LORD Mandelson has been named politician of the year in the annual awards sponsored by Threadneedle and The Spectator Magazine.It's one better than last year's triumph when was awarded the Best Newcomer prize.

Graham Dines

LORD Mandelson has been named politician of the year in the annual awards sponsored by Threadneedle and The Spectator Magazine.

It's one better than last year's triumph when was awarded the Best Newcomer prize.

A top honour went to Harwich's Conservative MP Douglas Carswell for his successful campaign to oust Michael Martin from the Speaker's chair.

Judges said that the peer “consolidated his already powerful position”' with his handling of economic and political crises.

Another Government minister, Labour's deputy leader Harriet Harman, was named Parliamentarian of the Year. She was praised not only for taking on and, in the judges' view, beating William Hague while standing in at Prime Minister's question time but for steering equality laws through the House.

The newcomer award went to Tory former chancellor Ken Clarke, brought back to the shadow cabinet by David Cameron in January, to take on Lord Mandelson.

Attacking the Prime Minister earned two politicians awards.

Tory MEP Daniel Hannan's verbal assault on Gordon Brown in the European Parliament, which became a global YouTube hit, was chosen as Speech of the Year while James Purnell's dramatic call as he quit the Cabinet for the Prime Minister to stand aside earned him the Resignation of the Year title.

Joanna Lumley and the Gurkhas also won a campaigner of the year award for securing settlement rights for the Nepalese ex-troops.