{{Short description|British politician and life peer (born 1951)}} {{Use British English|date=December 2017}} {{Use dmy dates|date=December 2017}} {{Infobox officeholder | honorific_prefix = The Right Honourable | name = The Lord True | honorific_suffix = {{post-nominals|country=GBR|size=100%|CBE|PC}} | image = Lord True Official Cabinet Portrait, October 2022 (cropped).jpg | caption = Official portrait, 2022 | office = Leader of the Opposition in the Lords<br>Shadow Leader of the House of Lords | predecessor = The Baroness Smith of Basildon | leader = Rishi Sunak<br>Kemi Badenoch | term_start = 8 July 2024 | office3 = Leader of the House of Lords<br>Lord Keeper of the Privy Seal | prime_minister3 = Liz Truss<br>Rishi Sunak | term_start3 = 6 September 2022 | term_end3 = 5 July 2024 | predecessor3 = The Baroness Evans of Bowes Park | successor3 = The Baroness Smith of Basildon | office4 = Minister of State at the Cabinet Office | prime_minister4 = Boris Johnson | alongside4 = <!--Chloe Smith and The Lord Agnew of Oulton--> | term_start4 = 14 February 2020 | term_end4 = 6 September 2022 | predecessor4 = David Laws{{efn|As Minister Assisting the Deputy Prime Minister, 2015.}} | successor4 = The Baroness Neville-Rolfe | office5 = Leader of Richmond upon Thames Borough Council | term_start5 = 25 May 2010 | term_end5 = 4 July 2017 | predecessor5 = Serge Lourie | successor5 = Paul Hodgins | office6 = Member of the House of Lords | status6 = Lord Temporal | term_label6 = Life peerage | term_start6 = 23 December 2010 | term_end6 = | office7 = Richmond upon Thames Borough Councillor for East Sheen Ward | term_start7 = 7 May 1998 | term_end7 = 3 May 2018 | predecessor7 = S. Grose | successor7 = Brian Anthony Marcel | term_start8 = 8 May 1986 | term_end8 = 3 May 1990 | predecessor8 = B. Semmens | successor8 = Ms. K. Baden-Powell | birth_name = Nicholas Edward True | birth_date = {{birth date and age|1951|7|31|df=y}} | birth_place = | death_date = | death_place = | party = Conservative | education = Nottingham High School | alma_mater = Peterhouse, Cambridge | website = | spouse = {{marriage|Anne-Marie Elena Kathleen Blanco Hood|1979}} | children = 3 }}
'''Nicholas Edward True, Baron True''' (born 31 July 1951) is a British Conservative politician who served as Leader of the House of Lords and Lord Keeper of the Privy Seal between September 2022 and July 2024. He has been a member of the House of Lords since 2011 and Shadow Leader of the House of Lords since July 2024.<ref>{{Cite web |title=UK politics live: Lord Cameron resigns as Rishi Sunak announces interim shadow cabinet |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/live/czk0r339evgt |access-date=2024-07-08 |website=BBC News |language=en-GB}}</ref>
==Early life and education== True was born on 31 July 1951 to Edward Thomas True and Kathleen Louise True (''née'' Mather). He was educated at Nottingham High School and Peterhouse, Cambridge, from which he graduated with a Bachelor of Arts (BA) degree in 1973; as per tradition, his BA was promoted to a Master of Arts (MA Cantab) in 1978.<ref name="WW 22">{{cite web |title=True, Baron, (Nicholas Edward True) (born 31 July 1951) |url=http://www.ukwhoswho.com/view/article/oupww/whoswho/U38096 |website=Who's Who 2022 |publisher=Oxford University Press |access-date=28 December 2021 |language=en |date=1 December 2021}}</ref>
==Political career== True worked in the Conservative Research Department from 1975 to 1982, also serving as assistant to the Deputy Leader of the Conservative Party from 1978 to 1982. He was special adviser to Norman Fowler, Secretary of State for Health and Social Security from 1982 to 1986. He then moved to be Director of the Public Policy Unit from 1986 to 1990. He was Deputy Head of the Prime Minister's Policy Unit from 1991 to 1995, before becoming special adviser within the Prime Minister's Office in 1997, until the general election of that year. In his memoirs the former Prime Minister John Major says that True was his favourite speechwriter. He was appointed a Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) in the 1993 New Year Honours.<ref>{{London Gazette |issue=53153 |date=31 December 1992 |page=9 |supp=y}}</ref>
True served as private secretary to the Leader of the Opposition in the House of Lords and Director of the Opposition Whips' Office there from 1997 to 2010. On 23 December 2010 he was created a life peer as '''Baron True''', of East Sheen in the County of Surrey.<ref>{{London Gazette |issue=59656 |date=30 December 2010 |page=24903}}</ref>
In June 2021, he announced plans for the Platinum Jubilee Civic Honours in the House of Lords.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Written statements - Written questions, answers and statements - UK Parliament|url=https://questions-statements.parliament.uk/written-statements/detail/2021-06-08/hlws73|access-date=2021-12-28|website=questions-statements.parliament.uk|language=en}}</ref>
===Public office=== [[File:Lord True (Cap of Maintenance) 2023.jpg|thumb|left|True at the 2023 State Opening of Parliament]] He was a Conservative councillor in the London Borough of Richmond-upon-Thames from 1986 to 1990 and again from 1998 to 2018. He represented the East Sheen ward. He served as Leader of the Council from 2010 to 2017, having previously served as Deputy Leader from 2002 to 2006 and Leader of the Opposition from 2006 to 2010.
He has been, since 2006, a trustee of the Richmond Civic Trust, and since 1996 a trustee of Sir Harold Hood's Charitable Trust. He served the Olga Havel Foundation in the same capacity from 1990 to 1994.
In February 2020 True was made a Minister of State at the Cabinet Office.
On 6 September 2022, Liz Truss promoted him to Cabinet and appointed him Leader of the House of Lords.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Lord True CBE has been appointed Lord Privy Seal and Leader of the House of Lords |url=https://twitter.com/10downingstreet/status/1567232981852356609 |access-date=2022-09-06 |website=Twitter |language=en}}</ref>
On 13 September 2022, he was sworn-in as a Member of the Privy Council of the United Kingdom.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://privycouncil.independent.gov.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/2022-09-13-List-of-Business.pdf|publisher=Privy Council Office|title=Orders for 13 September 2022|access-date=14 September 2022|archive-date=23 September 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220923225901/https://privycouncil.independent.gov.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/2022-09-13-List-of-Business.pdf|url-status=dead}}</ref>
==Personal life== In 1979 he married Anne-Marie Elena Kathleen Blanco, daughter of Robin Adrian Hood, director of CAFOD from 1977 to 1982, and granddaughter of the businessman and Conservative politician Sir Joseph Hood, 1st Baronet.<ref>Burke's Peerage, Baronetage and Knightage, 107th edition, vol. 2, Charles Mosley, Burke's Peerage Ltd, 2003, p. 1594</ref> They have two sons and one daughter.
==Notes== {{Notelist}}
==References== {{Reflist}}
==External links== *Who's Who 2011
{{s-start}} {{s-off}} |- {{s-vac|last=David Laws|as=Minister Assisting the Deputy Prime Minister}} {{s-ttl|title=Minister of State at the Cabinet Office|years=2020–2022}} {{s-aft|after=The Baroness Neville-Rolfe}} {{s-bef|rows=2|before=The Baroness Evans of Bowes Park}} {{s-ttl|title=Leader of the House of Lords|years=2022–2024}} {{s-aft|after=The Baroness Smith of Basildon|rows=2}} |- {{s-ttl|title=Lord Privy Seal|years=2022–2024}} |- {{s-ppo}} {{s-bef|before=The Baroness Evans of Bowes Park}} {{s-ttl|title=Leader of the Conservative Party<br>in the House of Lords|years=2022–present}} {{s-inc}} {{s-end}}
{{British special advisers}} {{Truss Cabinet}} {{Sunak Cabinet}} {{Sunak Shadow Cabinet}} {{Badenoch Shadow Cabinet}} {{Leaders of the Opposition UK}} {{Conservative Party (UK)}} {{Authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:True, Nicholas True, Baron}} Category:1951 births Category:Living people Category:People educated at Nottingham High School Category:Alumni of Peterhouse, Cambridge Category:Commanders of the Order of the British Empire Category:Conservative Party (UK) councillors Category:Conservative Party (UK) life peers Category:Leaders of the House of Lords Category:Lords Privy Seal Category:Councillors in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames Category:Leaders of local authorities in London Category:Life peers created by Elizabeth II Category:Members of the Privy Council of the United Kingdom Category:British speechwriters Category:Badenoch shadow cabinet