Geoffrey Howe

The Lord Howe of Aberavon
photograph
Howe in 1985
Deputy Prime Minister of the United Kingdom
In office
24 July 1989 – 1 November 1990
Prime MinisterMargaret Thatcher
Preceded byThe Viscount Whitelaw (de facto; 1988)
Succeeded byMichael Heseltine (1995)
In office
24 July 1989 – 1 November 1990
Prime MinisterMargaret Thatcher
Preceded byJohn Wakeham
Succeeded byJohn MacGregor
Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs
In office
11 June 1983 – 24 July 1989
Prime MinisterMargaret Thatcher
Preceded byFrancis Pym
Succeeded byJohn Major
Chancellor of the Exchequer
In office
4 May 1979 – 11 June 1983
Prime MinisterMargaret Thatcher
Preceded byDenis Healey
Succeeded byNigel Lawson
Shadow Chancellor of the Exchequer
In office
18 February 1975 – 4 May 1979
LeaderMargaret Thatcher
Preceded byRobert Carr
Succeeded byDenis Healey
Shadow Secretary of State for Health and Social Services
In office
11 March 1974 – 18 February 1975
LeaderEdward Heath
Preceded byKeith Joseph
Succeeded byNorman Fowler
Junior ministerial offices 1970‍–‍1974
Minister of State for Trade and Consumer Affairs
In office
5 November 1972 – 4 March 1974
Prime MinisterEdward Heath
Preceded byMichael Noble
Succeeded byEric Deakins
Solicitor General for England and Wales
In office
23 June 1970 – 5 November 1972
Prime MinisterEdward Heath
Preceded byArthur Irvine
Succeeded byMichael Havers
Parliamentary offices
Member of the House of Lords
Life peerage
30 June 1992 – 19 May 2015
Member of Parliament
for East Surrey
In office
28 February 1974 – 16 March 1992
Preceded byWilliam Clark
Succeeded byPeter Ainsworth
Member of Parliament
for Reigate
In office
18 June 1970 – 8 February 1974
Preceded byJohn Vaughan-Morgan
Succeeded byGeorge Gardiner
Member of Parliament
for Bebington
In office
15 October 1964 – 10 March 1966
Preceded byHendrie Oakshott
Succeeded byEdwin Brooks
Personal details
Born
Richard Edward Geoffrey Howe

(1926-12-20)20 December 1926
Port Talbot, Glamorgan, Wales
Died9 October 2015(2015-10-09) (aged 88)
Idlicote, Warwickshire, England
Political partyConservative
Spouse
(m. 1953)
Children3
Education
Alma materUniversity of Cambridge
Occupation
  • Barrister
  • politician
Signature
Military service
Branch/serviceBritish Army
RankLieutenant
UnitRoyal Corps of Signals

Richard Edward Geoffrey Howe, Baron Howe of Aberavon, CH, PC, QC (20 December 1926 – 9 October 2015), known from 1970 to 1992 as Sir Geoffrey Howe, was a British politician who served as Deputy Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1989 to 1990. A member of the Conservative Party, he was Margaret Thatcher's longest-serving Cabinet minister, successively holding the posts of chancellor of the Exchequer, foreign secretary, and finally leader of the House of Commons, deputy prime minister and lord president of the Council. His resignation on 1 November 1990 is widely considered to have precipitated the leadership challenge that led to Thatcher's resignation three weeks later.

Born in Port Talbot, Wales, Howe was educated at Bridgend Preparatory School, Abberley Hall School, Winchester College, and – after serving in the army as a lieutenant – Trinity Hall, Cambridge, where he read law. He was called to the bar in 1952 and practised in Wales, after which he was elected as the Conservative member of Parliament (MP) for Bebington in 1964, but lost his seat in 1966, returning to the bar. Howe became an MP again at the 1970 general election and represented various constituencies in the House of Commons until 1992. In Edward Heath's government, he was solicitor general and a minister of state; after Labour's victory in 1974, Howe became the shadow chancellor of the Exchequer in Margaret Thatcher's shadow cabinet.

Howe became Chancellor of the Exchequer upon Thatcher's victory in the 1979 general election, with his tenure characterised by a programme of radical policies intended to restore the public finances, reduce inflation and liberalise the economy. As chancellor, Howe delivered five budgets. After the 1983 general election, Howe was appointed foreign secretary, serving six years. In 1989, Thatcher replaced Howe with John Major, giving Howe the role of deputy prime minister. He resigned from the government on 1 November 1990; in his resignation letter, he criticised Thatcher's handling of relations with the EEC and further attacked Thatcher in his resignation speech to the Commons on 13 November. The speech was widely seen as the key catalyst for the leadership challenge mounted by Michael Heseltine a few days later, which led to Thatcher's resignation and her replacement by Major.

Howe retired as an MP in 1992 and was made a life peer in June of that year. Following his retirement from the Commons, Howe took on several non-executive directorships in business and advisory posts in law and academia. He retired from the House of Lords in May 2015 and died in October of the same year, aged 88.