging in 2011 and secured the Political Books Awards polemic of the year in 2014 for his work How We Invented Freedom and Why It Matters.

In 2017, he was presented with the Whittaker Chambers Award by the National Review Institute, with John O'Sullivan conferring the honor. However, this award met resistance from Whittaker Chambers' descendants, who argued that Chambers would have favored a robust European Union as a counterweight to "Russia's new Stalin," Vladimir Putin.

Books

Hannan, Daniel. Time for a fresh start in Europe. London: Bow Publications, 1993.
Atkinson, Rodney; McWhirter, Norris; Hannan, Daniel. Treason at Maastricht: The Destruction of the British Constitution. Compuprint, Newcastle upon Tyne, 1994.
Towards 1996: Britain in a Multi-Speed Europe. Institute for European Defence & Strategic Studies, London, 1994.
A Guide to the Amsterdam Treaty. European Research Group, London, 1997.
The Euro: Bad for Business. European Research Group, London, 1998.
What if Britain Votes No?, 2002.
The Case for EFTA. Bruges Group, London, 2004.
Carswell, Douglas. Direct Democracy: An Agenda for a New Model Party. direct-democracy.Companyuk, 2005.
Carswell, Douglas; Hannan, Dan. The Plan: Twelve Months to Renew Britain. Lulu.com, 2008.
The New Road to Serfdom: A Letter of Warning to America. HarperCollins, London, 2010.
Why America Must Not Follow Europe. Encounter Books, New York, 2011.
A Doomed Marriage: Britain and Europe. Notting Hill Editions, London, 2012.
How We Invented Freedom & Why It Matters. Head of Zeus, London, 2013. (US edition titled Inventing Freedom: How the English-Speaking Peoples Made the Modern World, HarperCollins, New York)
Why Vote Leave. Head of Zeus, London, 2016.
What Next: How to Get the Best from Brexit. Head of Zeus, London, 2016.

External links