Brian Mawhinney
Encyclopedia
Brian Stanley Mawhinney, Baron Mawhinney PC
(born 26 July 1940) is a British
Conservative Party
politician. He was a member of the Cabinet
from 1994 until 1997 and a Member of Parliament
(MP) from 1979 until 2005.
and was educated at the Royal Belfast Academical Institution
. He studied physics
at Queen's University of Belfast
, gaining an upper second class degree in 1963 and obtained a Ph.D. in radiation physics at the Royal Free Hospital
in London. He worked as assistant professor of radiation research at the University of Iowa
from 1968–70 and then returned to the Royal Free Hospital School of Medicine as a lecturer from 1970–84.
for Peterborough
from 1979 to 1997 and Member of Parliament for North West Cambridgeshire from 1997 to 2005. Mawhinney campaigned prolifically against pornography. In 1979 one of his bills were in the Private Members’ Bills ballot, which attempted to ban indecent displays outside cinemas, sex shops and strip clubs. In early 1980, he called for Keith Joseph
to launch an inquiry into certain pages on the Post Office’s Prestel viewdata service, calling it a “buyers guide to dirty books”. In the early 1980s he was secretary of the Conservative backbench Northern Ireland committee, during which time he showed wariness of the Rev Ian Paisley
, warning his supporters that the British commitment to Ulster could be damaged by “protestant ingratitude”.
He was PPS
to John Wakeham
from 1982 to 1983 and PPS to Tom King
from 1984 to 1986. He became a junior minister at the Northern Ireland Office
in 1986, and then became Minister of State at the Northern Ireland Office in 1990. In 1992, he became Minister of State at the Department of Health until 1994 when he entered the cabinet as Secretary of State for Transport
. He served as Chairman of the Conservative Party
and Minister without Portfolio
for two years from 1995 until the 1997 election
. He was appointed a Knight Bachelor
in the dissolution honours list in 1997. He served as Shadow Home Secretary
and spokesman for home, constitutional and legal affairs for a year under William Hague
before returning to the back benches in June 1998. He stepped down from the House of Commons in May 2005. On 13 May 2005 it was announced that he would be created a life peer
, and on 24 June he was created Baron Mawhinney, of Peterborough, in the County of Cambridgeshire
.
, and in 2004 oversaw a re-organisation of the league structure, renaming the former Division One as the Football League Championship. Deeply religious, Mawhinney is a leading member of the Conservative Christian Fellowship
and was a member of the General Synod
for five years.
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Privy Council of the United Kingdom
Her Majesty's Most Honourable Privy Council, usually known simply as the Privy Council, is a formal body of advisers to the Sovereign in the United Kingdom...
(born 26 July 1940) is a British
British people
The British are citizens of the United Kingdom, of the Isle of Man, any of the Channel Islands, or of any of the British overseas territories, and their descendants...
Conservative Party
Conservative Party (UK)
The Conservative Party, formally the Conservative and Unionist Party, is a centre-right political party in the United Kingdom that adheres to the philosophies of conservatism and British unionism. It is the largest political party in the UK, and is currently the largest single party in the House...
politician. He was a member of the Cabinet
Cabinet of the United Kingdom
The Cabinet of the United Kingdom is the collective decision-making body of Her Majesty's Government in the United Kingdom, composed of the Prime Minister and some 22 Cabinet Ministers, the most senior of the government ministers....
from 1994 until 1997 and a Member of Parliament
Member of Parliament
A Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...
(MP) from 1979 until 2005.
Early life
Mawhinney was born in 1940 in BelfastBelfast
Belfast is the capital of and largest city in Northern Ireland. By population, it is the 14th biggest city in the United Kingdom and second biggest on the island of Ireland . It is the seat of the devolved government and legislative Northern Ireland Assembly...
and was educated at the Royal Belfast Academical Institution
Royal Belfast Academical Institution
The Royal Belfast Academical Institution, is a Grammar School in Belfast, Northern Ireland. Locally referred to as Inst, the school educates boys from ages 11–18...
. He studied physics
Physics
Physics is a natural science that involves the study of matter and its motion through spacetime, along with related concepts such as energy and force. More broadly, it is the general analysis of nature, conducted in order to understand how the universe behaves.Physics is one of the oldest academic...
at Queen's University of Belfast
Queen's University of Belfast
Queen's University Belfast is a public research university in Belfast, Northern Ireland. The university's official title, per its charter, is the Queen's University of Belfast. It is often referred to simply as Queen's, or by the abbreviation QUB...
, gaining an upper second class degree in 1963 and obtained a Ph.D. in radiation physics at the Royal Free Hospital
Royal Free Hospital
The Royal Free Hospital is a major teaching hospital in Hampstead, London, England and part of the Royal Free Hampstead NHS Trust....
in London. He worked as assistant professor of radiation research at the University of Iowa
University of Iowa
The University of Iowa is a public state-supported research university located in Iowa City, Iowa, United States. It is the oldest public university in the state. The university is organized into eleven colleges granting undergraduate, graduate, and professional degrees...
from 1968–70 and then returned to the Royal Free Hospital School of Medicine as a lecturer from 1970–84.
Political career
Mawhinney was Member of ParliamentMember of Parliament
A Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...
for Peterborough
Peterborough (UK Parliament constituency)
Peterborough is a borough constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, formally styled The Honourable the Commons of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland in Parliament assembled. It elects one Member of Parliament by the first past...
from 1979 to 1997 and Member of Parliament for North West Cambridgeshire from 1997 to 2005. Mawhinney campaigned prolifically against pornography. In 1979 one of his bills were in the Private Members’ Bills ballot, which attempted to ban indecent displays outside cinemas, sex shops and strip clubs. In early 1980, he called for Keith Joseph
Keith Joseph
Keith St John Joseph, Baron Joseph, Bt, CH, PC , was a British barrister and politician. A member of the Conservative Party, he served in the Cabinet under three Prime Ministers , and is widely regarded to have been the "power behind the throne" in the creation of what came to be known as...
to launch an inquiry into certain pages on the Post Office’s Prestel viewdata service, calling it a “buyers guide to dirty books”. In the early 1980s he was secretary of the Conservative backbench Northern Ireland committee, during which time he showed wariness of the Rev Ian Paisley
Ian Paisley
Ian Richard Kyle Paisley, Baron Bannside, PC is a politician and church minister in Northern Ireland. As the leader of the Democratic Unionist Party , he and Sinn Féin's Martin McGuinness were elected First Minister and deputy First Minister respectively on 8 May 2007.In addition to co-founding...
, warning his supporters that the British commitment to Ulster could be damaged by “protestant ingratitude”.
He was PPS
Parliamentary Private Secretary
A Parliamentary Private Secretary is a role given to a United Kingdom Member of Parliament by a senior minister in government or shadow minister to act as their contact for the House of Commons; this role is junior to that of Parliamentary Under-Secretary, which is a ministerial post, salaried by...
to John Wakeham
John Wakeham
John Wakeham, Baron Wakeham, PC, DL is a businessman and British Conservative Party politician and the current Chancellor of Brunel University.He was a director of Enron from 1994 until its bankruptcy in 2001....
from 1982 to 1983 and PPS to Tom King
Tom King, Baron King of Bridgwater
Thomas Jeremy King, Baron King of Bridgwater, CH, PC , is a British politician. A member of the Conservative Party, he served in the Cabinet from 1983–92, and was the Member of Parliament for the constituency of Bridgwater in Somerset from 1970-2001...
from 1984 to 1986. He became a junior minister at the Northern Ireland Office
Northern Ireland Office
The Northern Ireland Office is a United Kingdom government department responsible for Northern Ireland affairs. The NIO is led by the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, and is based in Northern Ireland at Stormont House.-Role:...
in 1986, and then became Minister of State at the Northern Ireland Office in 1990. In 1992, he became Minister of State at the Department of Health until 1994 when he entered the cabinet as Secretary of State for Transport
Secretary of State for Transport
The Secretary of State for Transport is the member of the cabinet responsible for the British Department for Transport. The role has had a high turnover as new appointments are blamed for the failures of decades of their predecessors...
. He served as Chairman of the Conservative Party
Chairman of the Conservative Party
In the United Kingdom, the Chairman of the Conservative Party is responsible for running the party machine, overseeing Conservative Central Office. When the Conservatives are in power, the Chairman is usually a member of the Cabinet being given a sinecure position such as Minister without Portfolio...
and Minister without Portfolio
Minister without Portfolio
A minister without portfolio is either a government minister with no specific responsibilities or a minister that does not head a particular ministry...
for two years from 1995 until the 1997 election
United Kingdom general election, 1997
The United Kingdom general election, 1997 was held on 1 May 1997, more than five years after the previous election on 9 April 1992, to elect 659 members to the British House of Commons. The Labour Party ended its 18 years in opposition under the leadership of Tony Blair, and won the general...
. He was appointed a Knight Bachelor
Knight Bachelor
The rank of Knight Bachelor is a part of the British honours system. It is the most basic rank of a man who has been knighted by the monarch but not as a member of one of the organised Orders of Chivalry...
in the dissolution honours list in 1997. He served as Shadow Home Secretary
Home Secretary
The Secretary of State for the Home Department, commonly known as the Home Secretary, is the minister in charge of the Home Office of the United Kingdom, and one of the country's four Great Offices of State...
and spokesman for home, constitutional and legal affairs for a year under William Hague
William Hague
William Jefferson Hague is the British Foreign Secretary and First Secretary of State. He served as Leader of the Conservative Party from June 1997 to September 2001...
before returning to the back benches in June 1998. He stepped down from the House of Commons in May 2005. On 13 May 2005 it was announced that he would be created a life peer
Life peer
In the United Kingdom, life peers are appointed members of the Peerage whose titles cannot be inherited. Nowadays life peerages, always of baronial rank, are created under the Life Peerages Act 1958 and entitle the holders to seats in the House of Lords, presuming they meet qualifications such as...
, and on 24 June he was created Baron Mawhinney, of Peterborough, in the County of Cambridgeshire
Cambridgeshire
Cambridgeshire is a county in England, bordering Lincolnshire to the north, Norfolk to the northeast, Suffolk to the east, Essex and Hertfordshire to the south, and Bedfordshire and Northamptonshire to the west...
.
Outside politics
In 2003, he was appointed Chairman of The Football LeagueThe Football League
The Football League, also known as the npower Football League for sponsorship reasons, is a league competition featuring professional association football clubs from England and Wales. Founded in 1888, it is the oldest such competition in world football...
, and in 2004 oversaw a re-organisation of the league structure, renaming the former Division One as the Football League Championship. Deeply religious, Mawhinney is a leading member of the Conservative Christian Fellowship
Conservative Christian Fellowship
The Conservative Christian Fellowship is an organisation allied with the British Conservative Party, established in 1990 by Tim Montgomerie and Conservative MP David Burrowes whilst they were students at Exeter University....
and was a member of the General Synod
General Synod
-Church of England:In the Church of England, the General Synod, which was established in 1970 , is the legislative body of the Church.-Episcopal Church of the United States:...
for five years.
See also
- List of Northern Ireland Members of the House of Lords
- List of Northern Ireland members of the Privy Council
External links
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