39 Facts About Francis Maude

Francis Anthony Aylmer Maude, Baron Maude of Horsham, was born on 4 July 1953 and is a British Conservative Party politician who served as Minister for the Cabinet Office and Paymaster General from 2010 to 2015.

Francis Maude served in several posts while the Conservatives were in opposition, notably as Shadow Chancellor of the Exchequer, Shadow Foreign Secretary and Chairman of the Conservative Party.

Francis Maude served as Minister of State for Trade and Investment from 2015 to 2016, before stepping down from government service to run his own business; Francis Maude Associates, a consultancy specialising in government efficiency.

Francis Maude is the son of Angus Francis Maude, a life peer and one-time Conservative cabinet minister.

Francis Maude spent part of his childhood in Sydney, Australia, while his father edited the Sydney Morning Herald.

Francis Maude was called to the Bar at the Inner Temple in 1977, and practised criminal law.

Francis Maude served as a member of Westminster City Council from 1978 to 1984.

Francis Maude was first elected to the House of Commons to represent the constituency of North Warwickshire in the Conservative Party's landslide victory at the 1983 general election.

Francis Maude then became an assistant government whip and Minister for Corporate and Consumer Affairs, then part of the DTI.

Francis Maude was one of the first "men in grey suits" to hold discussions with Margaret Thatcher in November 1990 after she failed to win the first round of a leadership election.

Francis Maude told Thatcher that he would support her as long as she went on, but he did not believe she could win the leadership contest.

Out of Parliament after the 1992 general election, Francis Maude began a series of business roles.

Francis Maude worked in banking as managing director at Morgan Stanley from 1993 to 1997.

Francis Maude was appointed a non-executive director of ASDA Group Plc in July 1992, and served as a director of Salomon Brothers from 1992 to 1993.

Francis Maude chaired the government's Deregulation Task Force from 1994 to 1997.

Francis Maude served as Shadow Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, Shadow Chancellor of the Exchequer, and Shadow Foreign Secretary until 2001.

Francis Maude managed Michael Portillo's unsuccessful bid for the Conservative leadership in 2001, after which he declined a front bench role under the new Party Leader Iain Duncan Smith.

Francis Maude was considered to be a 'moderniser' and on the centre-left of the party, writing in The Daily Telegraph, he said that the Conservative Party's electoral problems had been caused by its failure to "look and sound like modern Britain".

Outside the Shadow Cabinet, Francis Maude founded Conservatives for Change, CChange, becoming its first chairman.

In July 2007, Francis Maude was made Shadow Minister for the Cabinet Office and Shadow Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster, with responsibility for preparing the Conservatives for government, with some dubbing him the Party's "enforcer".

Francis Maude supported Republican John McCain in the 2008 US presidential election.

Francis Maude led the Conservative Party delegation to the 2008 Democratic National Convention.

In 2010 Francis Maude set up the Efficiency and Reform Group, in the Cabinet Office to work with HM Treasury with the aim of making government departments more efficient.

In June 2012 Francis Maude laid out his plans for reforming the Civil Service.

Francis Maude led the UK Government's work with the Open Government Partnership.

Francis Maude was responsible for the creation of the Government Digital Service, with the aim to consolidate internal IT and replace government 1,700 various websites with a single web hub, gov.

In June 2014 Francis Maude warned that elderly people would have to apply for key benefits including Carer's Allowance online.

Whilst critics estimated that over 5 million pensioners have never used the internet, Francis Maude said that 'refuseniks' could be offered a one-off lesson.

In February 2015, Francis Maude announced he would be standing down at the general election three months later.

Nine months later, Francis Maude announced his resignation from this post on 10 February 2016, to be replaced by Mark Price.

Since leaving his role as Minister for Trade and Investment in March 2016, Francis Maude has begun a number of new business roles, including serving as an advisory board member at OakNorth Bank which deals with business and property finance, and specialises in supporting the UK's growth businesses since September 2016.

Francis Maude has been a Non Executive Chairman at Cogent Elliott Group Ltd, an advertising agency, since November 2016.

Francis Maude was accused of comparing this cut to the 'pain' suffered by Britain's poor.

On 28 March 2012, during the 2012 United Kingdom fuel crisis, Francis Maude advised people to fill up their vehicles and to store fuel in garages in jerrycans.

Francis Maude's remarks were widely criticised, queues up to half a mile long formed outside petrol stations and petrol retailers criticised the Government for causing panic.

Matt Wrack, General Secretary of the Fire Brigades Union said that Francis Maude's advice was dangerous and illegal, and could be disastrous in the event of a fire.

Francis Maude denied that it would increase the risk of explosions, however the following day Transport Minister Mike Penning, a former firefighter, confirmed the advice was wrong, saying he didn't think Francis Maude understood how big jerrycans were.

Francis Maude married Christina Jane Hadfield in 1984, and they have five children.

Francis Maude was on the governing body of Abingdon School from 1988 to 2006 and was Chairman of the Governors from 1995 to 2003.