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86-719: The CRD has been described as a training ground for leading Conservative politicians. Former CRD advisers to have served in the Cabinet include former Prime Minister David Cameron , incumbent Deputy Prime Minister Oliver Dowden , former Chancellor of the Exchequer George Osborne , former Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster Oliver Letwin and former Health Secretary Andrew Lansley . After 1945, Enoch Powell , Iain Macleod , Reginald Maudling and Chris Patten passed through it. The CRD

172-449: A one-nation conservative and has been associated with both economically liberal and socially liberal policies. Born in London to an upper-middle-class family, Cameron was educated at Eton College and Brasenose College, Oxford . After becoming an MP in 2001, he served in the opposition Shadow Cabinet under Conservative leader Michael Howard , and succeeded Howard in 2005 . Following

258-539: A "Bill of Rights" to replace the Human Rights Act , however, Bogdanor, himself a Liberal Democrat , said: "I think he is very confused. I've read his speech and it's filled with contradictions. There are one or two good things in it but one glimpses them, as it were, through a mist of misunderstanding". While at Oxford, Cameron was a member of the Bullingdon Club , an exclusive all male student dining society with

344-458: A "his and her list" of proposals made by Howard and his wife, Sandra . Lewis said that Sandra Howard's list included reducing the quality of prison food , although she denied this claim. Lewis reported that Cameron was "uncomfortable" about the list. In defending Sandra Howard and insisting that she made no such proposal, the journalist Bruce Anderson wrote that Cameron had proposed a much shorter definition on prison catering which revolved around

430-486: A '1' grade in the scholarship level exam in economics and politics. The following autumn, he passed the entrance exam for the University of Oxford , and was offered an exhibition at Brasenose College . After leaving Eton in 1984 Cameron started a nine-month gap year . For three months, he worked as a researcher for his godfather Tim Rathbone , then Conservative MP for Lewes , during which time he attended debates in

516-432: A 50/50 chance, but as the campaign wore on and the scale of the impending Conservative defeat grew, Cameron prepared himself for defeat. On election day, Stafford had a swing of 10.7%, almost the same as the national swing, which made it one of the many seats to fall to Labour: Kidney defeated Cameron by 24,606 votes (47.5%) to 20,292 (39.2%), a majority of 4,314 (8.3%). In the round of selection contests taking place in

602-470: A 78% turnout , to Davis's 64,398. Although Davis had initially been the favourite, it was widely acknowledged that his candidacy was marred by a disappointing conference speech. Cameron's election as the leader of the Conservative Party and leader of the opposition was announced on 6 December 2005. As is customary for an opposition leader not already a member, upon election Cameron became a member of

688-486: A candidate. Parliamentary colleagues supporting him included Boris Johnson, shadow chancellor George Osborne, shadow defence secretary and deputy leader of the party Michael Ancram , Oliver Letwin and former party leader William Hague . His campaign did not gain wide support until his speech, delivered without notes, at the 2005 Conservative party conference . In the speech, he vowed to make people "feel good about being Conservatives again" and said he wanted "to switch on

774-485: A constituency revised in boundary changes, which was projected to have a Conservative majority. The incumbent Conservative MP, Bill Cash , ran instead in the neighbouring constituency of Stone , where he was re-elected. At the 1996 Conservative Party Conference, Cameron called for tax cuts in the forthcoming Budget to be targeted at the low-paid and to "small businesses where people took money out of their own pockets to put into companies to keep them going". He also said

860-599: A descendant of the Yiddish author Elia Levita . Cameron was educated at two private schools . From the age of seven, he was taught at Heatherdown School in Winkfield , Berkshire. Owing to good grades, he entered its top academic class almost two years early. At the age of 13, he went on to Eton College in Berkshire, following his father and elder brother. His early interest was in art. Six weeks before taking his O levels , he

946-502: A great deal of effort into "nursing" his potential constituency, turning up at social functions and attacking Woodward for changing his mind on fox hunting to support a ban. During the election campaign, Cameron accepted the offer of writing a regular column for The Guardian ' s online section. He won the seat with a 1.9% swing to the Conservatives, taking 22,153 votes (45%) to Labour candidate Michael Bartlet's 14,180 (28.8%),

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1032-544: A majority of 7,973 (16.2%). Upon his election to Parliament, Cameron served as a member of the Commons Home Affairs Select Committee , a prominent appointment for a newly elected MP. He proposed that the Committee launch an inquiry into the law on drugs, and urged the consideration of "radical options". The report recommended a downgrading of ecstasy from Class A to Class B, as well as moves towards

1118-557: A policy of ' harm reduction ', which Cameron defended. Cameron endorsed Iain Duncan Smith in the 2001 Conservative Party leadership election and organised an event in Witney for party supporters to hear John Bercow speaking for him. Two days before Duncan Smith won the leadership contest on 13 September 2001, the 9/11 attacks occurred. Cameron described Tony Blair's response to the attacks as "masterful", saying: "He moved fast, and set

1204-535: A question about whether he most regretted claiming to see "the green shoots of recovery" or admitting to "singing in his bath" with happiness at leaving the European Exchange Rate Mechanism. Cameron was identified by one journalist as having inspired this gaffe; it was speculated that the heavy Conservative defeat in Newbury may have cost Cameron his chance of becoming chancellor himself, even though as he

1290-654: A referendum on the UK's continuing membership of the European Union in 2016. He supported the Britain Stronger in Europe campaign which lost. Following the success of Vote Leave , Cameron resigned as prime minister and was succeeded by Theresa May , his Home Secretary. Cameron resigned his seat on 12 September 2016, and maintained a low political profile. He served as the president of Alzheimer's Research UK from 2017 to 2023, and

1376-534: A reforming administration and the party on whose support it depended. It produced her general election manifestos and worked closely with her during election campaigns. The director appointed in 1979 was Adam Ridley , who since 1974 had been Economic Adviser to the Shadow Cabinet. In 1989, the CRD co-funded a trip of David Cameron and other Conservative researchers to South Africa while under apartheid rule, alongside

1462-506: A reputation for an outlandish drinking culture associated with boisterous behaviour and damaging property. In his 2019 memoir For the Record , Cameron wrote about being a member of the Bullingdon and its impact on his political career, saying: "When I look now at the much-reproduced photograph taken of our group of appallingly over-self-confident 'sons of privilege', I cringe. If I had known at

1548-463: A roundtable discussion on the future of broadcasting in 1998, he criticised the effect of overlapping different regulators on the industry. Carlton's consortium did win the digital terrestrial franchise, but the resulting company suffered difficulties in attracting subscribers. Cameron resigned as Director of Corporate Affairs in February 2001 to run for Parliament for a second time, although he remained on

1634-478: A safe Conservative seat, but its sitting MP Shaun Woodward (who had worked with Cameron on the 1992 election campaign) had "crossed the floor" to join the Labour Party, and was selected instead for the safe Labour seat of St Helens South . Cameron's biographers Francis Elliott and James Hanning describe the two men as being "on fairly friendly terms". Cameron, advised in his strategy by friend Catherine Fall , put

1720-518: A vote on allowing same-sex and unmarried couples to adopt children jointly, against a whip to oppose; his abstention was noted. The wide scale of abstentions and rebellious votes destabilised the Duncan Smith leadership. In June 2003 Cameron was appointed a shadow minister in the Privy Council Office as a deputy to Eric Forth , then shadow leader of the House . He also became a vice- chairman of

1806-412: A whole new generation." His speech was well-received; The Daily Telegraph said speaking without notes "showed a sureness and a confidence that is greatly to his credit". In the first ballot of Conservative MPs on 18 October 2005, Cameron came second, with 56 votes, slightly more than expected; David Davis had fewer than predicted at 62 votes; Liam Fox came third with 42 votes; and Kenneth Clarke

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1892-569: Is a British politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 2010 to 2016. After his premiership , he served as Foreign Secretary in Rishi Sunak ’s government from 2023 to 2024. Cameron was Leader of the Conservative Party from 2005 to 2016. He was Leader of the Opposition from 2005 to 2010 and Member of Parliament (MP) for Witney from 2001 to 2016. Cameron identifies as

1978-452: Is the younger son of Ian Donald Cameron, a stockbroker, and his wife Mary Fleur, a retired Justice of the Peace and daughter of Sir William Mount, 2nd Baronet . He is also a descendant of William IV through one of the king's illegitimate children. Cameron's father, Ian, was born at Blairmore House near Huntly , Aberdeenshire, and died near Toulon , France, on 8 September 2010; Blairmore

2064-448: The 1997 general election . Major and Lamont's personal ratings also declined dramatically. Lamont's unpopularity did not necessarily affect Cameron, who was considered as a potential " kamikaze " candidate for the Newbury by-election , which includes the area where he grew up. However, Cameron decided not to stand. During the by-election, Lamont gave the response " Je ne regrette rien " to

2150-760: The 2010 general election , negotiations led to Cameron becoming prime minister as the head of a coalition government with the Liberal Democrats . His premiership was marked by the effects of the 2007–2008 financial crisis and the Great Recession , which his government sought to address through austerity measures . His administration passed the Health and Social Care Act and the Welfare Reform Act , which introduced large-scale changes to healthcare and welfare . It also enforced stricter immigration policies via

2236-576: The Home Office hostile environment policy , introduced reforms to education under Michael Gove as Education Secretary and oversaw the 2012 London Olympics . Cameron's administration privatised Royal Mail and some other state assets, and legalised same-sex marriage in England and Wales . Internationally, Cameron oversaw Operation Ellamy in the First Libyan Civil War and authorised the bombing of

2322-810: The House of Commons . Through his father, he was then employed for a further three months in Hong Kong by Jardine Matheson as a 'ship jumper', an administrative post. Returning from Hong Kong, Cameron visited the then- Soviet Union , where he was approached by two Russian men speaking fluent English. He was later told by one of his professors that it was "definitely an attempt" by the KGB to recruit him. In October 1985 Cameron began his Bachelor of Arts course in Philosophy, Politics and Economics (PPE) at Brasenose College, Oxford. His tutor, Vernon Bogdanor , has described him as "one of

2408-596: The Islamic State in Syria. Domestically, his government oversaw the 2011 United Kingdom Alternative Vote referendum and Scottish independence referendum , both of which confirmed Cameron's favoured outcome. When the Conservatives secured an unexpected majority in the 2015 general election , he remained as prime minister, this time leading a Conservative-only government known as the Second Cameron ministry . Cameron introduced

2494-516: The Labour Party , Cameron retired from frontline politics. However, he maintains his House of Lords seat. As prime minister, Cameron was credited for helping to modernise the Conservative Party and for reducing the UK's national deficit. However, he was subject to criticism for austerity measures. In historical rankings of prime ministers of the United Kingdom , academics and journalists have ranked him in

2580-647: The Movement for European Reform with the Czech Civic Democratic Party , leading to the formation of a new European Parliament group, the European Conservatives and Reformists , in 2009 after the European Parliament elections . Cameron attended a gathering at Warsaw 's Palladium cinema celebrating the foundation of the alliance. In forming the caucus, which had 54 MEPs drawn from eight of

2666-608: The Privy Council , being formally approved to join on 14 December 2005, and sworn of the council on 8 March 2006. Cameron's relative youth and inexperience before becoming leader invited satirical comparison with Tony Blair. Private Eye soon published a picture of both leaders on its front cover, with the caption "World's first face transplant a success". On the left, the New Statesman unfavourably likened his "new style of politics" to Tony Blair's early leadership years. Cameron

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2752-517: The 27 EU member states , Cameron reportedly broke with two decades of Conservative co-operation with the centre-right Christian Democrats, the European People's Party (EPP), on the grounds that they are dominated by European federalists and supporters of the Lisbon treaty . EPP leader Wilfried Martens , former prime minister of Belgium , stated: "Cameron's campaign has been to take his party back to

2838-500: The CPS was Philip van der Elst, a former Treasurer of the Oxford Union in which post he had directly succeeded Ann Widdecombe . Later when in office, Mrs Thatcher valued the CRD primarily for the way in which it communicated to the Conservative Party at large that radical political change was needed and how Britain was being transformed as a result of these changes. The CRD was a link between

2924-592: The CRD organised a full policy review to be co-ordinated by Sir Keith Joseph which preceded her election as prime minister. Unimpressed by what the department then had to offer, she and Sir Keith Joseph set up their own think-tank, the Centre for Policy Studies in 1975 on her becoming Leader of the Opposition. The CPS was financed by Nigel (later Lord) Vinson, and its first director was the late Alfred (later Sir) Sherman, who became Mrs Thatcher's speechwriter when she entered Downing Street . Sir Keith's key political assistant at

3010-541: The Conservative Party when Michael Howard took over the leadership in November of that year. He was appointed Opposition frontbench local government spokesman in 2004, before being promoted to the Shadow Cabinet that June as head of policy co-ordination . Later, he became Shadow Education Secretary in the post-election reshuffle. Daniel Finkelstein has said of the period leading up to Cameron's election as leader of

3096-449: The Conservative Party's mission into a "PR agenda". Traditionalist conservative columnist and author Peter Hitchens wrote: "Mr Cameron has abandoned the last significant difference between his party and the established left", by embracing social liberalism. The Daily Telegraph correspondent and blogger Gerald Warner was particularly scathing about Cameron's leadership, saying that it alienated traditionalist conservative elements from

3182-554: The Conservative Party. Before he became Conservative leader, Cameron was reportedly known to friends and family as "Dave", though his preference is "David" in public. Labour used the slogan Dave the Chameleon in their 2006 local elections party broadcast to portray Cameron as an ever-changing populist , which was criticised as negative campaigning by the Conservative press, including The Daily Telegraph , though Cameron asserted

3268-446: The Conservative party that "a small group of us (myself, David Cameron, George Osborne, Michael Gove , Nick Boles , Nick Herbert I think, once or twice) used to meet up in the offices of Policy Exchange , eat pizza, and consider the future of the Conservative Party". Cameron's relationship with Osborne is regarded as particularly close; Conservative MP Nadhim Zahawi suggested the closeness of Osborne's relationship with Cameron meant

3354-547: The Party "should be proud of the Tory tax record but that people needed reminding of its achievements ... It's time to return to our tax-cutting agenda. The socialist prime ministers of Europe have endorsed Tony Blair because they want a federal pussy cat and not a British lion." When writing his election address, Cameron made his own opposition to British membership of the single European currency clear, pledging not to support it. This

3440-484: The Strategy Network International, which was created in 1985 to lobby against anti-apartheid sanctions . The group continued to work closely with the party leader and other senior figures. During the 2005 election campaign, the CRD was again the leader's policy secretariat, assisting Michael Howard 's close advisers with the formulation of the Conservative position on key subjects and the development of

3526-571: The ablest" students he has taught, with "moderate and sensible Conservative" political views . Guy Spier , who shared tutorials with Cameron, remembers him as an outstanding student: "We were doing our best to grasp basic economic concepts. David—there was nobody else who came even close. He would be integrating them with the way the British political system is put together. He could have lectured me on it, and I would have sat there and taken notes." When commenting in 2006 on his former pupil's ideas about

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3612-450: The agenda both at home and abroad. He correctly identified the problem of Islamist extremism , the inadequacy of our response both domestically and internationally, and supported—quite rightly in my view—the action to remove the Taliban regime from Afghanistan ." Cameron determinedly attempted to increase his public visibility, offering quotations on matters of public controversy. He opposed

3698-701: The best economic team." The reshuffle also saw eight other changes made. During his successful 2005 campaign to be elected leader of the Conservative Party, Cameron pledged that the Conservative Party's members of the European Parliament would leave the European People's Party group, which had a "federalist" approach to the European Union. Once elected, Cameron began discussions with right-wing and Eurosceptic parties in other European countries, mainly in eastern Europe; in July 2006, he concluded an agreement to form

3784-474: The broadcast had become his daughter's "favourite video". During the leadership election, allegations were made that Cameron had used cannabis and cocaine recreationally before becoming an MP. Pressed on this point during the BBC television programme Question Time , Cameron expressed the view that everybody was allowed to "err and stray" in their past. During his 2005 Conservative leadership campaign, he addressed

3870-589: The centre in every policy area with one major exception: Europe. ... I can't understand his tactics. Merkel and Sarkozy will never accept his Euroscepticism." Similarly, Cameron's initial " A-List " of prospective parliamentary candidates was attacked by members of his party, and the policy was discontinued in favour of gender -balanced final shortlists. Before being discontinued, the policy had been criticised by senior Conservative MP and former Prisons Spokeswoman Ann Widdecombe as an "insult to women", and she had accused Cameron of "storing up huge problems for

3956-419: The economic crisis. Lamont fell out with John Major after Black Wednesday and became highly unpopular with the public. Taxes needed to be raised in the 1993 Budget, and Cameron fed the options Lamont was considering through to Conservative Campaign Headquarters for their political acceptability to be assessed. By May 1993, the Conservatives' average poll rating dropped below 30%, where they would remain until

4042-620: The famous Captain Middleton under Salisbury ". Fraser was born in Aberdeen , the son of Dr Thomas Fraser CBE DSO TD DL, and of Maria-Theresia Kayser, from Hanover . He was educated at Aberdeen Grammar School , Fettes College , and King's College, Cambridge , where he took a degree in History. During World War II, he served with the Royal Artillery , attaining the rank of lieutenant colonel . He

4128-565: The fourth and third quintiles. Cameron was the first former prime minister to be appointed to a ministerial post since Alec Douglas-Home in 1970, and the first former prime minister to be raised to the peerage since Margaret Thatcher . David William Donald Cameron was born on 9 October 1966 at the London Clinic in Marylebone , London, and raised at Peasemore in Berkshire. He has two sisters and an elder brother, Alexander Cameron . Cameron

4214-418: The future." In April 2009 The Independent reported that in 1989, while Nelson Mandela remained imprisoned under the apartheid regime, Cameron had accepted a trip to South Africa paid for by an anti-sanctions lobby firm. A spokesperson for him responded by saying that the Conservative Party was at that time opposed to sanctions against South Africa and that his trip was a fact-finding mission. However,

4300-476: The house of Alan Duncan in Gayfere Street , Westminster , which had been Major's campaign headquarters during his bid for the Conservative leadership. Cameron headed the economic section. It was while working on this campaign that Cameron first worked closely with and befriended Steve Hilton , who was later to become Director of Strategy during his party leadership. The strain of getting up at 04:45 every day

4386-507: The influence of Howard's Special Advisers, saying previous incumbents "would listen to the evidence before making a decision. Howard just talks to young public school gentlemen from the party headquarters." In July 1994 Cameron left his role as Special Adviser to work as the Director of Corporate Affairs at Carlton Communications . Carlton, which had won the ITV franchise for London weekdays in 1991,

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4472-445: The loans of maths and science graduates obtaining first or 2.1 degrees from "good" universities. Michael Fraser, Baron Fraser of Kilmorack Richard Michael Fraser, Baron Fraser of Kilmorack , CBE (28 October 1915 – 1 July 1996) was a British Conservative Party political administrator. The Conservative historian Lord Blake wrote that Fraser "will go down to history as a figure comparable only to Gorst under Disraeli or

4558-421: The newspaper reported that Cameron's then superior at Conservative Research Department called the trip "jolly", saying that "it was all terribly relaxed, just a little treat, a perk of the job. The Botha regime was attempting to make itself look less horrible, but I don't regard it as having been of the faintest political consequence." Cameron distanced himself from his party's history of opposing sanctions against

4644-673: The payment of compensation to Gurbux Singh, who had resigned as head of the Commission for Racial Equality after a confrontation with the police; and commented that the Home Affairs Select Committee had taken a long time to discuss whether the phrase "black market" should be used. Cameron was passed over for a front-bench promotion in July 2002. Conservative leader Iain Duncan Smith did invite Cameron and his ally George Osborne to coach him on Prime Minister's Questions in November 2002. The next week, Cameron deliberately abstained in

4730-530: The payroll as a consultant. Having been approved for the PPCs' list, Cameron began looking for a seat to contest for the 1997 general election . He was reported to have missed out on selection for Ashford in December 1994, after failing to get to the selection meeting as a result of train delays. In January 1996, when two shortlisted contenders dropped out, Cameron was interviewed and subsequently selected for Stafford ,

4816-601: The phrase "balanced diet", and that Lewis had written thanking Cameron for a valuable contribution. During his work for Howard, Cameron often briefed the media. In March 1994, someone leaked to the press that the Labour Party had called for a meeting with John Major to discuss a consensus on the Prevention of Terrorism Act . After an inquiry failed to find the source of the leak, Labour MP Peter Mandelson demanded assurance from Howard that Cameron had not been responsible, which Howard gave. A senior Home Office civil servant noted

4902-662: The question of drug consumption by remarking: "I did lots of things before I came into politics which I shouldn't have done. We all did." His Shadow Cabinet appointments included MPs associated with the various wings of the party. Former leader William Hague was appointed to the foreign affairs brief, while both George Osborne and David Davis were retained, as shadow chancellor of the Exchequer and Shadow Home Secretary , respectively. Hague, assisted by Davis, stood in for Cameron during his paternity leave in February 2006. In June 2008 Davis announced his intention to resign as an MP , and

4988-535: The regime. He was criticised by Labour MP Peter Hain , himself an anti-apartheid campaigner. At the launch of the Conservative Party's education manifesto in January 2010, Cameron declared an admiration for the "brazenly elite" approach to education of countries such as Singapore and South Korea , and expressed a desire to "elevate the status of teaching in our country". He suggested the adoption of more stringent criteria for entry to teaching, and offered repayment of

5074-510: The rest of the Party's Central Office. The CRD's work was suspended during the Second World War , but it was re-established on a wider basis with a larger staff by Rab Butler , who would be its chairman from 1945 until 1965 Its post-war role included the provision of briefing material on major legislation before Parliament and on the main issues of political controversy, as well as working with Butler to define post-war Conservatism. The CRD

5160-483: The right of the party, Norman Tebbit , a former Conservative chairman, likened Cameron to Pol Pot , "intent on purging even the memory of Thatcherism before building a New Modern Compassionate Green Globally Aware Party". Quentin Davies , who defected from the Conservatives to Labour on 26 June 2007, branded him "superficial, unreliable and [with] an apparent lack of any clear convictions" and stated that Cameron had turned

5246-653: The run-up to the 2001 general election , Cameron again attempted to be selected for a winnable seat. He tried for the Kensington and Chelsea seat after the death of Alan Clark , but did not make the shortlist. He was in the final two but narrowly lost at Wealden in March 2000, a loss ascribed by Samantha Cameron to his lack of spontaneity when speaking. Cameron was selected as PPC for Witney in Oxfordshire in April 2000. This had been

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5332-528: The speakers in the economic debate, having to resort to putting messages on the internal television system imploring the mover of the motion, Patricia Morris , to contact him. Later that month, Cameron joined a delegation of Special Advisers who visited Germany to build better relations with the Christian Democratic Union ; he was reported to be "still smarting" over the Bundesbank 's contribution to

5418-465: The strategy for the campaign. Under the editorship of Alistair Cooke , the CRD also wrote and published the latest volume of the Campaign Guide, providing detailed policy and political attack material. Under David Cameron the CRD was reorganised; in June 2006, Desk Officers were retitled as Special Advisers to the Shadow Cabinet and relocated to the House of Commons, while the enlarged political section and policy secretariat remained at Campaign HQ. This

5504-476: The team across Smith Square to jeer at Transport House , the former Labour headquarters. Cameron was rewarded with a promotion to Special Adviser to the Chancellor of the Exchequer , Norman Lamont . Cameron was working for Lamont at the time of Black Wednesday , when pressure from currency speculators forced the pound sterling out of the European Exchange Rate Mechanism . At the 1992 Conservative Party conference, he had difficulty trying to arrange to brief

5590-441: The then twice-weekly sessions of Prime Minister's Questions . One newspaper gave Cameron the credit for "sharper ... Despatch box performances" by Major, which included highlighting for Major "a dreadful piece of doublespeak " by Tony Blair (then the Labour Employment spokesman) over the effect of a national minimum wage . He became head of the political section of the Conservative Research Department, and in August 1991

5676-413: The time the grief I would get for that picture, of course I would never have joined. But life isn't like that..." and: "These were also the years after the ITV adaptation of Brideshead Revisited when quite a few of us were carried away by the fantasy of an Evelyn Waugh -like Oxford existence." Cameron's period in the Bullingdon Club was examined in a 2009 Channel 4 docu-drama, When Boris Met Dave ,

5762-433: The title referring to Boris Johnson , another high-profile Conservative party figure, the then-mayor of London, who had been a member at the same time, and who would go on to be prime minister himself. He graduated in 1988 with a first-class honours BA degree (later promoted to an MA by seniority). After graduation, Cameron worked for the Conservative Research Department between September 1988 and 1993. His first brief

5848-459: The two effectively shared power during Cameron's time as prime minister. From February 2002 to August 2005, he was a non-executive director of Urbium PLC, operator of the Tiger Tiger bar chain. Following the Labour victory in the May 2005 general election , Michael Howard announced his resignation as leader of the Conservative Party and set a lengthy timetable for the leadership election . Cameron announced on 29 September 2005 that he would be

5934-463: Was Trade and Industry, Energy and Privatisation; he befriended fellow young colleagues, including Edward Llewellyn , Ed Vaizey and Rachel Whetstone . They and others formed a group they called the " Smith Square set", which was dubbed the "Brat Pack" by the press, though it is better known as the " Notting Hill set ", a name given to it pejoratively by Derek Conway . In 1991 Cameron was seconded to Downing Street to work on briefing John Major for

6020-407: Was a break with official Conservative policy, but about 200 other candidates were making similar declarations. Otherwise, Cameron kept closely to the national party line . He also campaigned using the claim that a Labour government would increase the cost of a pint of beer by 24p; however, the Labour candidate, David Kidney , portrayed Cameron as "a right-wing Tory". Initially, Cameron thought he had

6106-478: Was a growing media company which also had film-distribution and video-producing arms. Cameron was suggested for the role to Carlton executive chairman Michael P. Green by his later mother-in-law Lady Astor. He left Carlton in 1997 to run for Parliament, returning to his job after his defeat. In 1997 Cameron played up the company's prospects for digital terrestrial television , for which it joined with ITV Granada and Sky to form British Digital Broadcasting . In

6192-462: Was accused of paying excessive attention to appearance: ITV News broadcast footage from the 2006 Conservative Party Conference in Bournemouth showing him wearing four different sets of clothes within a few hours. In his column for The Guardian , comedy writer and broadcaster Charlie Brooker described the Conservative leader as "a hollow Easter egg with no bag of sweets inside" in April 2007. On

6278-661: Was appointed a Member of the Order of the British Empire (Military Division) in 1945. After the war, Fraser joined the Conservative Research Department (CRD), serving as its Director between 1959 and 1964 and its Chairman between 1970 and 1974. He was Deputy Chairman of the Conservative Party between 1964 and 1975; he was described as a "linchpin" between the variously wings of the Conservative Party while he

6364-578: Was built by Cameron's great-great-grandfather, Alexander Geddes, who had made a fortune in the grain trade in Chicago, Illinois, before returning to Scotland in the 1880s. Blairmore was sold soon after Ian's birth. Cameron has said: "On my mother's side of the family, her mother was a Llewellyn, so Welsh . I'm a real mixture of Scottish , Welsh and English." He has also referenced the German Jewish ancestry of one of his great-grandfathers, Arthur Levita,

6450-469: Was caught smoking cannabis . He admitted the offence and had not been involved in selling drugs, so he was not expelled; instead he was fined, prevented from leaving the school grounds and given a " Georgic " (a punishment that involved copying 500 lines of Latin text). Cameron passed twelve O-levels and then three A levels : history of art ; history, in which he was taught by Michael Kidson ; and economics with politics. He obtained three 'A' grades and

6536-529: Was commented that he was still "very much in favour" and it was later reported that many at the Treasury would have preferred Cameron to carry on. At the beginning of September 1993, he applied to go on Conservative Central Office's list of prospective parliamentary candidates (PPCs). Cameron was much more socially liberal than Howard but enjoyed working for him. According to Derek Lewis , then Director-General of Her Majesty's Prison Service , Cameron showed him

6622-447: Was determined Conservative policy during the post-war consensus until it broke down in the 1970s. The series of Campaign Guides that the CRD began to produce in 1950 recorded in detail the progress of Conservative governments in this period. More recent volumes in the series have continued to provide a full, official account of Conservative policy and its implementation. When Margaret Thatcher became Conservative Party leader in 1975,

6708-481: Was eliminated with 38 votes. In the second ballot on 20 October 2005, Cameron came first with 90 votes; David Davis was second, with 57; and Liam Fox was eliminated with 51 votes. All 198 Conservative MPs voted in both ballots. The next stage of the election process, between Davis and Cameron, was a vote open to the entire party membership. Cameron was elected with more than twice as many votes as Davis and more than half of all ballots issued; Cameron won 134,446 votes on

6794-458: Was established by Neville Chamberlain in 1929, to undertake detailed policy work for the leader of the Party (then Stanley Baldwin ) and his principal colleagues. It was the first real think-tank on the right in British politics. For 50 years it occupied its own premises in Old Queen Street overlooking St James's Park, but after the 1979 election, Margaret Thatcher united it physically with

6880-528: Was immediately replaced as shadow home secretary by Dominic Grieve ; Davis' surprise move was seen as a challenge to the changes introduced under Cameron's leadership. A reshuffle of the Shadow Cabinet was undertaken in January 2009, with the chief change being the appointment of former Chancellor of the Exchequer Kenneth Clarke as Shadow Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform Secretary. Cameron stated that "With Ken Clarke's arrival, we now have

6966-628: Was implicated in the Greensill scandal . Cameron released his memoir, For the Record , in 2019. In 2023 he was appointed Foreign Secretary by Rishi Sunak and became a life peer as Baron Cameron of Chipping Norton. His tenure as Foreign Secretary was dominated by the Russian invasion of Ukraine , the Israel–Hamas war , and the Gaza humanitarian crisis . After the Conservatives lost the 2024 general election to

7052-450: Was its Deputy Chairman. At the CRD, he turned down job applications from Guy Burgess and Donald Maclean , on the grounds that they were "Communist agents"; both men were later unmasked as Soviet agents. In 1970, Fraser was considered for the position of Cabinet Secretary ; he refused, saying "I serve the party, not some bloody state". Fraser was appointed a Commander of the Order of British Empire in 1955 for political services and

7138-461: Was not a member of Parliament he could not have been. Lamont was sacked at the end of May 1993, and decided not to write the usual letter of resignation; Cameron was given the responsibility to issue to the press a statement of self-justification. After Lamont was sacked, Cameron remained at the Treasury for less than a month before being specifically recruited by Home Secretary Michael Howard . It

7224-438: Was reported to have led Cameron to decide to leave politics in favour of journalism. The Conservatives' unexpected success in the 1992 election led Cameron to hit back at older party members who had criticised him and his colleagues, saying "whatever people say about us, we got the campaign right", and that they had listened to their campaign workers on the ground rather than the newspapers. He revealed he had led other members of

7310-1215: Was reversed the following year when, in September 2007, the possibility of an early general election prompted the Party leadership to move Special Advisers back in-house to the new Campaign Headquarters at 30 Millbank. 1930-1939: Sir Joseph Ball 1939-1945: Post vacant 1945-1951: David Clarke 1948-1950: Henry Hopkinson 1948-1959: Percy Cohen 1951-1964: Michael Fraser 1964-1970: Brendan Sewill 1970-1974: James Douglas 1974-1979: Chris Patten 1979-1982: Alan Howarth 1982-1984: Peter Cropper 1985-1989: Robin Harris 1990-1995: Andrew Lansley 1995-1998: Daniel Finkelstein 1999-2003: Rick Nye 2003-2005: Greg Clark 2005-2006: John Glen 2006-2007: George Bridges 2007-2010: James O'Shaughnessy 2010-2013: Nick Park 2013-2015: Alex Dawson 2015-2017: Andrew Goodfellow 2017-2019: Adam Memon 2019-2021: Iain Carter 2021-2023: Ross Kempsell 2023- : Marcus Natale David Cameron David William Donald Cameron, Baron Cameron of Chipping Norton (born 9 October 1966),

7396-412: Was tipped to follow Judith Chaplin as political secretary to the prime minister. Cameron lost to Jonathan Hill , who was appointed in March 1992. Instead, he was given the responsibility for briefing Major for his press conferences during the 1992 general election . During the campaign, Cameron was one of the young "brat pack" of party strategists who worked between 12 and 20 hours a day, sleeping in

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