Patricia Hewitt Totally Explained

Everything about Patricia Hewitt totally explained

Patricia Hope Hewitt (born 2 December 1948) is a British politician. She is the Labour Member of Parliament (MP) for Leicester West and the former Secretary of State for Health.

Background

Born in Canberra, Australia, she's the daughter of Sir Lenox Hewitt, a leading civil servant in the Australian Prime Minister's Office and later chairman of Qantas. She was educated at the Canberra Girls' Grammar School, and the Australian National University. She went on to study at both Newnham College, Cambridge and Nuffield College, Oxford where she was awarded two master's degrees. She speaks French and is a keen gardener.
Initially a Conservative - her first husband was the son of a Conservative MP - she moved to the left, becoming a committed equality activist and feminist. In 1981, she married William (Bill) Jack Birtles, a lawyer, in Camden; they've a son (born February 1988) and a daughter (born September 1986). In 1971, she became Age Concern's Press and Public Relations Officer, before joining the UK's National Council for Civil Liberties (now Liberty) initially as a women's rights officer in 1973, and for nine years from 1974 as the General Secretary. She endured long-term surveillance by MI5 because of this, branded a "Communist sympathiser" by MI5 because of her relationship with Birtles in the 1970's.. In 1990 the Council of Europe ruled that this surveillance had breached the European Convention of Human Rights. She was a member of the advisory panel of the New Statesman magazine for ten years from 1980, and is a former school governor at the Kentish Town Primary School.

Pre-Parliamentary career

Hewitt joined the Labour Party in the 1970s, and was initially a follower of Tony Benn; she publicly condemned those left-wing MPs who abstained in the deputy leadership election of 1981, giving Denis Healey a narrow victory. She was selected as the Labour candidate in Leicester East constituency at the 1983 General Election following the defection of the sitting Labour MP Tom Bradley to the Social Democratic Party. Bradley stood for the SDP at the election, but it was the Conservative candidate Peter Bruinvels who beat Hewitt into second place by just 933 votes.
Following her defeat in Leicester, she became press secretary to the Leader of the Opposition Neil Kinnock. (She had sent a letter to Kinnock lobbying for the role, she sent an identical letter to Kinnock's opponent in the Labour leadership election, Roy Hattersley ). In this role she was a key player in the first stages of the modernisation of the Labour Party, and along with Lord Hollick, helped set up the Institute for Public Policy Research and was its deputy director 1989-1994. She became head of research with Andersen Consulting 1994-1997.
Hewitt was elected to the House of Commons as the first female MP for Leicester West at the 1997 General Election following the retirement of the veteran Labour MP Greville Janner. She was elected with a majority of 12,864 and has remained the MP there since. She made her maiden speech on July 3, 1997. Patricia Hewitt's seat of Leicester West is considered a safe Labour Seat with a majority of 9,070 votes in the 2005 General Election.

Parliamentary career

In Parliament she served for a year as a member of the social security select committee from 1997 before becoming a member of the government of Tony Blair in his first reshuffle in 1998 as the Economic Secretary to the Treasury. She was promoted in 1999 to become a Minister of State for Small Business and E-Commerce at the Department for Trade and Industry.
She joined the Blair Cabinet for the first time following the 2001 General Election as the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry and Minister for Women and Equality. She spent four years in this post and was seen as a fairly effective Trade and Industry Secretary; she was then moved sideways to Health Secretary in May 2005.
Hewitt was known as a reliable Blairite within the cabinet. However, she notably once broke ranks whilst live on the BBC's Question Time, expressing her concern about government plans to introduce ID cards. She ruled herself out of the Deputy Leadership of the Labour Party, declaring her support for Harriet Harman, who was the successful candidate.

Secretary of State for Health

She became a member of the Privy Council in 2001 and was appointed Secretary of State for Health following the 2005 General Election. She was tipped for Work and Pensions before this. She had a turbulent two years in office, with several issues arising, such as controversy over the Medical Training Application Service computer system. However, she also achieved several things during her time in office, including persuading MPs to vote for a complete smoking ban in public places in England. On 27 June 2007 it was announced that Hewitt wouldn't be Health Secretary in Gordon Brown's new cabinet, an announcement which had been widely expected.
As Health Secretary, Hewitt lobbied hard for a complete ban on smoking in public places, which has now been passed and came into force on 1 July 2007. Her predecessor, John Reid had been in favour of limiting the Government's proposed smoking ban as much as possible, and in Labour's 2005 election manifesto had introduced only a limited pledge, proposing to only ban smoking in places where food was served. Even though he'd been moved to Secretary of State for Defence, Reid was the main opponent of her proposals, and a leading figure in the decision of the Cabinet to grant an exemption for private clubs and pubs that didn't serve food . However, the exemption in the Cabinet proposals didn't find favour with MPs and the Government gave them a free vote on the issue. Patricia Hewitt voted with the rebels to defeat the Cabinet's partial ban, which was replaced by the outright ban which she'd always wanted .
In April 2006, Patricia Hewitt made a speech in which she said the NHS had had "its best year ever", citing a decrease in waiting times for hospital treatment. However, this claim came at a time when thousands of jobs were being cut across the country as a number of NHS trusts attempted to cope with budget deficits. This comment didn't go down well therefore, and at the Royal College of Nursing 2006 Congress in Bournemouth, Hewitt was heckled and booed by health workers. Delegates at the conference called for job cuts and bed closures, part of planned NHS reforms aimed at improving the effectiveness of the service, to be halted, predicting that the number of posts lost could reach 13,000, and said a work to rule was possible. BMA chairman Mr. James Johnson claimed 2006 was actually one of the worst years on record and that "2006 has been full of bleak moments for the NHS - job losses, training budgets slashed, trusts delaying operations in order to save money and hospital closures announced at the same time as new PFI developments. Added to this the government’s fixation with introducing the private sector into primary care which risks destabilising the well-respected UK system of general practice. "

Sex Discrimination

In September 2005, a Judicial Review found Hewitt "guilty of unlawful sex discrimination" when she employed a female applicant for a DTI position ahead of a significantly stronger male candidate. The judge ruled that Malcolm Hanney had lost out to a candidate ranked third by the interview panel and that the failure to appoint him was "in breach of the code of practice for ministerial appointments to public bodies". Hewitt had quoted the Code of Practice on Public Appointments, which said: "Ministers will wish to balance boards in terms of diversity as well as skills and experience.", though the panel had clearly stated that Mr Hanney was "much the strongest candidate". The DTI apologised and Hanney was awarded £17,967.17 costs. The appointment wasn't overturned however.
   The case was particularly notable because Hewitt was Minister for Women and Equality at the time and had therefore breached the sex discrimination laws which she was herself responsible for. Additionally, she herself had often complained about the problem of career sexism, yet had now been found guilty of such discrimination herself.
   Further evidence of sexism by Hewitt came in a 1995 publication titled Transforming Men, where she questioned the very notion of "whether we can trust men with children". She came to the conclusion that it may well be necessary to introduce the practice of "not leaving men on their own with groups of children" in environments such a schools in order to prevent abuse. Critics such as Geoff Dench condemned Hewitt's statements for discouraging male carers entering the profession by insinuating that they were on permanent probation.
   Hewitt also caused controversy when she criticised mothers who care for their children themselves. A 2003 report by the Women and Equality unit which was run by Hewitt stated that there was a "real problem’ with mothers who stayed at home to bring up their children.

Confrontation, controversy and eventual downfall

In January 2007, Patricia Hewitt criticised the pay of general practitioners (GPs) which had increased to an average of £106,000 per annum as a result of the contract the government implemented in 2004. Her department claimed that GPs had unfairly taken money out of their practices, when the new contract was actually intended to increase investment in practices, although statements from Lord Warner in 2004 appear to contradict this claim. He said that "The better services GPs provide, the more pay that'll receive, as rewards will be directly linked with patients' experiences." .
   On 17 March 2007 over 12,000 doctors went to London to take part in a march objecting to the 'Medical Training Application Service' (MTAS), a job application system for junior doctors, currently under investigation by the Department of Health, and 'Modernising Medical Careers' . Joining the march, the Conservative Leader of the Opposition David Cameron claimed that there were people in parliament who had described Hewitt as the "worst Health Secretary in the history of the NHS"
   On 23 May 2007 Hewitt comfortably survived a vote of no confidence in the House of Commons led by the Conservatives, winning by 63 votes. A large number of her cabinet colleagues joined her on the front bench to express solidarity. Despite this, pressure continued to mount on her to resign as Health Secretary.
   On 3 April 2007 Patricia Hewitt apologised on the Today programme of BBC Radio 4 saying that the application scheme had caused terrible anxiety for junior doctors. The change offered by the government to the scheme wasn't accepted by the BMA however, and she was accused of failing to express genuine regret by Andrew Lansley, the Conservative Shadow Minister for Health. Hewitt also made another apology on 1 May 2007 in the House of Commons after the suspension of the MTAS website due to security breaches which she called "utterly deplorable". .
   Front line health workers also lobbied against Hewitt, sending her petitions opposing cuts to the NHS and privatisation plans which the Department of Health wished to follow up A survey from October 2006 showed only 37% of workers from the Department of Health were confident in the leadership provided by Hewitt, compared to 57% across Whitehall.
   Despite constant criticism, Hewitt managed to balance the books of the NHS, which had previously been in huge debt. After having vowed to resign should the NHS complete another year with debts, Hewitt ensured that the Health Service ended 2006/2007 with a £510 million surplus. However to do this she was forced to cut 17,000 jobs, cut public health spending, although that was previously at a high level, and reduce study budgets for NHS staff. As of June 2007, one in five NHS hospital trusts are still in debt. On 27 June 2007, with the appointment of Gordon Brown as Prime Minister, she announced her retirement from frontline politics, citing 'personal reasons'. On resigning from the cabinet, Ms Hewitt was asked by the Prime Minister to head an EU manifesto group, developing European policy for the next general election manifesto.

Voting Record

How Patricia Hewitt voted on key issues since 2001 (from They Work For You

Has never voted on a transparent Parliament.
Voted for introducing a smoking ban.
Voted for introducing ID cards.
Voted for introducing foundation hospitals.
Voted for introducing student top-up fees.
Voted for Labour's anti-terrorism laws.
Voted for the Iraq war.
Voted against investigating the Iraq war.
Voted for replacing Trident.
Voted for the hunting ban.
Voted for equal gay rights.

After Cabinet - Consultancies and Directorships

In January 2008, it was announced that Hewitt had been appointed "special consultant" to the world's largest chemists, Alliance Boots. Hewitt will also become the "special adviser" to private equity company Cinven, which paid £1.4billion for Bupa's UK hospitals.
In March 2008, it was announced that Hewitt will join the BT Group board as a non-executive director.

Publications

Your Rights by Patricia Hewitt, 1973, Age Concern Books, Age Concern England, ISBN 0-904502-08-2

Danger Women at Work: Conference Report Edited by Patricia Hewitt, National Council for Civil Liberties, ISBN 0-901108-30-8

Equality for Women: Comments on Labour's Proposals for an Anti-Discrimination Law, Edited by Patricia Hewitt, National Council for Civil Liberties, ISBN 0-901108-33-2

Step-by-Step Guide to Rights for Women by Patricia Hewitt, 1975, National Council for Civil Liberties, ISBN 0-901108-49-9

Your Rights by Patriica Hewitt, 1976, Age Concern Books, Age Concern England, ISBN 0-904502-62-7

'Your Rights: For Pensioners by Patricia Hewitt, 1976, Age Concern Books, Age Concern England, ISBN 0-904502-66-X

Civil Liberties by Patricia Hewitt, 1977

The Privacy Report by Patricia Hewitt, 1977

Privacy: The Information Gatherers" by Patricia Hewitt, 1978, National Council for Civil Liberties, ISBN 0-901108-68-5

Your Rights at Work by Patricia Hewitt, 1978, National Council for Civil Liberties, ISBN 0-901108-71-5

Computers, Records and the Right to Privacy by Patricia Hewitt, 1979, Input Two-Nine, ISBN 0-905897-27-7

Income Tax and Sex Discrimination: Practical Guide by Patricia Hewitt, 1979, Civil Liberties Trust, ISBN 0-901108-84-7

Your Rights at Work by Patricia Hewitt, 1980, National Council for Civil Liberties, ISBN 0-901108-88-X

Prevention of Terrorism Act: The Case for Repeal by Catherine Scorer and Patricia Hewitt, 1981, National Council for Civil Liberties, ISBN 0-901108-94-4

The Abuse of Power: Civil Liberties in the United Kingdom by Patricia Hewitt, 1981, Blackwell Publishers, ISBN 0-85520-380-3

A Fair Cop: Reforming the Police Complaints Procedure by Patricia Hewitt, 1982, Civil Liberties Trust, ISBN 0-946088-01-2

Race Relations: A Practical Guide to the Law on Race Discrimination by Paul Gordon, John Wright, Patricia Hewitt, 1982, Civil Liberties Trust, ISBN 0-946088-02-0

Your Rights: For Pensioners by Patricia Hewitt, 1982, Age Concern England, ISBN 0-86242-014-8

Your Rights at Work by Patricia Hewitt, 1983, National Council for Civil Liberties, ISBN 0-946088-06-3

Your Rights: For Pensioners by Patricia Hewitt, 1984, Age Concern England, ISBN 0-86242-029-6

The New Prevention of Terrorism Act: The Case for Repeal by Catherine Scorer, Sarah Spencer, Patricia Hewitt, 1985, Civil Liberties Trust, ISBN 0-946088-13-6

Your Rights: For Pensioners by Patricia Hewitt, 1986, Age Concern England, ISBN 0-86242-047-4

A Cleaner, Faster London: Road Pricing, Transport Policy and the Environment by Patricia Hewitt, 1989, Institute for Public Policy Research, ISBN 1-872452-00-0

Women's Votes: The Key to Winning Edited by Patricia Hewitt and Deborah Mattinson, 1989, Fabian Society, ISBN 0-7163-1353-7

Your Rights: A Guide to Money Benefits for Retired People by Patricia Hewitt, 1989, Age Concern England, ISBN 0-86242-080-6

The Family Way: A New Approach to Policy-Making by Anna Coote, Harriet Harman, Patricia Hewitt, 1990, Institute for Public Policy Research, ISBN 1-872452-15-9

Your Second Baby by Patricia Hewitt and Wendy Rose-Neil, 1990, HarperCollins, ISBN 0-04-440608-8

Next Left: An Agenda for the 1990s by Tessa Blackstone, James Cornford, David Miliband and Patricia Hewitt, 1992, Institute for Public Policy Research, ISBN 1-872452-45-0

About Time: Revolution in Work and Family Life by Patricia Hewitt, 1993, Rivers Oram Press, ISBN 1-85489-040-9

Social Justice, Children and Families by Patricia Hewitt and Penelope Leach, 1993, Institute for Public Policy Research, ISBN 1-872452-76-0

A British Bill of Rights by Anthony Lester, Patricia Hewitt et al, 1996, Institute for Public Policy Research, ISBN 1-86030-044-8

The Politics of Attachment: Towards a Secure Society" by Sebastian Kraemer, preface by Patricia Hewitt, 1996, Free Association Books Ltd, ISBN 1-85343-344-6

Defence for the 21st Century: Towards a Post Cold-War Force Structure by Malcolm Chalmer, foreword by Patricia Hewitt, 1997, Fabian Society, ISBN 0-7163-3040-7

Information Age Government: Delivering the Blair Revolution by Liam Byrne, foreword by Patricia Hewitt, 1997, Fabian Society, ISBN 0-7163-0582-8

Pebbles in the Sand by Patricia Hewitt, 1998, Dorrance Publishing Co, ISBN 0-8059-4272-6

Winning for Women" by Harriet Harman and Deborah Mattinson, foreword by Patricia Hewitt, 2000, Fabian Society, ISBN 0-7163-0596-8

Unfinished Business: The New Agenda for the Workplace by Patricia Hewitt, 2004, Institute for Public Policy Research, ISBN 1-86030-259-9

The Future of the NHS (contributed a chapter) edited by Dr Michelle Tempest, xpl Publishing, ISBN 1-85811-369-5 Further Information
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