Tom Pendry, Baron Pendry
Encyclopedia
Thomas Pendry, Baron Pendry PC
(born 10 June 1934) is a Labour
politician and member of the House of Lords
. He was previously the Labour member of parliament for Stalybridge and Hyde from 1970 to 2001. In 2000, prior to his retirement as an MP
he was made a member of the Privy council on the recommendation of Tony Blair
. After the 2001 election he was elevated to the peerage
as Baron Pendry, of Stalybridge in the County of Greater Manchester
under the Life Peerages Act 1958
. Lord Pendry is a Parliamentary advisor to The Stamford Group Ltd, Parliamentary Consultant to Arrowcroft Group plc, President of Oyston Steel Estates Ltd, President of the Football Foundation Ltd and Sports Advisor to Tameside District Council Sports Trust.
, Kent, attending school at St Augustine's Abbey
. He worked as a trade union officer NUPE
and engineer before being elected to Parliament in 1970. He served as an opposition whip
between 1971 and 1974.
administration between 1976 and 1979 Pendry served as a junior Lord Commissioner of the Treasury (assistant government whip) and subsequently as Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State
for Northern Ireland
.
, MP, a position he held until 1997. When the Labour government came to power in 1997, Pendry was the only member of the shadow team not to be appointed to a government post.
metropolitan borough
council, the Local Authority which had administered the area covered by the Stalybridge and Hyde constituency since 1974, made Pendry an honorary Freeman of the borough. At the same time, the council granted him the Lordship of the Manor
of Mottram in Longdendale
. Tameside Council have named part of Trinity Street in front of the old Stalybridge market hall, Lord Pendry Square. Stalybridge Celtic have named one of their stands The Lord Tom Pendry Stand.
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 10 June 1934) is a Labour
Labour Party (UK)
The Labour Party is a centre-left democratic socialist party in the United Kingdom. It surpassed the Liberal Party in general elections during the early 1920s, forming minority governments under Ramsay MacDonald in 1924 and 1929-1931. The party was in a wartime coalition from 1940 to 1945, after...
politician and member of the House of Lords
House of Lords
The House of Lords is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Like the House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminster....
. He was previously the Labour member of parliament for Stalybridge and Hyde from 1970 to 2001. In 2000, prior to his retirement as an MP
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,...
he was made a member of the Privy council on the recommendation of Tony Blair
Tony Blair
Anthony Charles Lynton Blair is a former British Labour Party politician who served as the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 2 May 1997 to 27 June 2007. He was the Member of Parliament for Sedgefield from 1983 to 2007 and Leader of the Labour Party from 1994 to 2007...
. After the 2001 election he was elevated to the peerage
Peerage
The Peerage is a legal system of largely hereditary titles in the United Kingdom, which constitute the ranks of British nobility and is part of the British honours system...
as Baron Pendry, of Stalybridge in the County of Greater Manchester
Greater Manchester
Greater Manchester is a metropolitan county in North West England, with a population of 2.6 million. It encompasses one of the largest metropolitan areas in the United Kingdom and comprises ten metropolitan boroughs: Bolton, Bury, Oldham, Rochdale, Stockport, Tameside, Trafford, Wigan, and the...
under the Life Peerages Act 1958
Life Peerages Act 1958
The Life Peerages Act 1958 established the modern standards for the creation of life peers by the monarch of the United Kingdom. Life peers are barons and are members of the House of Lords for life, but their titles and membership in the Lords are not inherited by their children. Judicial life...
. Lord Pendry is a Parliamentary advisor to The Stamford Group Ltd, Parliamentary Consultant to Arrowcroft Group plc, President of Oyston Steel Estates Ltd, President of the Football Foundation Ltd and Sports Advisor to Tameside District Council Sports Trust.
Early life
In an article in Cheshire Life in June 2004, Pendry reveals that he was born in relatively comfortable circumstances in BroadstairsBroadstairs
Broadstairs is a coastal town on the Isle of Thanet in the Thanet district of east Kent, England, about south-east of London. It is part of the civil parish of Broadstairs and St Peter's, which includes St. Peter's and had a population in 2001 of about 24,000. Situated between Margate and...
, Kent, attending school at St Augustine's Abbey
St Augustine's Abbey
St Augustine's Abbey was a Benedictine abbey in Canterbury, Kent, England.-Early history:In 597 Saint Augustine arrived in England, having been sent by Pope Gregory I, on what might nowadays be called a revival mission. The King of Kent at this time was Æthelberht, who happened to be married to a...
. He worked as a trade union officer NUPE
Nupe
The Nupe, traditionally called the Tapa by the neighbouring Yoruba, are an ethnic group located primarily in the Middle Belt and northern Nigeria, and are the dominant group in Niger and an important minority in Kwara State.-History:...
and engineer before being elected to Parliament in 1970. He served as an opposition whip
Whip (politics)
A whip is an official in a political party whose primary purpose is to ensure party discipline in a legislature. Whips are a party's "enforcers", who typically offer inducements and threaten punishments for party members to ensure that they vote according to the official party policy...
between 1971 and 1974.
Callaghan government
In Callaghan'sJames Callaghan
Leonard James Callaghan, Baron Callaghan of Cardiff, KG, PC , was a British Labour politician, who was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1976 to 1979 and Leader of the Labour Party from 1976 to 1980...
administration between 1976 and 1979 Pendry served as a junior Lord Commissioner of the Treasury (assistant government whip) and subsequently as Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State
Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State
A Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State is the lowest of three tiers of government minister in the government of the United Kingdom, junior to both a Minister of State and a Secretary of State....
for Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland is one of the four countries of the United Kingdom. Situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, it shares a border with the Republic of Ireland to the south and west...
.
Opposition
In 1979 he returned to the backbenches until he was appointed to the post of Shadow Minister for Sport and Tourism by Rt. Hon. John SmithJohn Smith (UK politician)
John Smith was a British Labour Party politician who served as Leader of the Labour Party from July 1992 until his sudden death from a heart attack in May 1994...
, MP, a position he held until 1997. When the Labour government came to power in 1997, Pendry was the only member of the shadow team not to be appointed to a government post.
Honours
In 1995 the Labour controlled TamesideTameside
The Metropolitan Borough of Tameside is a metropolitan borough of Greater Manchester in North West England. It is named after the River Tame which flows through the borough and spans the towns of Ashton-under-Lyne, Audenshaw, Denton, Droylsden, Dukinfield, Hyde, Mossley and Stalybridge. Its western...
metropolitan borough
Metropolitan borough
A metropolitan borough is a type of local government district in England, and is a subdivision of a metropolitan county. Created in 1974 by the Local Government Act 1972, metropolitan boroughs are defined in English law as metropolitan districts, however all of them have been granted or regranted...
council, the Local Authority which had administered the area covered by the Stalybridge and Hyde constituency since 1974, made Pendry an honorary Freeman of the borough. At the same time, the council granted him the Lordship of the Manor
Lord of the Manor
The Lordship of a Manor is recognised today in England and Wales as a form of property and one of three elements of a manor that may exist separately or be combined and may be held in moieties...
of Mottram in Longdendale
Mottram in Longdendale
Mottram in Longdendale is an unparished village within the Metropolitan Borough of Tameside, in Greater Manchester, England. It lies in the valley of Longdendale, on the border with Derbyshire and close to the Peak District neighbouring Broadbottom and Hattersley. Mottram in Longdendale Parish was...
. Tameside Council have named part of Trinity Street in front of the old Stalybridge market hall, Lord Pendry Square. Stalybridge Celtic have named one of their stands The Lord Tom Pendry Stand.