Brandon Kenneth Lewis (born 20 June 1971) is a British politician who served as Secretary of State for Justice and Lord Chancellor from September to October 2022. He previously served as Chairman of the Conservative Party from 2018 to 2019 and Secretary of State for Northern Ireland from 2020 to 2022. A member of the Conservative Party, he has been Member of Parliament (MP) for Great Yarmouth since 2010. Born in Harold Wood, London, Lewis attended the independent Forest School. He studied economics at the University of Buckingham, switching to King's College London for his master's degree. He then began a career as a barrister. He was a councillor on Brentwood Borough Council from 1998 to 2009 and served as leader of the council from 2004 to 2009. He was elected for Great Yarmouth at the 2010 general election. Lewis served under Prime Minister David Cameron as Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government from 2012 to 2014 and Minister of State for Housing and Planning from 2014 to 2016. Lewis served under Cameron’s successor, Theresa May, as Minister of State for Policing and the Fire Service from 2016 to 2017 and Minister of State for Immigration from 2017 to 2018. He was appointed to May’s Cabinet as Chairman of the Conservative Party and Minister without Portfolio in the 2018 cabinet reshuffle. After May resigned in 2019, Lewis was appointed Minister of State for Security and Deputy for EU Exit and No Deal Preparation by Prime Minister Boris Johnson. In the 2020 cabinet reshuffle, he was promoted by Johnson to Secretary of State for Northern Ireland. He resigned from this post during the July 2022 government crisis. Following the appointment of Liz Truss as Prime Minister, Lewis was appointed as Lord Chancellor and Secretary of State for Justice. Early life and career Lewis was born on 20 June 1971 in Harold Wood in London. He was educated at Forest School in Walthamstow. He received a BSc degree in Economics from the University of Buckingham, an LLB honours degree in Law from the same institution, and an LLM in Commercial Law from King's College London. He was called to the bar by the Inner Temple. He was a director of Woodlands Schools Limited, a provider of private primary schools based in Hutton, Essex, until September 2012 when he resigned his position. Local government In May 1998 Lewis was first