The Lord Baker of Dorking | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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 Official portrait, 2020 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Home Secretary | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| In office 28 November 1990 – 10 April 1992 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Prime Minister | John Major | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Preceded by | David Waddington | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Succeeded by | Kenneth Clarke | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| In office 24 July 1989 – 28 November 1990 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Prime Minister | Margaret Thatcher | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Preceded by | Tony Newton | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Succeeded by | Chris Patten | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Chairman of the Conservative Party | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| In office 24 July 1989 – 28 November 1990 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Leader | Margaret Thatcher | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Preceded by | Peter Brooke | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Succeeded by | Chris Patten | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Secretary of State for Education and Science | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| In office 21 May 1986 – 24 July 1989 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Prime Minister | Margaret Thatcher | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Preceded by | Keith Joseph | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Succeeded by | John MacGregor | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Secretary of State for the Environment | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| In office 2 September 1985 – 21 May 1986 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Prime Minister | Margaret Thatcher | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Preceded by | Patrick Jenkin | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Succeeded by | Nicholas Ridley | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Personal details | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Born | (1934-11-03)3 November 1934 (age 90) Newport,Monmouthshire, Wales | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Political party | Conservative | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Spouse | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Children | Oswin · Sophia · Amy | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Residence(s) | Iford, East Sussex, England | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Education | Hampton Grammar School St Paul's School, London | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Alma mater | Magdalen College, Oxford (BA,MSc) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Signature |  | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Website | Official website | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| a.^ Minister of State for Industry: 5 January 1981 to 12 June 1983 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Kenneth Wilfred Baker, Baron Baker of Dorking (born 3 November 1934[1]) is a British politician,Conservative Member of Parliament from 1968 to 1997, and a cabinet minister, including holding the offices ofHome Secretary,Education Secretary andConservative Party Chairman. He is a life member of theTory Reform Group.
Baker stood down from the House of Commons at the 1997 election and was created alife peer as Baron Baker of Dorking, joining theHouse of Lords.
The son of a civil servant, Baker was born inNewport,Monmouthshire. He was educated atHampton Grammar School between 1946 and 1948, a boys'voluntary aided school in West London (now Hampton School, anindependent school). He then went on to study atSt Paul's School, and atMagdalen College, Oxford, where he graduated in 1958 with a BA Degree in History. Whilst at Oxford, Baker served as Secretary ofThe Oxford Union. Four years later he graduated with aMSc degree in International Law and Regulations. He didNational Service in theRoyal Artillery, reaching the rank oflieutenant, and worked forRoyal Dutch Shell before being elected as aMember of Parliament at a by-election in March 1968.[2]
Having unsuccessfully contestedPoplar in1964 andActon in1966, Baker was first elected to Parliament when he won Acton ata March 1968 by-election, gaining it fromLabour following the suicide ofBernard Floud.[3] However, at the1970 general election he was defeated by Labour'sNigel Spearing. Atan ensuing by-election, held on 22 October 1970—caused by the elevation to the Lords (as a life peer) ofQuintin Hogg, so that he could becomeLord Chancellor following the surprise Conservative victory at the 1970 election—Baker was elected for thesafe Conservative seat ofSt Marylebone in central London. In the parliamentary seat redistribution of the early 1980s, St Marylebone was abolished and Baker was defeated byPeter Brooke for the Conservative nomination at the nearby new safe seat ofCities of London & Westminster. However he successfully obtained nomination atMole Valley, a safely-Conservative rural seat inSurrey, which he held until his retirement in 1997. He was succeeded there by SirPaul Beresford.
Baker's first government post was in theHeath ministry; in 1972 he becameParliamentary Secretary at the Civil Service Department, and in 1974parliamentary private secretary toEdward Heath. Having become closely associated with Heath, he was overlooked for office whenMargaret Thatcher became Prime Minister in 1979, but in 1981 he was appointed Minister for Information Technology, in the then Department of Trade and Industry. Having been sworn of thePrivy Council in the1984 New Year Honours,[4] he entered the Cabinet asSecretary of State for the Environment in 1985.[5]
Baker served asSecretary of State for Education from 1986 to 1989. His most noted action in his time at the Department of Education was the introduction of the controversial "National Curriculum" through the 1988 Education Act. He also introducedin-service training days for teachers, which became popularly known as "Baker days".[5] At this time Baker was often tipped as a future Conservative leader, including in the 1987 edition ofJulian Critchley's biography ofMichael Heseltine. Critchley quoted one journalist's witticism "I have seen the future and it smirks" (a reference to the famous line "I have seen the future and it works" written byLincoln Steffens, an American visitor to Lenin's USSR in 1921). Baker's mannerisms were unpopular with some people: he dressed his hair withBrylcreem, and by the late 1980s he had come to be portrayed by the satirical programmeSpitting Image as a slimy slug.[6]
In the July 1989 reshuffle Baker was appointedChairman of the Conservative Party, with the intention that he should organise a fourth consecutive General Election victory for Margaret Thatcher. He managed to steer the government through the otherwise disastrous local elections of May 1990 by stressing the good results for Conservative "flagship" councils in Westminster and Wandsworth, i.e. supposedly demonstrating that thepoll tax—a source of great unpopularity for the government—could be a vote-winner for Conservative councils who kept it low. He was still Party Chairman at the time Margaret Thatcher resigned in November 1990.[5]
After the change of regime, Baker was promoted toHome Secretary, dealing with prison riots and introducing theDangerous Dogs Act.[7]
After his term of office, Baker was found (M v Home Office 1994) to have been incontempt of court for having deported a man back toZaire in 1991,[8] in breach of an interim injunction and while proceedings were pending. "It would be a black day for the rule of law and the liberty of the subject", theCourt of Appeal ruled, "if ministers were not accountable to the courts for their personal actions." This was the first time the courts had reached such a finding against a minister for exercise of Prerogative Powers, something previously thought to be impossible.
After the1992 general election Baker left the government rather than accept demotion to the job ofWelsh Secretary.[citation needed] He was appointed a member of theOrder of the Companions of Honour (CH) on 13 April 1992.[9] He proposed the Loyal Address in the Queen's Speech debate on 6 May 1992, following the general election. He chose not to stand for re-election to the House of Commons in 1997, and on 16 June was created a life peer asBaron Baker of Dorking,ofIford in theCounty of East Sussex.[10][11]
Baker was interviewed in 2012 as part ofThe History of Parliament's oral history project.[12][13]
Since 2019, Baker has campaigned for the abolition ofGeneral Certificate of Secondary Education (GCSE) examinations, which he introduced as Secretary of State for Education. Baker believes the certificate to be redundant as it fails in creating skills wanted by employers, is incompatible with the new age 18school leaving age and causes poor mental health in the youth.[14] When the annual GCSE examinations were cancelled twice during theCOVID-19 pandemic, Baker believed there to be increasing opposition to their return and considered it a "great opportunity" to abolish them.[15] Baker also criticised government plans to replaceBusiness and Technology Education Council (BTEC) qualifications withT-Levels as "vandalism", instead preferring to maintain the status quo where both BTECs and T-Levels are available to students.[16]
In September 2019, Baker criticised attempts by Prime MinisterBoris Johnson to deselect rebel Conservative MPs at the next general election.[17]
Baker was co-founder along with the lateRonald Dearing of theBaker Dearing Educational Trust, an educational trust set up to promote the establishment ofUniversity Technical Colleges in England as part of thefree school programme. He is also Chair of the independent education charity Edge Foundation which campaigns for a coherent, unified and holistic education for all young people.[citation needed]
Until 1995 Baker lived in Station Road in the village ofBetchworth, 4 miles (6.4 km) east ofDorking. He now lives in the hamlet ofIford nearLewes,East Sussex.
In 2005 he published a book onKing George IV,George IV: A Life in Caricature, followed byKing George III: A Life in Caricature in 2007 (Thames & Hudson). Other publications include several compilations of poetry,[18][19][20][21] a history of political cartoons and his autobiography.
In 2006 Lord Baker announced that he was introducing abill into theHouse of Lords to address theWest Lothian question.[22] This would prevent Scottish and WelshMPs from voting on legislation which affects England alone as a result ofdevolution to theScottish Parliament or theWelsh Assembly.
Baker's son, Oswin, is a leading member of theGreenwich and WoolwichLabour Party.[23]
According to his entry inWho's Who, Baker enjoys collecting books and political caricatures.[1]
Baker was interviewed about the rise ofThatcherism for the 2006BBC TV documentary seriesTory! Tory! Tory!. Baker was portrayed as a slug in the political satire television showSpitting Image.[citation needed]
On 31 January 2023, Baker was invited on BBCNewsnight to comment on a forthcoming teachers strike and onPM Rishi Sunak's management of hisCabinet appointments. At one point the presenterVictoria Derbyshire removed Baker's incessantly ringing mobile phone, which continually interrupted the latter part of the live studio interview, during which he quipped that the PM was insistent in attempting to reach him.[citation needed]
In 1994 Lord Baker was awarded anHonorary Doctorate fromRichmond, The American International University in London.[24]
In 2013 he was awarded an Honorary Doctorate of Education fromPlymouth University.[25]
He was awarded an Honorary Doctorate of Education fromBrunel University in 2016.[26]
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| Parliament of the United Kingdom | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Member of Parliament forActon 1968–1970 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Member of Parliament forSt Marylebone 1970–1983 | Constituency abolished |
| New constituency | Member of Parliament forMole Valley 1983–1997 | Succeeded by |
| Political offices | ||
| Preceded by | Secretary of State for the Environment 1985–1986 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Secretary of State for Education and Science 1986–1989 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster 1989–1990 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Home Secretary 1990–1992 | Succeeded by |
| Party political offices | ||
| Preceded by | Chairman of the Conservative Party 1989–1990 | Succeeded by |
| Orders of precedence in the United Kingdom | ||
| Preceded by | Gentlemen Baron Baker of Dorking | Followed by |
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