David Howell, Baron Howell of Guildford

Junior ministerial offices

Minister of State for Energy
In office 8 January 1974 – 4 March 1974
Prime Minister	Edward Heath
Sec. of State	The Lord Carrington
Preceded by	Position established
Succeeded by	Thomas Balogh
Minister of State for Northern Ireland
In office 5 November 1972 – 8 January 1974
Prime Minister	Edward Heath
Sec. of State	Francis Pym
Preceded by	William van Straubenzee
Succeeded by	Stan Orme
Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Northern Ireland
In office 26 March 1972 – 5 November 1972
Prime Minister	Edward Heath
Sec. of State	Willie Whitelaw
Preceded by	Position established
Succeeded by	Peter Mills
Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Employment
In office 5 January 1971 – 26 March 1972
Prime Minister	Edward Heath
Sec. of State	Robert Carr Maurice Macmillan
Preceded by	Dudley Smith
Succeeded by	Nicholas Scott
Lord Commissioner of the Treasury
In office 24 June 1970 – 6 January 1971
Prime Minister	Edward Heath
Chancellor	Anthony Barber
Preceded by	Reginald Eyre
Succeeded by	Hector Monro
Parliamentary Secretary for the Civil Service Department
In office 23 June 1970 – 26 March 1972
Prime Minister	Edward Heath
Preceded by	Office established
Succeeded by	Kenneth Baker

Committee offices

Chair of the House of Lords International Relations Committee
In office 25 May 2016 – 1 July 2019
Preceded by	Committee established
Succeeded by	The Baroness Anelay of St Johns
Chair of the Foreign Affairs Select Committee
In office 1 January 1987 – 21 March 1997
Preceded by	Anthony Kershaw
Succeeded by	Donald Anderson

Further offices held

Shadow Deputy Leader of the House of Lords
In office 8 June 2005 – 6 May 2010
Leader	Michael Howard David Cameron
Shad. Leader	The Lord Strathclyde
Shadowing	The Lord Rooker The Lord Hunt of Kings Heath
Member of the House of Lords Lord Temporal
Incumbent
Assumed office 18 June 1997 Life Peerage
Member of Parliament for Guildford
In office 31 March 1966 – 8 April 1997
Preceded by	George Nugent
Succeeded by	Nick St Aubyn

Personal details

Born

David Arthur Russell Howell
(1936-01-18) 18 January 1936 (age 88)
London, England

Political party

Conservative

Spouse

Cary Davina Wallace (m. 1967)

Children

3, including Frances

Alma mater

King's College, Cambridge

David Arthur Russell Howell, Baron Howell of Guildford, PC (born 18 January 1936) is a British Conservative Party politician, journalist, and economic consultant. Having been successively Secretary of State for Energy and then for Transport under Margaret Thatcher, Howell has more recently been a Minister of State in the Foreign Office from the election in 2010 until the reshuffle of 2012. He has served as Chair of the House of Lords International Relations Committee since May 2016. Along with William Hague, Sir George Young and Kenneth Clarke, he is one of the few Cabinet ministers from the 1979–97 governments who continued to hold high office in the party, being its deputy leader in the House of Lords until 2010. His daughter, Frances, was married to the former Chancellor of the Exchequer, George Osborne.

Early life

Howell was educated at Eton College, before entering King's College, Cambridge, where he graduated Bachelor of Arts in 1959 with 1st Class honours in Economics. He proceeded to the degree of Master of Arts in 1963. He went to work in HM Treasury joining the Treasury Economic Section from 1959 to 1960. In 1960 he wrote the book Principles to Practice, published jointly, and spent four years as a journalist, leader writer and special correspondent on The Daily Telegraph. He succeeded Geoffrey Howe as editor of Crossbow (the journal of the Bow Group) from 1962 to 1964 before he unsuccessfully contested the constituency of Dudley in the 1964 general election.

Political career

Two years later, in 1966, Howell was elected MP for the safe seat of Guildford in Surrey, for the Conservative Party, a seat he held until retiring at the 1997 general election. On 6 June 1997 he was made a life peer as Baron Howell of Guildford, of Penton Mewsey, in the County of Hampshire.

When Margaret Thatcher was elected in 1979, she made Howell her first Secretary of State for Energy and then moved him to Transport in the reshuffle of September 1981 and until 1983. His time at the Ministry of Transport saw the commissioning and publication of the highly controversial Serpell Report into Britain's Railways. The report which emerged included proposals which would have greatly reduced the rail network in Britain and met with an extremely hostile reaction. Although these proposals were not pursued, the episode caused considerable political problems for the Government and contributed to Thatcher dropping Howell from the Cabinet.

Howell wrote the book Freedom and Capital, published 1981. He then wrote the book Blind Victory: a study in income, wealth and power, published 1986. In 1987 he became chairman of the Select committee on Foreign Affairs. He was president of the British Institute of Energy Economics from 2005 to 2014 and has been chairman of the Windsor Energy Group since 2003.

In the House of Lords, he was Deputy Leader of the Opposition from 2005 to 2010. On the election of the Coalition government he was quickly recommended to Foreign Secretary by the Prime Minister as an enthusiastic advocate of HS2, the only conservative in the government with the relevant ministerial experience. In the September 2012 reshuffle, having served two years as initially agreed, he was asked by the Prime Minister to stand down to provide a Foreign Office place for Baroness Warsi. Howell was Opposition Spokesperson for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs from 2000 to 2010. He is now Chairman of the new House of Lords International relations Committee. Lord Howell is also Chairman of The Commonwealth Societies Association.

From the election of May 2010 until the reshuffle of 2012, Lord Howell served as Minister of State in the Foreign Office in David Cameron's government, under William Hague as Foreign Secretary. From September 2012 to April 2013, he was personal adviser to the Foreign Secretary on Energy and Resource Security.

In November 2012, Greenpeace released secret film of an interview with Lord Howell about the advantages of natural gas over wind power, in which he said that David Cameron "is not familiar with these issues, doesn't understand them", but that George Osborne, his son-in-law, "is of course getting this message and is putting pressure on".

In May 2013, he was appointed president of the Energy Industries Council. In July 2013, he said, in a Lords' discussion on fracking, "there are large, uninhabited and desolate areas, certainly in parts of the north-east, where there is plenty of room for fracking, well away from anybody's residence, and where it could be conducted without any threat to the rural environment". There was much adverse reaction.

Ministerial career

Table to show Ministerial posts held
Post	Date
Minister of State (Foreign and Commonwealth Office) (International Energy Policy)	May 2010 – Sep 2012
Shadow Deputy Leader of the House of Lords	Jun 2005 – May 2010
Shadow Minister (Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs)	Jul 2000 – May 2010
Secretary of State for Transport	Sep 1981 – Jun 1983
Secretary of State for Energy	May 1979 – Sep 1981
Shadow Minister (Business, Innovation and Skills)	Jul 1977 – May 1979
Minister of State (Department of Energy)	Jan 1974 – Mar 1974
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Northern Ireland Office)	Mar 1972 – Nov 1972
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Employment)	Jan 1971 – Mar 1972
Lord Commissioner (HM Treasury) (Whip)	Jun 1970 – Jan 1971
Parliamentary Secretary (Civil Service Department)	Jun 1970 – Mar 1972

Arms

Coat of arms of David Howell, Baron Howell of Guildford
	Crest A Japanese crane Proper beaked Or and grasping in the sinister foot a lily Argent slipped and leaved Or. Escutcheon Argent four rows palewise in fess composed of billets fesswise Gules each charged with a goutte Or on a fess Sable three towers Or each enfiling an ancient crown Gules. Supporters On either side a gryphon reguardant Argent beaked winged and grasping in the interior forefoot a fleur-de-lys Or. Motto Ideas Conquer All

References

"Mr David Howell (Hansard)". api.parliament.uk. Retrieved 10 May 2021.
^ Charles Mosley. Burke's Peerage and Baronetage. Vol. 2 (107 ed.). p. 1989.
Cambridge University Annual Register 1968-69. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. 1969. p. 1050.
"No. 54812". The London Gazette. 20 June 1997. p. 7187.
"The 'bad news' report that helped build today's railway". Railnews. 1 September 2008. Retrieved 18 February 2017.
Rogers, Roy (21 January 1983). "Hostile reception for Serpell options". The Glasgow Herald. Retrieved 15 February 2017.
"Sir David Serpell". The Telegraph. 6 August 2008. Retrieved 22 February 2017.
"Sir David Serpell". The Scotsman. 11 August 2008. Retrieved 22 February 2017.
"Lord Howell of Guildford - UK Parliament". parliament.uk. Retrieved 9 May 2015.
^ "The Rt Hon Lord Howell of Guildford is President of the Royal Commonwealth Society and '. The 'Council of Commonwealth Societies'- GOV.UK". gov.uk. Retrieved 9 May 2015.
"Lord Howell of Guildford - MPs and Lords". UK Parliament. Retrieved 28 August 2023.
"George Osborne accused of secret war on PM's green policies as father-in-law is caught on video". The Independent. Retrieved 9 May 2015.
"Lord Howell of Guildford appointed President of the EIC". www.worldoil.com. Retrieved 3 November 2015.
"Lords Hansard text for 30 July 2013 (pt 0001)". publications.parliament.uk. Retrieved 9 May 2015.
"Latest news from around Great Britain - MSN News UK". news.uk.msn.com. Archived from the original on 14 July 2014. Retrieved 9 May 2015.
"Parliamentary career for Lord Howell of Guildford - MPs and Lords - UK Parliament". www.parliament.uk. Retrieved 9 December 2022.
Debrett's Peerage. 2019. p. 3085.

Bibliography

Charles Mosley, editor, Burke's Peerage, Baronetage & Knightage, 107th edition, 3 volumes (Wilmington, Delaware, U.S.A.: Burke's Peerage (Genealogical Books) Ltd, 2003), volume 1, pages 51 and 456.
Charles Mosley, Burke's Peerage and Baronetage, 107th edition, volume 2, page 1989.
Harris OBE, Robin (2013). Not for Turning: Margaret Thatcher. London.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
Thatcher, Margaret. Path to Power. London.
Thatcher, Margaret. Downing Street Years. London.
Thatcher, Margaret (2014). The Iron Lady. London.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)

External links

Hansard 1803–2005: contributions in Parliament by David Howell
"David Arthur Russell Howell". geneall.net. Retrieved 9 May 2015.
Media related to David Howell (politician) at Wikimedia Commons

Parliament of the United Kingdom
Preceded byGeorge Nugent	Member of Parliament for Guildford 1966–1997	Succeeded byNick St Aubyn
Political offices
Preceded byTony Benn	Secretary of State for Energy 1979–1981	Succeeded byNigel Lawson
Preceded byNorman Fowler	Secretary of State for Transport 1981–1983	Succeeded byTom King
Orders of precedence in the United Kingdom
Preceded byThe Lord Jopling	Gentlemen Baron Howell of Guildford	Followed byThe Lord Steel of Aikwood

v t e Energy secretaries of the United Kingdom
Ministers of Fuel, Light and Power	Gwilym Lloyd George Manny Shinwell Hugh Gaitskell Philip Noel-Baker
Minister of Co-ordination of Transport, Fuel and Power	Frederik Leathers
Ministers of Fuel and Power	Geoffrey Lloyd Aubrey Jones
Ministers of Power	Percy Mills Richard Wood Frederick Erroll
Ministers of Technology	Frank Cousins Tony Benn
Secretaries of State for Trade and Industry	John Davies Peter Walker
Secretaries of State for Energy	Peter Lord Carrington Eric Varley Tony Benn David Howell Nigel Lawson Peter Walker Cecil Parkinson John Wakeham
Presidents of the Board of Trade and Secretaries of State for Trade and Industry	Michael Heseltine Ian Lang Margaret Beckett Peter Mandelson Stephen Byers Patricia Hewitt Alan Johnson Alistair Darling
Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform	John Hutton
Secretaries of State for Energy and Climate Change	Ed Miliband Chris Huhne Ed Davey Amber Rudd
Secretaries of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy	Greg Clark Andrea Leadsom Alok Sharma Kwasi Kwarteng Jacob Rees-Mogg Grant Shapps Kemi Badenoch

v t e Secretaries of state for transport of the United Kingdom
Bill Rodgers Norman Fowler (Minister of Transport 1979-1981, Secretary of State for Transport 1981) David Howell Tom King Nicholas Ridley John Moore Paul Channon Cecil Parkinson Malcolm Rifkind John MacGregor Brian Mawhinney George Young John Prescott (as Secretary of State for Environment, Transport and the Regions) Stephen Byers (as Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions) Alistair Darling Douglas Alexander Ruth Kelly Geoff Hoon Andrew, Lord Adonis Philip Hammond Justine Greening Patrick McLoughlin Chris Grayling Grant Shapps Anne-Marie Trevelyan Mark Harper Louise Haigh Heidi Alexander

v t e Thatcher Cabinet
Margaret Thatcher Humphrey Atkins Kenneth Baker Lord Belstead John Biffen Leon Brittan Peter Brooke Mark Carlisle Lord Carrington Paul Channon Kenneth Clarke Lord Cockfield Nicholas Edwards Norman Fowler Sir Ian Gilmour Lord Gowrie John Gummer Lord Havers Lord Hailsham Michael Heseltine Michael Howard Sir Geoffrey Howe David Howell David Hunt Douglas Hurd Patrick Jenkin Michael Jopling Sir Keith Joseph Tom King Norman Lamont Nigel Lawson Peter Lilley John MacGregor James Mackay John Major Angus Maude John Moore Tony Newton John Nott Cecil Parkinson Chris Patten Jim Prior Francis Pym Peter Rees Nicholas Ridley Malcolm Rifkind Lord Soames Norman St John-Stevas Norman Tebbit David Waddington John Wakeham William Waldegrave Peter Walker William Whitelaw Lord Young of Graffham Baroness Young George Younger

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