Rt Hon Michael Portillo

The former Enfield MP is now firmly established as a broadcaster and political commentator. Alongside television series on Spain and the natural world, he shares the sofa on This Week, weighs up ethical dilemmas on The Moral Maze, writes newspaper columns and reviews theatre for The New Statesman.

Michael Portillo began his career in the Conservative Party research department, developing policies for reducing the role of the state. He then became an advisor to the Secretary of State for Energy, working on privatisation schemes in oil, gas, electricity and coal.

Portillo won a parliamentary seat in the 1984 General Election, and was soon appointed a Government Whip and then Under-Secretary at the Department of Health & Social Security. In turn he was promoted to Minister of State for Transport then Local Government, where he oversaw the abolition of the poll tax.

He entered Cabinet as Chief Secretary to the Treasury, controlling public spending and managing departmental allocations. He became Employment Secretary two years later, and finally took over at Defence - with a budget of £22bn. Often considered the greatest leader the Conservative Party never had, Michael talks about the problem with politicians.

JLA Client Comments

"Michael hit the spot with our very diverse partner base." Allen & Overy

"Michael's expertise as host ensured the show ran extremely smoothly and made the evening a great success." Public Private Finance

"It was a pleasure to deal with someone who made our lives easier, not harder." HouseBuilder Media

"As expected, Michael's talk was superb and was very well received by our guests." Merrill Lynch