Mr Howe’s resignation speech in 1990 is widely regarded as a key factor behind Baroness Thatcher’s downfall as prime minister. “His time as Chancellor of the Exchequer was vital in turning the fortunes of our country around, cutting borrowing, lowering tax rates and conquering inflation”, he said.
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In their tributes on social media, Cameron described him as “the quiet hero” of Thatcher’s first government while Osborne said he was a “quietly-spoken radical”.
Lord Howe – the man who brought down Margaret Thatcher with a devastating Commons speech – suffered a suspected heart attack on Friday evening.
A statement from Lord Howe’s family said a private family funeral, followed by a memorial service, would take place in due course.
In a dramatic speech, Howe criticized Thatcher of undermining economic and monetary policies that had been supported by her Cabinet and the Bank of England chief. We fought alongside each other in 1959 in nearby seats in South Wales but I served with him in government after government and in the Conservative Party all through the time from the 1950s on.
I really got to know him as one of his Ministers of State during his time as Foreign Secretary, a position he held from 1983 until 1989.
“The end of an era has been marked as in one week we have lost two old foes and great parliamentarians in Denis Healey and now Geoffrey Howe”.
He was first elected as MP for Bebington between 1964 and 1966 before becoming the MP for Reigate in 1970 and later served the East Surrey constituency from 1974.
Geoffrey Howe was Margaret Thatcher’s longest-serving cabinet minister.
After a round of historic negotiations concluded in Beijing in 1984, Howe came to Hong Kong and gave a press conference on 20th April to officially announce that London would give up its rule in Hong Kong in 1997.
The public savaging of the then prime minister, who was struggling to unite her party over further ties with Europe, was delivered to a uncharacteristically quiet House of Commons in November 1990.
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Liberal Democrat leader Tim Farron described Lord Howe as a “kind, decent and honourable man”, while Labour frontbencher Chris Bryant praised his “gentle spirit, enquiring mind and internationalist outlook”.
