Patricia Hope Hewitt (born 2 December 1948) is a British politician. She is the Labour Member of Parliament (MP) for Leicester West and the former Secretary of State for Health.
Born in Canberra, Australia, she is the daughter of Sir Lenox Hewitt, a leading civil servant in the Australian Prime Minister's Office and later chairman of Qantas. She was educated at Canberra Girls' Grammar School (formerly Canberra Church of England Girls' Grammar Sch...
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Patricia Hope Hewitt (born 2 December 1948) is a British politician. She is the Labour Member of Parliament (MP) for Leicester West and the former Secretary of State for Health.
Born in Canberra, Australia, she is the daughter of Sir Lenox Hewitt, a leading civil servant in the Australian Prime Minister's Office and later chairman of Qantas. She was educated at Canberra Girls' Grammar School (formerly Canberra Church of England Girls' Grammar School) , and the Australian National University. She went on to study at both Newnham College, Cambridge and Nuffield College, Oxford where she was awarded two master's degrees. She speaks French and is a keen gardener.
Initially a Conservative, she moved to the left, becoming a committed equality activist and feminist. In 1981, she married William (Bill) Jack Birtles, a lawyer, in Camden; they have a daughter (born September 1986) and a son (born February 1988). In 1971, she became Age Concern's Press and Public Relations Officer, before...
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