The British former Secretary of State for the Home Department Priti Patel has pursued a successful career in politics. She was a high-profile figure in Boris Johnson's premiership and is known for her inspiration from the Conservative Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher. Priti Patel has a Ugandan-Indian background and has become a famous personality in the UK. Read on to know more about her journey in politics.
Since 2004, Priti Patel has been married to Alex Sawyer. Her husband works at the London Borough of Bexley Conservative councillor and Cabinet Member for Communities.
Priti Patel and Alex Sawyer have a son named Freddie Sawyer. He was born in August 2008 at St John's Hospital in Chelmsford.
Priti Sushil Patel was born on 29 March 1972 in Islington, London. Her grandparents were born in Gujarat, India, and immigrated to Uganda. After immigrating to the UK, Patel’s parents lived in Hertfordshire in southern England.
Patel attended a comprehensive school in Watford, Hertfordshire. She studied economics at Keele University before completing her postgraduate in British government and politics studies at the University of Essex.
Following her graduation, the British politician was selected as an intern at the Conservative Campaign Headquarters, formerly known as Conservative Central Office.
After graduating, Patel worked as an intern at a Conservative Central Office. In 1997, she began to work at a press office for William Hague after joining the Conservative Party.
Priti Patel began working for Viasat, a mobile network company, in May 2019. She has the position as a strategic adviser and ended her contract on 31 July 2019.
The Conservative politician Patel worked for the public relations firm, Weber Shandwick, before seeking a political career. She held the position of the Director of Corporate and Public Affairs.
Patel appeared as a candidate for the Conservative Party in 2005 and took part in the Nottingham North election. Despite her failure, her performance caught the attention of leader David Cameron.
In 2005, after her unsuccessful election campaign in the Nottingham North election as the Conservative Party, the Conservative MP was offered a place on the "A-List" of Conservative prospective parliamentary candidates.
Priti Patel was a candidate for a new constituency called "Witham" in central Essex. She received the majority vote and assumed her role as a member of parliament for Witham.
Since 2010, Priti Patel has been the Member of Parliament for Witham. She is on the right wing of the Conservative Party and stands out for her socially conservative positions.
After the election, David Cameron promoted Priti Patel as Minister of State for Employment in the Department for Work and Pensions. She took an oath to the Privy Council on 14 May 2015.
From July 2016 to November 2017, Priti Patel served in the Cabinet as Secretary of State for International Development. She changed the delivery of foreign assistance programs to centre on economic development, jobs, trade, and aid effectiveness
In 2016, Patel was a leader in the campaign organisation for Brexit called Vote Leave. The system aims to bring people to the UK based on their skills but not on their passports.
Patel was re-elected as a Member of Parliament for Witham with a 48.8% vote in December 2017. She continued her role to represent all communities across the constituency.
In July 2019, Patel joined Boris Johnson's top team and was appointed as Home Secretary. She replaced Sajid Javid, who moved to the Treasury department.
Priti Patel unveiled her plan to measure immigration levels in and out of the UK by adopting US-style digital visas in 2021.
When Patel was a Home Secretary under Boris Johnson's premiership from 2019 to 2022, she developed a new immigration initiative. The system has been in force since 2021.
The politician commissioned the former Minister for Foreign Affairs, Alex Downer in Australia's Liberal Party in February 2022. She had the role to carry out an independent review of the Border Force.
Patel approved Boris Johnson's bid in the October 2022 Conservative Party Leadership Election. In the end, Johnson declined to stand and Liz Truss was appointed as Prime Minister.
Priti Patel was sworn in as a member of Her Majesty's Most Honourable Privy Council on 13 May 2015. She, therefore, received the Honorific Prefix "The Right Honorable" for life.
In 2012, the UK Home Secretary Priti Patel authored the book ‘Britain Unchained’ alongside four Conservative MPs elected in May 2010 such as Liz Truss, Dominic Raab, Chris Skidmore, and Kwasi Kwarteng. The book tells about their vision for the future of the United Kingdom in which the country should learn lessons from other countries in terms of economic practices and business.
Priti Patel was awarded a "Jewels of Gujarat" by Ahmedabad, India for her inclusion in Maneesh Media's 'Jewels of Gujarat' publication in 2015.
After nominations, Priti Patel and Labour Party politician, Neena Gill were the winners of the Pravasi Bharatiya Samman. The highest awards are given by the Indian government to popular non-resident Indian figures or people of Indian origin.
The Rt Hon Priti Patel’s husband Alex Sawyer also works as a Conservative councillor and Cabinet Member for Communities on the council of the London Borough of Bexley, South East London.
In 2013, Priti Patel was appointed as the first ever Prime Minister’s UK India Diaspora Champion in which she worked to promote a link between the UK and India in terms of education, culture, and trade.
Ms. Patel was a backbencher when she served as a vice-chair of the Conservative Friends of Israel and wrote a few books and papers alongside other Conservative MPs.
Tory MP Priti Patel's father, Sushil Patel, run for the Bushey South seat on Hertfordshire County Council in 2013 when he took second place.
