Cormack was born in Grimsby just before the outbreak of World War II. He was educated locally at the St James's Choir School and the Havelock School, before attending the University of Hull where he received a Bachelor of Arts degree in 1961. He was a teacher at his former school, St James's Choir School, in 1961, before becoming a training and education officer with Ross Ltd in 1966. In 1967 he was appointed an assistant house master at the Wrekin College in Wellington, Shropshire for two years, after which he became the head of history at the Brewood Grammar School in 1969.
From 1970–73, Cormack served as a Parliamentary Private Secretary to the Department of Health and Social Security. He moved constituencies at the February 1974 general election, leaving the marginal seat of Cannock and instead contesting the newly drawn seat of South West Staffordshire, which he won comfortably with a majority of 9,758. Cormack was a member of the Education Select committee for the duration of the 1979 Parliament. On 7 October 1981, with national unemployment approaching 3,000,000, Cormack urged Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher to change her economic policies, namely monetarism to tackle inflation, if Britain was to avoid economic disaster. In 1983, his constituency changed its name to its present one, Staffordshire South, and after the 1983 general election, he became a member of the chairman's Panel. Cormack was made a Knight Bachelor in the 1995 Queen's New Year's Honours List, for his service to parliament. In 1997, after 27 years as an MP on the backbenches, he was promoted by the then Leader of the Opposition, William Hague, to become the opposition's Deputy Leader of the House of Commons. He resigned from this position in 2000 in order to stand for the position of Speaker of the House of Commons. However, he was unsuccessful in his bid for the Speakership, with the House instead choosing Labour MP Michael Martin for the role. During the 2005–10 parliament, Cormack was the chairman of the Northern Ireland Affairs Select Committee. The vote in Staffordshire South was postponed at the 2005 general election due to the death of the Liberal Democrat candidate Jo Harrison. When the election did take place on 23 June 2005, Cormack won comfortably. In February 2007, it was announced that Cormack had failed to win the readoption of his constituency party for the next general election. This vote was later declared invalid as the number of votes recorded exceeded the number of people present at the meeting. In July 2007, the South Staffordshire Conservatives' executive council voted on the matter, but it resulted in a tie. Consequently, a vote of all local party members was held to decide whether Cormack should remain the party's candidate at the next general election. In the vote, held on 14 September, Cormack was readopted as the Conservative candidate, receiving the backing of over 75% of participating party members. Cormack expressed his gratitude and called the victory a "great relief". Subsequently, on 1 December 2009, Cormack announced his intention to stand down at the 2010 general election. Cormack was created a life peer on 18 December 2010, as Baron Cormack, of Enville in the County of Staffordshire. He sits on the Conservative benches in the House of Lords. Cormack opposed the Coalition'splans to reform the House of Lords, speaking out against them numerous times in the chamber. Cormack is seen as a One Nation Tory. He was a Heathite, and was a frequent rebel under Margaret Thatcher.
