Kenneth Clarke

=== Early ministerial positions ===

=== Early ministerial positions ===

Clarke first served in the government of Margaret Thatcher as [[Parliamentary secretary]] for [[Department for Transport|Transport]] (1979–81) and [[Parliamentary under-secretary of state]] for [[Department for Transport|Transport]] (1981–82), and then [[Minister of State]] for [[Health department|Health]] (1982–85).

Clarke first served in the government of Margaret Thatcher as [[Parliamentary secretary]] for [[Department for Transport|Transport]] (1979–81) and [[Under-Secretary of State for Transport|Parliamentary under-secretary of state]] for [[Department for Transport|Transport]] (1981–82), and then [[Minister of State]] for [[Health department|Health]] (1982–85).

Clarke joined the Cabinet as [[Paymaster General]] and Employment Minister (1985–87) (his Secretary of State, [[Lord Young of Graffham]], sat in the Lords), and served as [[Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster]] and Minister of the [[Department of Trade and Industry (United Kingdom)|DTI]] (1987–88) with responsibility for Inner Cities. While in that position, Clarke announced the sale to [[British Aerospace]] of the [[Rover Group]], a new name for [[British Leyland]], which had been nationalised in 1975 by the government of [[Harold Wilson]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://api.parliament.uk/historic-hansard/commons/1988/mar/29/rover-group-privatisation|title=Rover Group (Privatisation) |access-date=22 March 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140322182338/http://hansard.millbanksystems.com/commons/1988/mar/29/rover-group-privatisation|archive-date=22 March 2014|work=[[Hansard|Parliamentary Debates (Hansard)]]|date=29 March 1988|url-status=live}}</ref>

Clarke joined the Cabinet as [[Paymaster General]] and Employment Minister (1985–87) (his Secretary of State, [[Lord Young of Graffham]], sat in the Lords), and served as [[Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster]] and Minister of the [[Department of Trade and Industry (United Kingdom)|DTI]] (1987–88) with responsibility for Inner Cities. While in that position, Clarke announced the sale to [[British Aerospace]] of the [[Rover Group]], a new name for [[British Leyland]], which had been nationalised in 1975 by the government of [[Harold Wilson]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://api.parliament.uk/historic-hansard/commons/1988/mar/29/rover-group-privatisation|title=Rover Group (Privatisation) |access-date=22 March 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140322182338/http://hansard.millbanksystems.com/commons/1988/mar/29/rover-group-privatisation|archive-date=22 March 2014|work=[[Hansard|Parliamentary Debates (Hansard)]]|date=29 March 1988|url-status=live}}</ref>