Peter Hain

Peter Hain was the Leader of the House of Commons from 2003 to 2005 and Secretary of State for Northern Ireland from 2005 to 2007 under Blair.

Peter spent most of his childhood in Pretoria, South Africa, at a time when the Apartheid regime was tightening its grip on South African society. Outraged by the daily discrimination and abuses they saw, his family found themselves becoming more and more involved in the opposition to Apartheid. Both parents were jailed, banned and the family forced into exile in Britain in 1966. His parents' struggle made a lasting impression on Peter and he too took up the fight against injustice. Following his arrival in Britain he became involved in anti-Apartheid protests and became chairman of the Stop The Seventy Tour campaign which successfully used non-violent direct action to isolate white South Africa from international sport.

Peter Hain is the author or editor of sixteen books - the latest a biography of Nelson Mandela.