- Born
- Birth nameWilliam Jefferson Hague
- Height5′ 10″ (1.78 m)
- William Jefferson Hague was born on 26 March 1961 in Rotherham, Yorkshire. He was educated at Wath-upon-Deane Comprehensive School and was regarded by many of his teachers as a model pupil - hard-working, well behaved and a credit to the school. It was during his youth that he developed his passion for Conservativism. Aged just 16, he addressed the 1977 Conservative Party Conference with a spirit, humour and conviction that led then Conservative leader Margaret Thatcher to describe him as the next William Pitt. His academic success made it possible for him to study at Magdalen College, Oxford. He went into politics, was elected Conservative Member for Richmond and served in John Major's cabinet as Welsh Secretary (during which time he met his future wife, Ffion). After the Conservatives' landslide defeat at the hands of New Labour in 1997, John Major resigned as Tory leader. In the resultant leadership election, William, aged just 36, was chosen to lead the party. As leader, William failed to dent Prime Minister Tony Blair's consistently high public ratings. He also became ridiculed for a series of misjudgments, such as his decision to wear a baseball cap to appeal to young voters, his boast that he had regularly drunk 14 pints of beer a day as a young man, his judo sessions and his wisecracking comments at Prime Minister's Questions. He fought the 2001 General Election on the issues of keeping the pound and rejecting the European Single Currency, locking up all asylum seekers and lowering the tax burden. His failure to make any clear commitments to better public services was regarded by many as severely damaging to his election chances. On June 7, the Conservatives were resoundingly beaten by the Labour Party for a second successive time. Although he was re-elected to his Richmond seat, Hague resigned as Tory leader the next day. He became only the second Conservative Party leader in the history of British politics never to serve as Prime Minister. His future is uncertain, although careers in either enterprise or broadcasting are realistic possibilities.- IMDb Mini Biography By: Anonymous
- SpouseFfion Hague(December 19, 1997 - present)
- Publically throwing in the Towel on the Drugs War
- Declared his support for Iain Duncan Smith in the Conservative Party leadership contest, which was brought about by his resignation after the 2001 election defeat.
- Conservative Party Leader 1997-2001. Conservative MP for Richmond (North Yorkshire) 1989- .
- Served as Secretary of State for Wales in John Major's government in 1995. Civil Servant Ffion Jenkins was hired to teach him Welsh. They married in December 1997.
- Baron Hague of Richmond in the Peerage of Great-Britain and Northern-Ireland (9 October 2015), Her Majesty's Most Honourable Privy Council (unknown date 2015), Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature (unknown date 2009), Grand-Cordon of the Order of the Rising Sun of Japan (unknown date 2017).
- The whole Nation is deeply concerned about Deirdre Rachid.
- My greatest personal setback was a blocked nose from sinusitis two years ago (1999). I'm an incredibly lucky person. I have a stable family. I have my friends from school, university and management consultancy. I never wanted to rebel - not even to roll a cigarette. Why would I want to rebel against being in a nice family? I've never wanted mind-altering drugs. The Hagues are all well-balanced and healthy; we're not a self-obsessed bunch.
- I don't have any regrets or grudges. Nothing's ever gone wrong in my life. I'm hugely looking forward to polling day. I am going to roar into this campaign. It sounds soppy, but it [my happiest moment so far] was my wedding day. I hardly thought about politics. Winning Richmond at 27 was pretty good, too. That's 12 years ago today.
- I knew exactly who I was at 18.
- I've never threatened to resign. I'm constant in my determination. I'm naturally upbeat.
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