Michael Howard was Leader of the Conservative Party in the early 2000s. Prior to his leadership, he earned the trust of Conservative leaders Margaret Thatcher and John Major, holding prestigious cabinet positions in their governments including Secretary of State for Employment, Secretary of State for the Environment and Home Secretary.
Michael was born in South Wales, the son of Hilda Kurshion and Bernard Hecht, a Romanian-born shopkeeper of Jewish descent who came to Britain in 1939. When he was six, the family name Hecht was anglicised to Howard. He studied at Peterhouse, Cambridge, was called to the Bar in 1964, and became a Queen’s Counsel in 1982. Michael is now Lord Howard of Lympne.