Tom King, Lord King of Bridgwater CH, was Secretary of State for five different departments in the Cabinets of Margaret Thatcher and John Major. He was Secretary of State for Employment during the miners’ strike, and for Northern Ireland during one of the worst periods of terrorism; he was responsible for launching the Anglo-Irish Agreement, a controversial initiative that helped start the peace process. Later, when Saddam Hussein invaded Kuwait, King was responsible for the biggest deployment of British troops and heavy armour since World War II. He was appointed by John Major as first Chairman of the Intelligence and Security Committee, overseeing MI5, MI6, and GCHQ, and on the change of government was reappointed by Tony Blair.