Famous For: Ex Tory minister and former Conservative leader.
Trivia: Michael is an avid Liverpool FC fan. He also used to be in a skiffle group called the Lonnie Donegan Clones.
Biography: A Conservative cabinet minister during the Major years, Llanelli-born Michael Howard led the Conservatives in opposition from in November 2003 until December 2005. Despite instigating what some saw as a revival in the party's fortunes, his party failed to win the 2005 General Election.
Born to a Romanian father, the Howard family name was anglicised from Hecht to Howard on moving to Britain.
Married with three children, Michael Howard was schooled in Llanelli, going on to study at Peterhouse, Cambridge. It was here he achieved his first 'electoral' success on becoming President of the Cambridge Union in 1962.
He made his Westminster debut in 1983, on becoming Conservative MP for Folkstone and Hythe, having previously unsuccessfully contested two elections in Liverpool.
His ministerial career began on entering the cabinet in 1990 as Secretary of State for Employment, becoming the Environment secretary two years later following the Conservative victory in the 1992 General Election. In 1993 he was appointed to the post with which he arguably became most familiar, when a cabinet re-shuffle saw him become Home Secretary. He held the post for four years, introducing amongst other things the controversial poll tax. He also gained a reputation for tough policies on law and order, some of which were found to be illegal by the European courts.
It was after a disagreement with his Head of Prisons that Anne Widdecombe famously declared that Michael Howard had "something of the night" about him, a remark which proved to have considerable 'sticking power' in the media.
Following Labour coming to power in 1997, which brought 18 years of Conservative government to a close, Michael stood for the leadership of the party - though he came last. This was in sharp contrast to the result some seven years later, when he would stand again unopposed following the departure of Iain Ducan Smith.
Having succesfully held his seat in both the 1997 and 2001 elections he remained on the political front-lines as a prominent member of two consecutive Shadow cabinets, including a stint as Shadow Chancellor under Iain Duncan Smith.
Following the vote of no-confidence in which Conservative leader Duncan Smith was deposed in November 2003, Michael Howard was declared new Tory Leader - the first from Wales.
In July 2004 Michael appeared on BBC Radio 4's Desert Island Discs. On the programme he talked with Sue Lawley about his family's harrowing ordeal at the Nazi concentration camp in Auschwitz. His grandmother died in the camp and his aunt escaped the gas chamber on three seperate occasions.
Howard's father, a Jewish shopkeeper named Bernard Hecht, fled Romania in 1939 as the anti-Semitic fascists gained influence. He then settled in Wales, changing his name to Bernard Howard.
Howard led the Conservatives into the 2005 General Election, and the party did achieve some success in gaining ground - the party won 197 seats, up 31 on 2001's result. However this was obviously not enough for a victory, and so he announced on Friday 6 May, the day after the Election, that he would be standing down. He would do so, he said, "sooner rather than later", once the party had had the opportunity to consider whether it wanted to change the rules for electing a successor.
At a rally in newly-gained Putney he said his age meant he could not lead the party into the next General Election.
"I'm 63 years old. At the time of the next election in four or five years' time I'll be 67 or 68 and I believe that's simply too old to lead a party into government."
Later in 2005, Conservative party members elected to keep their recently-gained right to elect their party's leader. Consequently, after a seven month leadership contest, on December 6 2005 David Cameron comfortably beat David Davis in the leadership election, and replaced Michael Howard as party leader.
Michael has been married to Sandra for thirty years, and has children and step-children.
Moment of Glory: Gaining the Conservative leadership in November 2003.
Off the Record: Despite gains at the ballot box, the Conservatives with Howard at the helm did not win the 2005 General Election.
