We need a strong, proven leader who can unite our Party and our country and negotiate the best possible terms as we leave the European Union. We also need a leader with a bold, new, positive vision for the future of our country – a country that works not for a privileged few but for everyone. That person is Theresa May.
Early life & career beyond politics
Theresa’s involvement in our party started at a grassroots level – as a schoolgirl stuffing envelopes at her local Conservative Association. She grew up as the daughter of a local vicar and the granddaughter of a regimental sergeant major – public service has been a part of who she is for as long as she can remember.
Her varied education spanned both the state and private sectors, and both comprehensive and grammar schools. Later, as Shadow Education Secretary, she championed free schools and greater choice so parents can ensure their children have the best start in life.
Through hard work, Theresa won a place to study geography at St Hugh’s College, Oxford, where she met her husband Philip – at a Conservative Association dance party. They have been married for 36 years.
Theresa started her career at the Bank of England. She went on to hold posts at the Association for Payment Clearing Services (APACS) as Head of the European Affairs Unit and Senior Adviser on International Affairs – giving her experience of international negotiations long before she entered government.
A life of public service
Drawn to public service, she began her political career as a local councillor in the London Borough of Merton, where she served for almost a decade – as Chairman of Education, Deputy Group Leader, and housing spokesman. She first stood for Parliament in North West Durham in 1992, and was the Conservative candidate for the Barking by-election in 1994.
In 1997, Theresa was elected Member of Parliament for Maidenhead, where she lives and is an active local campaigner. Working with her local Association, she saw off a challenge from the Liberal Democrats – helping to win back control of her local council, and building up the second largest Conservative majority in the country.
Theresa has served continuously on the Conservative front bench since 1999 serving as Shadow Secretary of State for Education & Employment, Shadow Secretary of State for Work & Pensions, and as Shadow Leader of the House of Commons. In 2002 she was proud to be appointed the first female Chairman of the Conservative Party, and has worked hard to help women get more involved in the Conservative Party and become Members of Parliament. She set up Women2Win with Anne Jenkin in 2005, which has helped to increase the number of female Conservative MPs from seventeen to nearly seventy.
A strong and reforming Home Secretary
When the Conservatives returned to Government in 2010, Theresa was appointed Home Secretary – staying in this demanding role to become the longest-serving Conservative Home Secretary for over a century.
She has shown herself to be hard-working, bold and reforming. As Home Secretary, Theresa was told she couldn’t take on the Police Federation, but she did. She was told she couldn’t cut police spending without crime going up, but crime is lower than ever. She was told she couldn’t stop Gary McKinnon’s extradition, but she stood up to the US Government and stopped it. She was told she couldn’t deport Abu Qatada, but she flew to Jordan and negotiated the treaty that got him out of Britain for good.
At the same time, she has stood up for some of the most vulnerable people in society – speaking up for the victims of sexual abuse, reforming stop and search, providing more help for people with mental health problems, and passing the landmark Modern Slavery Act. In addition to her role as Home Secretary, Theresa served as Minister for Women & Equalities from 2010 to 2012 – during which time she was able to deliver on her belief in ending prejudice in all forms, as well as her commitment to social justice and improving people’s lives no matter what their background.
Under Theresa’s leadership, the motives of the Conservative Party will never be in any doubt. We will put ourselves at the service of ordinary, working people and strive to make Britain a country that works for everyone – regardless of who they are, and regardless of where they’re from.
