Peter Brooke, Baron Brooke of Sutton Mandeville

This article is about the 20th century politician. For the 17th century MP, see Peter Brooke (MP). For the British theatrical producer and director, see Peter Brook.

The Right Honourable The Lord Brooke of Sutton Mandeville CH PC
Secretary of State for National Heritage
In office 22 September 1992 – 20 July 1994
Prime Minister	John Major
Preceded by	David Mellor
Succeeded by	Stephen Dorrell
Secretary of State for Northern Ireland
In office 24 July 1989 – 10 April 1992
Prime Minister	Margaret Thatcher John Major
Preceded by	Tom King
Succeeded by	Patrick Mayhew
Paymaster General
In office 13 July 1987 – 24 July 1989
Prime Minister	Margaret Thatcher
Preceded by	Kenneth Clarke
Succeeded by	The Earl of Caithness
Chairman of the Conservative Party
In office 13 July 1987 – 24 July 1989
Prime Minister	Margaret Thatcher
Preceded by	Norman Tebbit
Succeeded by	Kenneth Baker
Member of Parliament for Cities of London and Westminster City of London and Westminster South (1977-1997)
In office 1 May 1997 – 7 June 2001
Preceded by	Christopher Tugendhat
Succeeded by	Mark Field
Personal details
Born	3 March 1934 (1934-03-03)
Political party	Conservative
Alma mater	Balliol College, Oxford Harvard Business School

Peter Leonard Brooke, Baron Brooke of Sutton Mandeville, CH, PC (born 3 March 1934), is a British politician. A member of the Conservative Party, he served in the Cabinet under Prime Ministers Margaret Thatcher and John Major, and was a Member of Parliament (MP) representing the Cities of London and Westminster from 1977-2001.

He is the son of Henry Brooke, Baron Brooke of Cumnor, a former Home Secretary, and Barbara Brooke, Baroness Brooke of Ystradfellte. (His parents were one of the few married couples where both partners held noble titles in their own right.) He was educated at Marlborough College and Balliol College, Oxford, (where he was President of the Oxford Union) before going on to the Harvard Business School in the United States. After leaving university he worked as a headhunter and was Chairman of Spencer Stuart.

He was elected as MP for the Cities of London and Westminster in 1977. He was sworn of the Privy Council in 1988. He was made Chairman of the Conservative Party in 1987, and then Secretary of State for Northern Ireland in 1989. He remained in this position until the reshuffle after the 1992 general election. After the 1992 general election, Brooke left the Cabinet and stood unsuccessfully for the position of Speaker of the House of Commons. (The House instead elected the Labour MP Betty Boothroyd to the role, with several Conservative MPs voting against Brooke on the grounds that he had too recently been in the Cabinet and was thus not sufficiently close to the backbenches.) Brooke then remained on the backbenches for a short time before being brought back into the Cabinet later in the year as Secretary of State for National Heritage, a role he held until 1994. During his time as Heritage Secretary, he oversaw the restoration of Windsor Castle following the fire that had struck the state apartments in 1992.

Brooke stepped down as an MP at the 2001 general election and was made a life peer as Baron Brooke of Sutton Mandeville of Sutton Mandeville in the County of Wiltshire in October 2001. He was Chairman of the Association of Conservative Peers. He was appointed Companion of Honour, as his father had been, in 1992.

References

• Leigh Rayment's Historical List of MPs

External links

• Hansard 1803–2005: contributions in Parliament by Peter Brooke

Parliament of the United Kingdom
Preceded by Christopher Tugendhat	Member of Parliament for the City of London and Westminster South 1977–1997	Constituency abolished
New constituency	Member of Parliament for the Cities of London and Westminster 1997–2001	Succeeded by Mark Field
Party political offices
Preceded by Norman Tebbit	Chairman of the Conservative Party 1987–1989	Succeeded by Kenneth Baker
Political offices
Preceded by Kenneth Clarke	Paymaster General 1987–1989	Succeeded by The Earl of Caithness
Preceded by Tom King	Secretary of State for Northern Ireland 1989–1992	Succeeded by Patrick Mayhew
Preceded by David Mellor	Secretary of State for National Heritage 1992–1994	Succeeded by Stephen Dorrell