William Hague: “Transcendental Meditation makes me calmer and sleep better”

The shadow Foreign Secretary, William Hague, has become the second leading British politician to speak about the benefits of Transcendental Meditation for life in the fast lane.

In an interview with The Times (17/4/2010), which revealed him as a highly effective, energetic and disciplined individual, Hague, 47, spoke about how he has meditated daily for 30 years using Transcendental Meditation, which he learnt in Sheffield as a teenager. His admission echoed that of LibDem leader Nick Clegg in another recent Times article.

Hague told journalist Ann Treneman – who attributed his highly organised mind to meditation – that he found time in his 6am to 9pm working day to practise Transcendental Meditation because it makes him calmer, have fewer headaches and sleep better.

The former Tory leader, best-selling author and self-made millionaire dismissed that there is anything mystical about it, emphasising that he did it for purely practical reasons.

Nick Clegg told The Times (17/10/2010) that he had practised TM regularly for five years in his 20s as it was a practical tool which was "extremely useful for dealing with the ordinary stresses of life". In a subsequent Telegraph interview, asked whether Clegg still meditates to cope with the pressures of running for Prime Minister, his spokeswoman said that his family commitments – he has three sons – did not allow him the time now.