Baker served as Secretary of State for Education from 1986 to 1989. His most noted action in his time at the Department of Education was the introduction of the controversial "National Curriculum" through the 1988 Education Act. He also introduced in-service training days for teachers, which became popularly known as "Baker days".[5] At this time Baker was often tipped as a future Conservative leader, including in the 1987 edition of Julian Critchley's biography of Michael Heseltine. Critchley quoted one journalist's witticism "I have seen the future and it smirks" (a reference to the famous line "I have seen the future and it works" written by Lincoln Steffens, an American visitor to Lenin's USSR in 1921). Baker's mannerisms were unpopular with some people: he dressed his hair with Brylcreem, and by the late 1980s he had come to be portrayed by the satirical programme Spitting Image as a slimy slug.[6]
Party Chairman
In the July 1989 reshuffle Baker was appointed Chairman of the Conservative Party, with the intention that he should organise a fourth consecutive General Election victory for Margaret Thatcher. He managed to steer the government through the otherwise disastrous local elections of May 1990 by stressing the good results for Conservative "flagship" councils in Westminster and Wandsworth, i.e. supposedly demonstrating that the poll tax—a source of great unpopularity for the government—could be a vote-winner for Conservative councils who kept it low. He was still Party Chairman at the time Margaret Thatcher resigned in November 1990.[5]
After his term of office, Baker was found (M v Home Office 1994) to have been in contempt of court for having deported a man back to Zaire in 1991,[8] in breach of an interim injunction and while proceedings were pending. "It would be a black day for the rule of law and the liberty of the subject", the Court of Appeal ruled, "if ministers were not accountable to the courts for their personal actions." This was the first time the courts had reached such a finding against a minister for exercise of Prerogative Powers, something previously thought to be impossible.
After 1992
Baker in 2018
After the 1992 general election Baker left the government rather than accept demotion to the job of Welsh Secretary.[citation needed] He was appointed a member of the Order of the Companions of Honour (CH) on 13 April 1992.[9] He proposed the Loyal Address in the Queen's Speech debate on 6 May 1992, following the general election. He chose not to stand for re-election to the House of Commons in 1997, and on 16 June was created a life peer as Baron Baker of Dorking, of Iford in the County of East Sussex.[10][11]
Since 2019, Baker has campaigned for the abolition of General Certificate of Secondary Education (GCSE) examinations, which he introduced as Secretary of State for Education. Baker believes the certificate to be redundant as it fails in creating skills wanted by employers, is incompatible with the new age 18 school leaving age and causes poor mental health in the youth.[14] When the annual GCSE examinations were cancelled twice during the COVID-19 pandemic, Baker believed there to be increasing opposition to their return and considered it a "great opportunity" to abolish them.[15] Baker also criticised government plans to replace Business and Technology Education Council (BTEC) qualifications with T-Levels as "vandalism", instead preferring to maintain the status quo where both BTECs and T-Levels are available to students.[16]
In September 2019, Baker criticised attempts by Prime Minister Boris Johnson to deselect rebel Conservative MPs at the next general election.[17]
Until 1995 Baker lived in Station Road in the village of Betchworth, 4 miles (6.4 km) east of Dorking. He now lives in the hamlet of Iford near Lewes, East Sussex.
In 2005 he published a book on King George IV, George IV: A Life in Caricature, followed by King George III: A Life in Caricature in 2007 (Thames & Hudson). Other publications include several compilations of poetry,[18][19][20][21] a history of political cartoons and his autobiography.
According to his entry in Who's Who, Baker enjoys collecting books and political caricatures.[1]
In the media
Baker was interviewed about the rise of Thatcherism for the 2006 BBC TV documentary series Tory! Tory! Tory!. Baker was portrayed as a slug in the political satire television show Spitting Image.
Baker was invited on the 31 January 2023 by BBC Newsnight[24] to comment on the forthcoming, Teachers Strike and on PM Rishi Sunak's management of his Cabinet appointments. Presenter Victoria Derbyshire, at one point was forced to remove Baker's incessantly ringing mobile phone, which continually interrupted the latter part of the live studio interview, during which he quipped that the PM was insistent in attempting to reach him.
He was awarded an Honorary Doctorate of Education from Brunel University in 2016.[27]
Arms
Coat of arms of Kenneth Baker, Baron Baker of Dorking
Crest
Upon two closed books each fesswise the upper Azure the lower Gules both garnished and titled Or a cock also Or combed jelopped and legged Gules.
Escutcheon
Gyronny of eight Gules and Azure a roundel also Azure surmounted by an annulet enfiling the rings of the chains of three portcullises in pairle points inwards Or.
Supporters
On either side a male griffin reguardant Azure armed forelegged and rayed Or the dexter grasping in the beak a thistle flowered Gules slipped and leaved Or and the sinister a daffodil slipped and leaved Or.
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