The 92 Group is a right-wing grouping within the British Conservative Party. They are so named because they would meet at Conservative MP Sir Patrick Wall's home, 92 Cheyne Walk in

Chelsea, London Chelsea is an affluent area in west London, England, due south-west of Charing Cross by approximately 2.5 miles. It lies on the north bank of the River Thames and for postal purposes is part of the south-western postal area. Chelsea histori ...

.Colin Brown,
92 Group chairman survives challenge
, ''

The Independent ''The Independent'' is a British online newspaper. It was established in 1986 as a national morning printed paper. Nicknamed the ''Indy'', it began as a broadsheet and changed to tabloid format in 2003. The last printed edition was publish ...

'' (15 March 1994). It was founded in 1964 in order to "keep the Conservative Party conservative" and membership is by invitation only. During the period of

Margaret Thatcher Margaret Hilda Thatcher, Baroness Thatcher (; 13 October 19258 April 2013) was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1979 to 1990 and Leader of the Conservative Party from 1975 to 1990. She was the first female British prime ...

's leadership of the Conservative Party, it was a prominent supporter of her policies. During John Major's premiership, it became a focus for Thatcherite MPs dissatisfied with his leadership. It was also prominent in supporting

John Redwood Sir John Alan Redwood (born 15 June 1951) is a British politician who has been the Member of Parliament (MP) for Wokingham in Berkshire since 1987. A member of the Conservative Party, he was Secretary of State for Wales in the Major governm ...

's unsuccessful candidacy against Major for the leadership of the Conservative Party in 1995. Its first chairman was Wall, and

John Townend John Ernest Townend (12 June 1934 – 18 August 2018) was a British politician who was a Member of Parliament for the Conservative Party. Early years The son of Charles Hope and Dorothy Townend, he was born on 12 June 1934 in Kingston upon Hu ...

was at one time chairman, as was

Gerald Howarth Sir James Gerald Douglas Howarth (born 12 September 1947) is a British Conservative Party politician. He was the Member of Parliament (MP) for Aldershot from 1997 until 2017, having been the MP for Cannock and Burntwood from 1983 to 1992. He wa ...

. George Gardiner,

David Maclean David John Maclean, Baron Blencathra, (born 16 May 1953) is a Conservative Party life peer. He was the Member of Parliament (MP) for Penrith and The Border from 1983 to 2010. Early and later life Born in Scotland, Maclean was educated at F ...

Christopher Chope Sir Christopher Robert Chope (born 19 May 1947) is a British barrister and politician who has served as the Member of Parliament (MP) for Christchurch in Dorset since 1997. A member of the Conservative Party, he was first elected in 1983 fo ...

and

Edward Leigh Sir Edward Julian Egerton Leigh (born 20 July 1950) is a British Conservative Party politician who has served as a Member of Parliament (MP) since 1983. Leigh has represented Gainsborough, Lincolnshire in the House of Commons since 1983 (re ...

have been members. In 1996 there were around one hundred members of the Group. They grouped together as a block vote in committee elections and to influence party policy. Norman Tebbit records in his memoirs that shortly after being elected an MP in 1970, he was elected to the party's backbench committee on housing policy, even though he was virtually unknown to most MPs. However, at committee election times, the group met to agree on a slate of candidates they were expected to support, thus explaining Tebbit's success.Norman Tebbit, ''Upwardly Mobile'' (Futura, 1991), pp. 122–3. Gardiner as chairman promoted 92 Group members for elections to Conservative backbench committees. Important members of the Group were therefore interviewed by the media during Major's premiership to represent Conservative backbench opinion.

Notes

{{UK Conservative Party Organisations associated with the Conservative Party (UK) Groups of British MPs Organizations established in 1964 1964 establishments in the United Kingdom