Francis James Patrick Lilley (24 July 1907 – 21 August 1971) was a British

United Kingdom

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...

 civil engineering company chairman and politician.

Military service

Lilley was the son of Francis John Charles Lilley, who had founded F. J. C. Lilley Ltd, a Glasgow

Glasgow

Glasgow is the largest city in Scotland and third most populous in the United Kingdom. The city is situated on the River Clyde in the country's west central lowlands...

-based civil engineering company. He was educated at Bellahouston

Bellahouston

Bellahouston is a district in the southwest of the Scottish city of Glasgow. It is bordered by Ibrox, Dumbreck and Pollokshields.-History:...

 Academy, and worked for the family firm before joining the Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders

Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders

The Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders, 5th Battalion The Royal Regiment of Scotland is an infantry battalion of the Royal Regiment of Scotland....

 in 1934. However, he left the regiment in 1940 to return to Glasgow, where he joined the 12th Battalion of the City of Glasgow Home Guard on its establishment in 1941; he was promoted to Lieutenant-Colonel in 1942.

Politics

After the war Lilley became Managing Director of F. J. C. Lilley Ltd, who won several contracts of major importance. He was elected to Glasgow

Glasgow

Glasgow is the largest city in Scotland and third most populous in the United Kingdom. The city is situated on the River Clyde in the country's west central lowlands...

 Corporation in 1957, and in 1959 was selected as the 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...

 candidate to try to win back the Glasgow Kelvingrove

Glasgow Kelvingrove (UK Parliament constituency)

Glasgow Kelvingrove was a burgh constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom from 1918 until 1983. It elected one Member of Parliament using the first-past-the-post voting system.- Boundaries :...

 constituency which the party had lost at a byelection. He was narrowly successful in the general election of that year

United Kingdom general election, 1959

This United Kingdom general election was held on 8 October 1959. It marked a third successive victory for the ruling Conservative Party, led by Harold Macmillan...

.

Parliament

On 9 November 1959, Lilley was one of four Scottish MPs on a British European Airways

British European Airways

British European Airways or British European Airways Corporation was a British airline which existed from 1946 until 1974. The airline operated European and North African routes from airports around the United Kingdom...

 Viscount

Vickers Viscount

The Vickers Viscount was a British medium-range turboprop airliner first flown in 1948 by Vickers-Armstrongs, making it the first such aircraft to enter service in the world...

 which was involved in a near miss with a Royal Air Force

Royal Air Force

The Royal Air Force is the aerial warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Formed on 1 April 1918, it is the oldest independent air force in the world...

 Pembroke

Percival Pembroke

-See also:-Bibliography:* The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Aircraft London: Orbis Publishing, 1985.* Jackson, A.J. British Civil Aircraft since 1919 . London: Putnam, 1974. ISBN 0-370-10014-X....

 transport. William Baxter

William Baxter (MP)

William Baxter was a British Labour Party politician, building contractor and farmer.He was a conscientious objector in the Second World War....

, one of the others, said that he "got quite a fright". In 1960, he was made Parliamentary Private Secretary

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 Richard Wood

Richard Wood, Baron Holderness

Richard Frederick Wood, Baron Holderness PC, DL was a British Conservative politician who held numerous ministerial positions from 1955 to 1974...

, then the Minister of Power and later Minister of Pensions and National Insurance.

Later life

Lilley lost his marginal seat at the 1964 general election

United Kingdom general election, 1964

The United Kingdom general election of 1964 was held on 15 October 1964, more than five years after the preceding election, and thirteen years after the Conservative Party had retaken power...

, and returned to business. He gave up as Managing Director of F. J. C. Lilley Ltd in March 1969 but stayed on as Chairman until his death.