Peter Norman Fowler, Baron Fowler, PC (born 2 February 1938) is a British politician who served as a member of both Margaret Thatcher and John Major's ministries during the 1980s and 1990s.[1] He held the office of Lord Speaker from 1 September 2016 to 30 April 2021.
The Lord Fowler | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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 Official portrait, 2018 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Lord Speaker of the House of Lords | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| In office 1 September 2016 – 30 April 2021 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Monarch | Elizabeth II | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Deputy | The Lord McFall of Alcluith | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Preceded by | The Baroness D'Souza | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Succeeded by | The Lord McFall of Alcluith | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Chairman of the Conservative Party | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| In office 11 May 1992 – 15 July 1994 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Leader | John Major | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Preceded by | Chris Patten | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Succeeded by | Jeremy Hanley | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Secretary of State for Employment | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| In office 13 June 1987 – 3 January 1990 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Prime Minister | Margaret Thatcher | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Preceded by | The Lord Young of Graffham | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Succeeded by | Michael Howard | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Secretary of State for Social Services | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| In office 14 September 1981 – 13 June 1987 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Prime Minister | Margaret Thatcher | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Preceded by | Patrick Jenkin | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Succeeded by | John Moore | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Secretary of State for Transport[lower-alpha 1] | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| In office 4 May 1979 – 14 September 1981 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Prime Minister | Margaret Thatcher | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Preceded by | Bill Rodgers | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Succeeded by | David Howell | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Personal details | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Born | Peter Norman Fowler 2 February 1938 Chelmsford, Essex, England | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Political party | Crossbench | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Other political affiliations | Conservative (until 2016) Speaker (2016–2021) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Spouse |
Fiona Poole (m. 1979) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Children | 2 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Alma mater | Trinity Hall, Cambridge | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
After serving as Shadow Minister of Transport, Fowler was appointed Minister of Transport in 1979, being responsible for making seat belts compulsory. Later, as Secretary of State for Social Services, he drew public attention to the dangers of AIDS. He resigned from the cabinet as Employment Secretary, and was knighted in 1990.
Fowler was Chairman of the Conservative Party from 1992 to 1994, Shadow Secretary of State for Environment, Transport and the Regions from 1997 to 1998, and Shadow Home Secretary from 1998 to 1999. In 2001, he was created a Conservative life peer. He renounced party political allegiance upon taking office as Lord Speaker. On 25 February 2021, he announced that in April he would be stepping down as Lord Speaker to focus on campaigning work, particularly in relation to AIDS.[2]
Early life
Fowler was born on 2 February 1938 to Norman Frederick Fowler and Katherine (née Baker). He is an only child. He was educated at King Edward VI Grammar School in Chelmsford, Essex.[3] After school, he did National Service as a second lieutenant in the Essex Regiment. He then studied at Trinity Hall, Cambridge (BA Economics & Law 1961). He was Chairman of the Cambridge University Conservative Association in Michaelmas 1960, in which term he entertained both the Prime Minister Harold Macmillan and Home Secretary Rab Butler. Following university, became a journalist, and worked at The Times.[4]
Member of Parliament
Fowler, who had aspired to become an MP since childhood, was elected for Nottingham South in 1970; after the seat was abolished, he switched to Sutton Coldfield at the February 1974 election.[4]
In opposition
During the mid-1970s, Mr. Fowler was Shadow Minister of Transport. In April 1976, he was photographed outside the Palace of Westminster having just taken delivery of his third four-cylinder MG MGB GT – he had reportedly rejected the idea of buying a V8 version on account of the cost.[5]
In government
Upon Margaret Thatcher becoming Prime Minister in 1979, she did not immediately appoint Fowler to her Cabinet, explaining: "we were short of one place. As a result, Norman Fowler, as Minister of State at Transport, was not able to be an official member of the Cabinet, although he attended all our meetings."[6]
As Secretary of State for Transport, Fowler drove through Lord Nugent's 1981 bill to make seat belts compulsory, a law that came into force in 1983.[7][8]
As Secretary of State for Social Services in 1986, Fowler implemented the first official drive to educate the British public to the dangers of AIDS.[4] Under his tenure, awareness about how the disease was spread was transmitted through posters, newspaper advertisements, and television campaigns.[4] The main campaign "Don't Die of Ignorance" included mailing a leaflet to 23 million homes. By 1987 a Gallup Poll showed that 98% of the public was aware of how HIV was transmitted, and the vast majority supported Fowler's campaign.[4] By 1990 infection rates in the UK were below those of peer nations, including France and the US.[9]
Some Conservatives, including Thatcher herself, objected to the frank content of these messages, which contained material about needle usage and intravenous drugs, as well as discussions about the risks of unprotected sex.[4] During this time, Thatcher told Fowler that she felt he had become known as the "minister for Aids", and she disapproved of this.[4] The following year, she moved him to the role of Secretary of State for Employment.[10]
Backbenches, retirement and Shadow Cabinet
Fowler later resigned from the Cabinet in January 1990. He later claimed that he was the first politician to cite a desire to spend more time with family as the reason for leaving office.[11] The phrase has been reused by many others as a reason for a resignation, and is often treated as insincere or euphemistic, though Fowler has said he was being literal, as he worried he was growing distant from his young children.[12]
Following his resignation from the frontbench, Fowler was knighted in 1990.[13]
Fowler then returned twice to front-line politics, first as Chairman of the Conservative Party (as a backbencher in Parliament) from 1992 to 1994, during which time he oversaw the parliamentary boundary changes of the early 1990s;[12] then on the Conservative front bench as Shadow Secretary of State for Environment, Transport and the Regions (1997–98) and finally as Shadow Home Secretary (1998–99).
In 2001, Fowler stepped down as a Member of Parliament.
House of Lords
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After standing down from the House of Commons, he entered the House of Lords, sitting on the Conservative benches as Baron Fowler, of Sutton Coldfield, in the County of West Midlands.[14] He had first been offered a peerage in 1989.[15]
In 2003, Lord Fowler proposed that the European Union should appoint a high-level coordinator with ambassadorial rank to deal with the AIDS epidemic.[16]
In 2006, Fowler chaired a House of Lords select committee which criticised the use of the television licence fee, which is used to fund the BBC.
His book A Political Suicide (Politico's Publishing ISBN 978-1-84275-227-2) was published in 2008, and was shortlisted for the Channel 4 Political Book of the Year Award.
In May 2013, Fowler gave his support to legislation aiming to extend marriage rights to same-sex couples, stating: "Parliament should value people equally in the law, and that enabling same-sex couples to marry removes the current inequity."[17]
He was elected as Lord Speaker in 2016.[18] He is the third person and first man to hold the office since it was established by the Constitutional Reform Act 2005. Fowler has stated that he favours reducing the House of Lords to 600 members.[19]
On 19 March 2020, during the COVID-19 pandemic he announced that he would be withdrawing from Westminster and remote working, with deputy speakers taking over his role in the House of Lords, but he returned in July to continue his role.[20]
On 25 February 2021, Fowler announced that he would be stepping down ahead of the introduction of a series of structural and organisational changes and announced that it would be best if those changes were "seen through by the team who will be implementing them".[21] He also stated his desire to stand down in order to "speak his mind" as an independent member of the House of Lords on issues he has campaigned for, in particular LGBT rights in the United Kingdom and HIV and AIDS.[22] In March 2021, Fowler backed calls for the UK's first ever national AIDS memorial, with the aim of fighting stigma and discrimination against those with HIV and AIDS.[23]
Private sector
Lord Fowler has served on the board of directors of several companies and is non-executive chairman of Aggregate Industries plc.[24] He is a member of the National Union of Journalists.[25]
Personal life
After a previous marriage ended in divorce, Fowler married Fiona Poole, a library clerk at the House of Commons, in 1979.[10][26] They had two daughters, and Fowler became a stepfather to his wife's son from her prior marriage.[10]
As of 2023[update], Fowler lives in Fulham, London.[12]
Bibliography
- A Political Suicide: The Conservatives' Voyage into the Wilderness. London: Politicos Publishing. 2008. ISBN 978-1-84275-227-2.
- The Best of Enemies: Diaries 1980–1997. Kingston upon Hull: Biteback Publishing. 2023. ISBN 978-1-78590-815-6.
Notes
References
External links
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