Michael Ancram.com

Michael married Jane Fitzalan Howard in June 1975. Clare was born in 1979, and Mary two years later in 1981. A keen folk singer and guitar player, Michael busked his way around Italy during his student holidays. Known to his friends as "Crumb", Michael has written many articles for publication in the national press, in addition to a private collection of writings including many poems and short stories dating from the sixties to the present day. Michael was born on 7th July 1945 in London. Educated at Ampleforth College, Christ Church Oxford (MA) and Edinburgh University (LLB), he was called to the Scottish Bar in 1970. Michael practised law until the beginning of 1974 when he contested and won the seat of Berwickshire and East Lothian in the General Election of that year, becoming the first Conservative Catholic Member of Parliament in Scotland since the Reformation. Michael lost the seat in the General Election the following October, the second that year, and returned to the Bar until 1979 when he became Member of Parliament for Edinburgh South.

From 1979 until 1983, Michael was a member of the House of Commons Energy Select Committee, in addition to being Chairman of the Scottish Conservative Party from 1980 until 1983. He was Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State at the Scottish Office with responsibility for Home Affairs, Housing, Local Government, Rating Reform and the Environment from 1983 to 1987, when he lost his seat.

In 1992, Michael moved to Wiltshire as Member of Parliament for Devizes. He was a member of the Public Accounts Committee and Chairman of the Backbench Constitutional Affairs Committee from 1992 until May 1993. At that time he was appointed Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State at the Northern Ireland Office, and in January 1994 was appointed Minister of State at the same office. As such, he was responsible for the negotiations leading to the Northern Ireland Peace Process, and was the first British minister to meet with Sinn Fein and the IRA for 25 years.

Michael was made a Privy Counsellor in January 1996, and a QC later that year. He was appointed to the Shadow Cabinet with responsibility for Constitutional Affairs in 1997, a position he held until 1998 when he became Deputy Party Chairman. In October 1998 Michael was made Chairman of the Conservative Party. Following the General Election in June 2001, he was a candidate in the Conservative Party leadership election and in September 2001 was appointed Deputy Leader of the Opposition and Shadow Secretary of State for Foreign & Commonwealth Affairs. In 2005 he was appointed Shadow Secretary of State for Defence and remained Deputy Leader.

Alongside politics and the law, Michael has been involved in farming as a partner in an arable tenanted farm in the Scottish Borders. During his time out of Parliament, from 1987 until 1992, he held non-executive directorships in companies ranging from Corporate Communications to Paper Recycling. He was also heavily involved in the Housing Association movement, and Environmental Medicine. His hobbies, alongside folk singing, include photography and skiing. As a student, Michael raced with the British University Ski Team for three years. Amongst family and friends he is known best for his Buddy Holly impressions, and his continuing agility in the Parliamentary Ski Races in Switzerland each year.

In accordance with Michael Ancram's statement at the Party Conference in October, he stepped down from the front bench on 6 December 2005.


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