Jack Straw

British politician (born 1946)

John Whitaker 'Jack' Straw (born 3 August 1946 in Buckhurst Hill, Essex, England) is a British politician. He held several Cabinet posts in the Labour government under Tony Blair and Gordon Brown.[1] He is the Member of Parliament (MP) for the constituency of Blackburn.


Jack Straw

Shadow Deputy Prime Minister of the United Kingdom
In office
11 May 2010 – 7 October 2010
LeaderHarriet Harman
Preceded byWilliam Hague (Senior Member of the Shadow Cabinet)
Succeeded byHarriet Harman
Shadow Secretary of State for Justice
Shadow Lord Chancellor
In office
11 May 2010 – 7 October 2010
LeaderHarriet Harman
Ed Miliband
Preceded byDominic Grieve
Succeeded bySadiq Khan
Secretary of State for Justice
Lord Chancellor
In office
28 June 2007 – 11 May 2010
Prime MinisterGordon Brown
Preceded byThe Lord Falconer of Thoroton
Succeeded byKenneth Clarke
Leader of the House of Commons
Lord Privy Seal
In office
5 May 2006 – 28 June 2007
Prime MinisterTony Blair
Preceded byGeoff Hoon
Succeeded byHarriet Harman
Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs
In office
8 June 2001 – 5 May 2006
Prime MinisterTony Blair
Preceded byRobin Cook
Succeeded byMargaret Beckett
Home Secretary
In office
2 May 1997 – 8 June 2001
Prime MinisterTony Blair
Preceded byMichael Howard
Succeeded byDavid Blunkett
Shadow Home Secretary
In office
20 October 1994 – 2 May 1997
LeaderTony Blair
Preceded byTony Blair
Succeeded byMichael Howard
Shadow Secretary of State for the Environment
In office
24 July 1992 – 20 October 1994
LeaderJohn Smith
Preceded byBryan Gould
Succeeded byFrank Dobson
Shadow Secretary of State for Education and Science
In office
13 July 1987 – 18 July 1992
LeaderNeil Kinnock
Preceded byGiles Radice
Succeeded byAnn Taylor (Education)
Member of Parliament
for Blackburn
In office
3 May 1979 – 30 March 2015
Preceded byBarbara Castle
Succeeded byKate Hollern
Majority9,856 (21.7%)
Personal details
Born
John Whitaker Straw

(1946-08-03) 3 August 1946 (age 77)
Buckhurst Hill, Essex, United Kingdom
Political partyLabour
Spouse(s)Anthea Weston (1968–1977)
Alice Perkins (1978–present)
ChildrenDaughter (deceased), son, daughter
Alma materUniversity of Leeds
Inns of Court

Jack Straw became a Labour Party MP at the 1979 General Election for the constituency of Blackburn. He was promoted to the shadow cabinet in 1987 and became the Home Secretary when Labour returned to power in 1997.[2] His other cabinet posts included: Foreign Secretary (2001-2006), Leader of the House of Commons (2006-2007) and Justice Secretary (2007-2010). He did not choose to become a member of Ed Miliband's shadow cabinet.

Personal life change

Straw's first marriage, in 1968, to teacher Anthea Weston ended in divorce in 1977. They had a daughter, Rachel, born on 24 February 1976.[3] She died after five days because of a heart defect.

Straw is of Jewish descent (his maternal great-grandmother was from an Eastern-European Jewish family). He himself is Christian.[4][5]

On 10 November 1978 he married Alice Perkins, a senior civil servant.[6] They have two adult children, William and Charlotte.[7]

He supports his local football club Blackburn Rovers.[8] He was made an Honorary Vice President of Blackburn Rovers in 1998 by Jack Walker.[9]

Straw has tinnitus.[10]

References change

  1. Kettle, Martin (28 July 2008). "Clutching at Straw". The Guardian. London. Retrieved 14 September 2009.
  2. "Straw on trial over jury reform". BBC News. 19 November 1999. Retrieved 5 May 2010.
  3. "Search". www.ancestry.co.uk.
  4. Straw, Jack (2012-09-27). Last Man Standing: Memoirs of a Political Survivor. Pan Macmillan. ISBN 978-1-4472-2277-4.
  5. "Archived copy". www.thejc.com. Archived from the original on 2023-02-16. Retrieved 2023-02-15.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  6. Joe Murphy (19 June 2001). "Cabinet's own marriage failures force retreat on traditional wedlock". The Daily Telegraph. London. Archived from the original on 1 March 2009. Retrieved 2 August 2008.
  7. Colin Hughes (24 July 1999). "Jack Straw: Jack of all tirades". The Guardian. London. Retrieved 17 January 2012.
  8. "Famous Football Fans". Archived from the original on 2012-06-26. Retrieved 2012-08-16.
  9. "Jack Straw". Trusupporter. 12 October 1991. Archived from the original on 17 July 2011. Retrieved 26 March 2010.
  10. "Hoping for the sound of silence". Archived from the original on 2012-03-05. Retrieved 2012-08-16.