Christopher Murray Paul-Huhne, commonly known as Chris Huhne (/ˈhjuːn/; born 2 July 1954) is a British politician and former cabinet minister, who is the Liberal Democrat Member of Parliament for the Eastleigh constituency in Hampshire. He was appointed Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change in the coalition government following the 2010 general election. In February 2012 he became the first Cabinet minister in history to be forced from office by a criminal prosecution when he was charged with perverting the course of justice over a 2003 speeding case. Huhne has twice stood unsuccessfully for election as leader of the Liberal Democrats. In the 2006 election he came second to Sir Menzies Campbell and in the 2007 election he narrowly lost to Nick Clegg.