Philip Collins (journalist)

Philip James Collins (born 16 May 1967) is a British journalist, academic, banker and speechwriter.

Collins spent several years as an equity strategist in investment banking. He was a political adviser to Frank Field and also worked for the Institute of Education at the University of London, and for the BBC and London Weekend Television.

He was director of the Social Market Foundation before becoming chief speech writer to Tony Blair, and was responsible for writing Blair's last speech as Leader of the Labour Party. In 2007 his was among many names put forward as possible Labour candidates in the constituency of Bolton South East, after the sitting Labour MP Brian Iddon announced he would retire at the 2010 election. Collins did not stand for this or any other seat.

At present Collins is a leader writer and columnist for The Times and chairman of the centre-left thinktank, Demos. He is a Visiting Fellow at the London School of Economics and an associate editor of Prospect magazine. "The Liberal Republic" (2009) is a pamphlet Collins wrote with his former colleague, Richard Reeves (who later became Nick Clegg's Director of Strategy).

Collins is married to newsreader Geeta Guru-Murthy; the couple have two children and live in London.