In the 1972 Birthday Honours, Newton was appointed to the Order of the British Empire as an Officer (OBE).

[8] He became Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster and a minister at the DTI for a year, before being promoted to Secretary of State for Social Security from 1989 to 1992, and then taking up the positions of Lord President of the Council and Leader of the House of Commons until 1997.

The Commission concluded that Parliament was being left behind by changes in the constitution, government and society and set out reforms for improving its function.

[12][13] He became a chairman of the Further Education Funding Council for East Region, serving between 1998 and 2001, the privy councillors' committee on the Anti-Terrorism, Crime and Security Act 2001 between 2002 and 2004, the Tax Law Rewrite Steering Committee between 2007 and 2010), the North East Essex Mental Health NHS Trust between 1997 and 2001, the Royal Brompton and Harefield NHS Trust between 2001 and 2009, East Anglia's Children's Hospices between 1998 and 2002 and Help the Hospices between 2002 and 2010, the Council on Tribunals (1998–2007), and its successor the Administrative Justice and Tribunals Council (2007–2009); the Standing Conference on Drug Abuse (1997–2001).

He became a deputy lieutenant of Essex in 2002 Newton was married to Janet Huxley from 25 August 1962 until they divorced in 1986.