[1] Hawkins was educated at Bedford Modern School and Lincoln College, Oxford, and called to the Bar at the Middle Temple in 1979.
[4][5] Hawkins served in Prime Minister John Major's government in 1995–97, first at the Ministry of Defence and then at the then Department of National Heritage.
In April 2004, Hawkins was deselected as the Surrey Heath Conservative Association's parliamentary candidate, following a postal ballot of its 1,200 members in the constituency.
The decision to drop Hawkins as the Surrey Heath candidate was taken despite appeals on his behalf by Oliver Letwin, William Hague, Ann Widdecombe, and others.
Hawkins was encouraged by Howard and party co-chairman Liam Fox to stand again for a different constituency, but he decided instead to return to his legal career.