Tim Rathbone
Encyclopedia
John Rankin "Tim" Rathbone (17 March 1933 – 12 July 2002) was the Conservative
Member of Parliament
(MP) for the seat of Lewes
between 1974 and 1997.
Rathbone was the son of a Conservative
MP also called John Rankin Rathbone
, who represented Bodmin
from 1935 until his death in the Battle of Britain
in 1940. Rathbone's mother, Beatrice Wright
then succeeded him as MP at the by-election, serving until 1945. Tim Rathbone was a great-nephew of Eleanor Rathbone
, who had been an independent MP for the Combined English Universities
between 1929 and 1946, and a staunch women's rights campaigner. He was a great-grandson of William Rathbone
, a Liberal MP for Liverpool and later Carnarvonshire.
Rathbone was educated at Eton College
and Christ Church, Oxford
, where he read Philosophy, Politics and Economics. After a spell as merchant banker, he emigrated in 1958 to the United States
where he worked for the advertising firm Ogilvy and Mather until 1966 when he returned to the UK. In 1960, he married Margarita Sanchez y Sanchez, a Cuba
n, with whom he had three children: John, Michael and Cristina.
Upon his return to Britain, Rathbone was recruited by party chairman Edward du Cann
to work for the Conservatives
as Chief Publicity Officer. He was relatively ineffectual in this position, partly because his brief overlapped with other Conservative staffers. Rathbone moved to the Charles Barker Group
, a leading advertising agency in 1968, where he remained for 18 years. He was appointed to a string of directorships within the group and was managing director of Ayer Barker until 1974.
In 1973, he was selected to fight the safe Conservative seat of Lewes
, which he duly won in the February 1974 election
. Upon entering Parliament, it was clear that Rathbone had a reforming zeal about him, and pushed for declaration of Members' interests, electoral reform and devolution. In 1981, he divorced his first wife and the following year married Susan Stopford Sackville.
Rathbone was also a staunch critic of apartheid: On a visit to Rhodesia
, he proposed ousting Ian Smith
and holding transitional elections for a majority black government. In 1986, he invited Oliver Tambo
, a prominent member of the South African opposition to address Conservative MPs.
When the Conservatives entered government in 1979, Rathbone was appointed as Parliamentary Private Secretary
to Gerald Vaughan, the Minister for Health, a position he held until 1982. He later served as PPS to other Ministers. He did not achieve high ministerial office however because of his rebelling tendencies, which saw many label him as a "wet". He opposed the Bill that scrapped the Greater London Council
and other metropolitan authorities in 1984, and also the poll tax
. He also became Chairman of the Parliamentary Committee on Drug Misuse. Rathbone was a relation of, and godfather to, the future Conservative leader David Cameron
. He employed Cameron as a researcher from January to March 1985.
After losing his seat to the Liberal Democrats
in the 1997 general election
he became chairman of Sponsorship Consultancy Ltd. and in August 1998, was expelled from the Conservative Party by William Hague
for his support of the breakaway Pro-Euro Conservative Party
. He died from cancer in 2002, aged 69.
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...
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) for the seat of Lewes
Lewes (UK Parliament constituency)
Lewes is a constituency located in East Sussex and centred on the town of Lewes. It is represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It was a safe Conservative seat until 1997, but the Liberal Democrats have gained a strong foothold.-Boundaries:The constituency is...
between 1974 and 1997.
Rathbone was the son of a Conservative
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...
MP also called John Rankin Rathbone
John Rathbone (Bodmin)
John Rankin Rathbone was a British Conservative Party politician. A fighter pilot with the Royal Air Force, he was killed shortly after the Battle of Britain....
, who represented Bodmin
Bodmin (UK Parliament constituency)
Bodmin was the name of a parliamentary constituency in Cornwall from 1295 until 1983. Initially, it was a parliamentary borough, which returned two Members of Parliament to the House of Commons of England and later the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom until the 1868 general...
from 1935 until his death in the Battle of Britain
Battle of Britain
The Battle of Britain is the name given to the World War II air campaign waged by the German Air Force against the United Kingdom during the summer and autumn of 1940...
in 1940. Rathbone's mother, Beatrice Wright
Beatrice Wright
Beatrice Frederika Wright, Lady Wright, née Clough, later Rathbone was an American-born British politician....
then succeeded him as MP at the by-election, serving until 1945. Tim Rathbone was a great-nephew of Eleanor Rathbone
Eleanor Rathbone
Eleanor Florence Rathbone was an independent British Member of Parliament and long-term campaigner for women's rights. She was a member of the noted Rathbone family of Liverpool.-Life:...
, who had been an independent MP for the Combined English Universities
Combined English Universities (UK Parliament constituency)
Combined English Universities was a university constituency represented in the United Kingdom Parliament . It was formed by enfranchising and combining all the English Universities, except for Cambridge, Oxford and London, which were already separately represented.-Boundaries:This University...
between 1929 and 1946, and a staunch women's rights campaigner. He was a great-grandson of William Rathbone
William Rathbone VI
William Rathbone VI was an English merchant and businessman noted for his philanthropic and public work...
, a Liberal MP for Liverpool and later Carnarvonshire.
Rathbone was educated at Eton College
Eton College
Eton College, often referred to simply as Eton, is a British independent school for boys aged 13 to 18. It was founded in 1440 by King Henry VI as "The King's College of Our Lady of Eton besides Wyndsor"....
and Christ Church, Oxford
Christ Church, Oxford
Christ Church or house of Christ, and thus sometimes known as The House), is one of the largest constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England...
, where he read Philosophy, Politics and Economics. After a spell as merchant banker, he emigrated in 1958 to the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
where he worked for the advertising firm Ogilvy and Mather until 1966 when he returned to the UK. In 1960, he married Margarita Sanchez y Sanchez, a Cuba
Cuba
The Republic of Cuba is an island nation in the Caribbean. The nation of Cuba consists of the main island of Cuba, the Isla de la Juventud, and several archipelagos. Havana is the largest city in Cuba and the country's capital. Santiago de Cuba is the second largest city...
n, with whom he had three children: John, Michael and Cristina.
Upon his return to Britain, Rathbone was recruited by party chairman Edward du Cann
Edward du Cann
Sir Edward Dillon Lott du Cann is a retired politician from the United Kingdom. He was a Member of Parliament from 1956–87, and served as Chairman of the Conservative Party from 1965–67, and Chairman of party's 1922 Committee from 1972-84.Du Cann was educated at Colet Court, Woodbridge School and...
to work for the Conservatives
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...
as Chief Publicity Officer. He was relatively ineffectual in this position, partly because his brief overlapped with other Conservative staffers. Rathbone moved to the Charles Barker Group
Charles Barker
Charles Barker was an English advertising agent.Charles Barker was born in Durham in 1791, the son of an attorney. Working as a King’s messenger in France, he returned to England in 1812, bringing news of Napoleon’s retreat from Moscow...
, a leading advertising agency in 1968, where he remained for 18 years. He was appointed to a string of directorships within the group and was managing director of Ayer Barker until 1974.
In 1973, he was selected to fight the safe Conservative seat of Lewes
Lewes (UK Parliament constituency)
Lewes is a constituency located in East Sussex and centred on the town of Lewes. It is represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It was a safe Conservative seat until 1997, but the Liberal Democrats have gained a strong foothold.-Boundaries:The constituency is...
, which he duly won in the February 1974 election
United Kingdom general election, February 1974
The United Kingdom's general election of February 1974 was held on the 28th of that month. It was the first of two United Kingdom general elections held that year, and the first election since the Second World War not to produce an overall majority in the House of Commons for the winning party,...
. Upon entering Parliament, it was clear that Rathbone had a reforming zeal about him, and pushed for declaration of Members' interests, electoral reform and devolution. In 1981, he divorced his first wife and the following year married Susan Stopford Sackville.
Rathbone was also a staunch critic of apartheid: On a visit to Rhodesia
Rhodesia
Rhodesia , officially the Republic of Rhodesia from 1970, was an unrecognised state located in southern Africa that existed between 1965 and 1979 following its Unilateral Declaration of Independence from the United Kingdom on 11 November 1965...
, he proposed ousting Ian Smith
Ian Smith
Ian Douglas Smith GCLM ID was a politician active in the government of Southern Rhodesia, the Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland, Rhodesia, Zimbabwe Rhodesia and Zimbabwe from 1948 to 1987, most notably serving as Prime Minister of Rhodesia from 13 April 1964 to 1 June 1979...
and holding transitional elections for a majority black government. In 1986, he invited Oliver Tambo
Oliver Tambo
Oliver Reginald Tambo was a South African anti-apartheid politician and a central figure in the African National Congress .-Biography:Oliver Tambo was born in Bizana in eastern Pondoland in what is now Eastern Cape...
, a prominent member of the South African opposition to address Conservative MPs.
When the Conservatives entered government in 1979, Rathbone was appointed as 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 Gerald Vaughan, the Minister for Health, a position he held until 1982. He later served as PPS to other Ministers. He did not achieve high ministerial office however because of his rebelling tendencies, which saw many label him as a "wet". He opposed the Bill that scrapped the Greater London Council
Greater London Council
The Greater London Council was the top-tier local government administrative body for Greater London from 1965 to 1986. It replaced the earlier London County Council which had covered a much smaller area...
and other metropolitan authorities in 1984, and also the poll tax
Poll tax
A poll tax is a tax of a portioned, fixed amount per individual in accordance with the census . When a corvée is commuted for cash payment, in effect it becomes a poll tax...
. He also became Chairman of the Parliamentary Committee on Drug Misuse. Rathbone was a relation of, and godfather to, the future Conservative leader David Cameron
David Cameron
David William Donald Cameron is the current Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, First Lord of the Treasury, Minister for the Civil Service and Leader of the Conservative Party. Cameron represents Witney as its Member of Parliament ....
. He employed Cameron as a researcher from January to March 1985.
After losing his seat to the Liberal Democrats
Liberal Democrats
The Liberal Democrats are a social liberal political party in the United Kingdom which supports constitutional and electoral reform, progressive taxation, wealth taxation, human rights laws, cultural liberalism, banking reform and civil liberties .The party was formed in 1988 by a merger of the...
in the 1997 general 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 became chairman of Sponsorship Consultancy Ltd. and in August 1998, was expelled from the Conservative Party by 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...
for his support of the breakaway Pro-Euro Conservative Party
Pro-Euro Conservative Party
The Pro-Euro Conservative Party was a British political party announced by John Stevens and Brendan Donnelly in February 1999, formed to contest the 1999 European Parliament Elections. The founders were Members of the European Parliament who had resigned from the UK Conservative Party in protest at...
. He died from cancer in 2002, aged 69.