Responsibility for: overall responsibility for the work of the Office; Communications; Parliamentary Relations; Directorate for Strategy and Information; Legal Advisers; Information Management Department; Research Analysts; Honours; Whitehall Liaison Department.
The Rt Hon Jack Straw MP was appointed Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs on 8 June 2001. Mr Straw has been the Member of Parliament for Blackburn since 1979.
Mr Straw was born in 1946 and educated at Brentwood School, Essex and Leeds University. He was called to the Bar (Inner Temple) in 1972. He is a visiting Fellow of Nuffield College Oxford and a Fellow of the Royal Statistical Society.
Mr Straw was Home Secretary from 1997-2001. He was Shadow Home Secretary from 1995 to 1997. From 1992-1994 he was Shadow Environment Secretary. And between 1987 and 1992 Mr Straw was Shadow Education Secretary. From 1983-1987 he was Opposition spokesman on Local Government and from 1980-1983 on Treasury matters. He was a member of the Labour Party National Executive Committee from 1994-1995.
Mr Straw was President of Leeds University Students' Union from 1967-1968 and of the National Union of Students from 1969-1971. From 1971 to 1974 Mr Straw was a member of the Inner London Education Authority and Deputy Leader from 1973 to 1974.
Mr Straw worked as a barrister from 1972-1974 and was special adviser to Barbara Castle from 1974-1975 and to Peter Shore from 1976-1977. He also worked for Granada Television's World in Action programme from 1977-1979.
He is married with one son and one daughter. His recreations are walking, music, cooking puddings and supporting Blackburn Rovers.