Early Life
Conway was born in Gateshead and was educated at Beacon Hill Comprehensive School in the town, Gateshead Technical College, and Newcastle upon Tyne Polytechnic.
In 1974, at the age of 21, Conway was elected as a councillor of the Metropolitan Borough of Gateshead council. In 1977, he was also elected to the Tyne and Wear County Council, and was the Conservative group leader from 1979 until 1982. He stepped down from the county council in 1983, when he was elected to Westminster. At Gateshead he was the Deputy Conservative Group Leader for some years and remained a councillor at Gateshead until 1987, while simultaneously a member of parliament
At the October 1974 General Election he unsuccessfully contested the safe Labour parliamentary constituency of Durham, being defeated by the sitting member, Mark Hughes, by 18,116 votes. At the 1979 General Election Conway contested the more marginal seat of Newcastle upon Tyne East and was again defeated, this time by Labour's Mike Thomas and by 6,176 votes.
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