Stephen Bush
Stephen Bush | |
|---|---|
| Born | United Kingdom |
| Occupation(s) | Journalist, columnist, associate editor |
| Years active | 2010s–present |
| Known for | Columnist and associate editor at the Financial Times; political commentary |
Stephen Kupakwesu Bush is a journalist based in the United Kingdom. As of April 2025, he holds the positions of columnist and associate editor at the Financial Times. His writing has also appeared in publications such as The Guardian, The Daily Telegraph, The i Paper, and New Statesman.
Early life and education
Bush has a mixed-race background with Jewish ancestry. He attended Morpeth School, a state comprehensive located in Bethnal Green, East London. He pursued history at the University of Oxford, enrolling at Balliol College, Oxford. During his time at university, he was actively involved with the Oxford University Labour Club and volunteered on Andy Burnham’s 2010 campaign for Labour Party leadership. He matriculated in 2008 and completed his degree in 2011.
Career
Before joining The Daily Telegraph, Bush contributed to the magazine Progress. At the Telegraph, he served as editorial assistant to Benedict Brogan on the Morning Briefing email. In February 2015, he transitioned to the New Statesman. That same year, he became the first political analyst to foresee Jeremy Corbyn's victory as Labour leader after reviewing leaked internal polling data.
Bush has provided political commentary on the BBC's Newsnight and was considered an unconventional candidate to replace Nick Robinson as BBC political editor in 2015; however, Laura Kuenssberg was ultimately appointed. His articles have been featured in The Guardian, The Daily Telegraph, The i Paper, and New Statesman. Between 2016 and 2017, he penned a weekly cooking column titled "The Delia Project" for The Guardian's Lifestyle section, chronicling his journey to relearn culinary skills through Delia Smith's cookbook.
In December 2018, Bush was named political editor of the New Statesman and contributed a biweekly column to the i. He departed in February 2022 to assume his current role as columnist and associate editor at the Financial Times, where he also authors a morning political briefing email.
On 8 June 2020, Bush was appointed chair of the Board of Deputies of British Jews' Commission on Racial Inclusivity within the Jewish community. He advocated for a "proactive attitude to inclusion" aimed at welcoming "people of all backgrounds who have felt marginalised, left out or turned off from Jewish life".
Awards and honours
Bush was runner-up for Young Journalist of the Year at the British Press Awards in 2015. In 2017, he earned the Journalist of the Year award from the Political Studies Association.
Personal life
He is a fan of Arsenal football club.