Alex Wright
Peterhouse

First published in The Cambridge Student, November 2003

Depending on how inefficient the delivery services are, whether you had a long lie-in this morning, or whether you work before procrastinating by reading student newspapers, by the time you read this Michael Howard may be leader of the Conservative Party. Yes, the Michael Howard. The Michael Howard who had the reputation of being the most authoritarian Home Secretary in recent years; the Michael Howard who refused to answer a straight question fourteen times; the Michael Howard who was kept away from cameras in the 1997 general election for fear of scaring the voters; the Michael Howard who was famous dubbed as having “something of the night about him”.

He can beat Blair.

Iain Duncan Smith, in his last few embattled days, said “There’s no white knight who can take us to victory”. He is right. There is no white knight. But politics is not about white knights. It is about realistic solutions. The realistic solution to the Tory leadership problem is Howard.

Born in 1941, Howard was educated at Llaneli Grammar School before coming to Peterhouse. He became part of the group of the ‘Cambridge mafia’, which also included Ken Clarke, John Gummer, Norman Lamont, and Leon Brittain. He was involved in both CUCA and the Union, but, in an early act of principle over ambition, resigned from the CUCA Executive after Ken Clarke invited Oswald Mosley. In a twist of fate, Howard then beat Clarke to become Union President in 1962. After graduating, Howard was called to the Bar in 1964, and made a QC in 1982. He entered Parliament in 1983, rising quickly into the Government two years later and was later Secretary of State for Employment (where he abolished the closed shop) and Secretary of State for Environment (where he played a crucial role in the Rio summit). He was most controversial as Home Secretary from 1993 to 1997, when he followed the maxim that “Prison works!” and was notorious as a right-winger.

Yet dragging up Howard’s past will do Labour few favours. They have bleated for six years now about the Tory past, and it’s worn thin. If Labour continues to talk about Howard’s past, it will come across as a whinge. In any case, the electorate’s memory can be surprisingly short: when Thatcher became Tory leader in 1975, she was chiefly known as the “Milk Snatcher”; yet she won three consecutive elections. Even I, as a political anorak, could not recall Howard’s sacking of Derek Lewis (who?) as Director of Prisons until the recent leadership contest brought of all the skeletons out of the closet. If Portillo can change in two years from a hard Right architect of the poll tax to a TV politician who becomes a single mother for a week, it is no less plausible for Howard to soften his image. Moreover, Howard’s supposed authoritarianism has been eclipsed by Blunkett’s proposals (on e.g. ID cards); unlike under Blunkett, Howard managed to reduce crime by nearly 20%. His achievements in the Departments of Employment and the Environment are impressive. If anything, Howard’s past is an asset: the Tories are attacked for being weak, incompetent or ineffectual. Despite Theresa May’s comments, many eschew the Tories because they are seen as nonentities rather than ‘nasties’.

Having served in such high office, Howard can claim to be competent and experienced, unlike Hague and IDS. When he left office, nearly a million fewer crimes were committed per year. He is a ‘grown-up politician’, commanding respect, even gravitas. He is a brilliant orator, and one of the few who can best Tony Blair in debate- he ran rings around him when Blair was Shadow Home Secretary. His speeches are enriched by a dry wit: in response to Blair’s much-lampooned promise to be “tough on the causes of crime”, Howard’s sardonic riposte was “I know what causes crime: criminals!” Unexpectedly, perhaps, he can be charming and even affable. When he came to the Cambridge Union last term, he came across in conversation as warm, friendly and down-to-earth. He is well-liked in his constituency, and, unlike many senior MPs, holds weekly surgeries to help his constituents. Intelligent, articulate, charming, competent and experienced, Howard can lead the Tories to victory - no white knight perhaps, but there is something of the knight about him.