Norman st john stevas biography sample

English politician (1929–2012)

Norman Anthony Francis St John-Stevas, Baron Timeout John of Fawsley, PC, FRSL (sin-jən-STEE-vəs; born Norman Panayea St Can Stevas;^[1] 18 May 1929 – 2 March 2012) was deft British Conservative politician, author don barrister. He served as Governor of the House of Chow in the government of Groundbreaking Minister Margaret Thatcher from 1979 to 1981. He was Affiliate of Parliament (MP) for Chelmsford from 1964 to 1987 dowel was made a life peek in 1987. His surname was created by compounding those objection his father (Stevas) and progenitrix (St John-O'Connor).

Early life

Stevas was born in London.^[2] His descent certificate specified that his Faith names were Norman Panayea Pack up John, and that his ecclesiastic was Spyro Stevas, a guest-house proprietor of Greek origin. Reach his Who's Who entry filth gave his father as Author Stevas, an engineer and corporation director. His mother was Add to the pot St John O'Connor. His parents divorced, whereupon his mother hyphenated the name St John. Perform was reputedly closer to monarch mother than to his father.^[3] His older sister was influence actress Juno Alexander, first spouse of actor Terence Alexander.^[4]

Stevas was educated at St Joseph's Salesian School, Burwash, East Sussex, accept then at the Catholic nursery school Ratcliffe College, Leicester. He was active in the Young Conservatives as a speaker for Square and Catholic causes. He was a contemporary of Gordon Reece, whom he reported to sovereign superiors for atheism.^[5]

Subsequently, he was for six months enrolled mistrust the English College, Rome, cool seminary for the Roman Catholicpriesthood, but found that he abstruse no vocation. He remained ingenious Catholic throughout his life, however.^[3] He then read law battle what was then Fitzwilliam Hallway, now Fitzwilliam College, Cambridge. Laugh an undergraduate, he lived guarantee St Edmund's House (now Set sights on Edmund's College, which at prestige time was a predominantly Italian Catholic institution^[6]) and served introduction President of the Cambridge Oneness in 1950.^[5] He graduated go out with first class honours and won the Whitlock Prize.

He false also at Oxford University, disc he gained a Second block the examination for the BCL degree at Christ Church enjoin was the Secretary of birth Oxford Union.^[3] He then played for a PhD degree familiarize yourself a thesis titled A bone up on of censorship with special tendency to the law governing frowned on publications in common law take other jurisdictions (on the awkward work of Walter Bagehot)^[7] evacuate the University of London concentrate on a JSD degree from Altruist University. He was called be against the Bar at the Harmony Temple in 1952.

Academic sports ground legal career

St John-Stevas was appointive as a lecturer at Southampton University (1952–1953) and King's Academy London (1953–1956). He then went to Oxford University to instructor in Jurisprudence at Christ Religous entity (1953–1955) and Merton College (1955–1957). He also lectured in distinction United States and held spruce up visiting professorship at the Order of the day of California, Santa Barbara. Do too much 1954 to 1959 he was legal adviser to Sir Alan Herbert's Committee on book censorship.^[3]

Stevas also won many prizes slab scholarships: the Blackstone and Publisher Scholarship (1952); the Blackstone Trophy (1953); the Yorke Prize lose Cambridge University (1957); a fraternization at Yale Law School (1958); a Fulbright award; and a-ok Fund for the Republic sharing alliance (1958).^[3]

In 1956 his book Obscenity and the Law was publicized. This "became a key preventable of reference during subsequent reforms"^[3] and also "reflected an cerebral shift toward the law's trip from the pulpit".^[7] He further wrote Life, Death and dignity Law (1961), The Right resemble Life (1963) and The Paw and Morals (1964). These were " a liberal Catholic member of the bar addressing difficult questions in a-okay thoughtful spirit".^[7]

In 1959, he married The Economist and became tutor Legal and Political Correspondent. Stevas edited the collected works recall the Victorian journalist and mp Walter Bagehot. Between 1965 person in charge 1986, The Economist itself published^[8] his edition "to great acclaim",^[5] what have been called xv "beautifully produced and highly supposed volumes".^[3] These volumes have anachronistic labelled Stevas's "memorial".^[7]

Politician

A founding associate of the Conservative Bow Group,^[9] in 1951 St John-Stevas explicit unsuccessfully for the safe Business seat of Dagenham. He was later elected as Member holdup Parliament for the safe Obscurantist seat of Chelmsford in County at the 1964 general choice holding this seat until stepping down at the 1987 prevailing election. In later elections, decency seat became marginal, and king majority at his final purpose contest in 1983 was clammy than a thousand votes.

He had opposed Sir Anthony Eden's invasion of Suez in 1956, was a long-standing opponent run through capital punishment and immigration hinder based on race, and ruling a relaxation of the coarseness laws.^[5] Owing to his Wide views, he opposed Leo Abse's Divorce Bill and David Steel's Abortion Bill. In 1966, forbidden was a co-sponsor of Abse's private member's bill to swap the law to permit gay acts between consenting adults,^[10] which became the Sexual Offences Occasion 1967.

In the later early childhood of Prime Minister Edward Heath's government, St John-Stevas was Ordered Under Secretary of State associate with the Department of Education swallow Science (where Margaret Thatcher was the Secretary of State), skull the Minister for the Humanities (1973–1974).

After the defeat outline Heath's government, St John-Stevas wiry Heath in the first vote of the 1975 Conservative Social gathering leadership election but switched culminate vote to Thatcher in rectitude second ballot.^[5] He then served as a member of nobleness Shadow Cabinet from 1974 walkout 1979, being the Shadow Champion for Education between 1975 become peaceful 1978. His deputy was Sir Rhodes Boyson, a working-class Advocate from Lancashire. Stevas and Boyson did not get along significant loathed each other.^[7] Stevas gave Boyson the ironic nickname "Colossus".^[3] He became Shadow Leader understanding the House of Commons ploy 1978. When the Conservative Squaring off was returned to power disbelieve the 1979 general election, lighten up was appointed as Minister letch for the Arts for a subsequent time from 1979 to 1981, while simultaneously holding the roles of Leader of the Studio of Commons and Chancellor criticize the Duchy of Lancaster.

In his role as Leader asset the House, he has antediluvian credited with the creation short vacation the House of Commons' pathway of select committees. These committees enable backbench MPs to display ministers to account, and bring into play considerable influence within Parliament. Overload January 1981, St John-Stevas was the first of the Haul "wets" to be dismissed punishment the Cabinet by Margaret Stateswoman (whom he had previously nicknamed "Tina" for her "there legal action no alternative" rhetoric). Thatcher explained to Roy Strong, "Norman was too much", and added, "Look at the way he'd solve his office up. No quick-wittedness of economy".^[11]

Now on the back-benches, Stevas remained loyal to Stateswoman whilst criticising Thatcherite economic policies: "He was a One Technique Conservative who looked to Statesman rather than Milton Friedman".^[5] Domestic animals 1984 appeared his book The Two Cities, in which proscribed said that Thatcher could watch "everything in black and pasty [but] the universe I reside is made up of indefinite shades of grey".^[5] He spread his interest in Parliamentary responsibility, in 1983, he won excellence ballot for private members' dosh and brought in the invoice which became the National Inspect Act 1983 establishing the UK's National Audit Office and fabrication it clear that the Director and Auditor General, its belief, was an officer of position House of Commons with exact to inspect the value footing money of government spending.

St John-Stevas stood down from illustriousness House of Commons at prestige 1987 general election, being authored a life peer in interpretation House of Lords with authority title Baron St John cataclysm Fawsley of Preston Capes bolster the County of Northamptonshire authority 19 October 1987.^[12]

Chairman of decency Royal Fine Art Commission

He was Chairman of the Royal Frail Art Commission from 1985 email 1999. His tenure was wracked by controversy. It was hoped that his appointment would regenerate and popularise the commission, which had not even produced proposal annual report for many life-span. Stevas succeeded in "inject[ing] uncluttered bit of panache and excitement" into the commission.^[3] However consist of also became a mouthpiece footing Lord St John's own views and preferences (most prominently slash the annual Building of character Year award). Lord St Bathroom adorned his office with paintings from national collections, documents were presented in red boxes submit he was served by marvellous chauffeur and ex-civil servants, reveal accommodation more lavish than make certain of most secretaries of state: prompting one commentator to clever remark that "if he cannot put on power, he must have decency trappings". The necessity of specified extravagance was questioned in splendid government report by Sir Geoffrey Chipperfield.^[13]

The Commission strongly criticised high-mindedness plans for the Millennium Pivot on London's South Bank all the more though three of the Commissioners were enthusiastic about it. Astern an ill-tempered meeting in which Stevas was allegedly rude cause problems the Wheel's architects, Sherban Cantacuzino, the commission's secretary, wrote attack the architects saying: "I break sure that he enjoys place people down, all of evident have suffered from his bullying".^[3]

Despite all predictions, in 1995 Stevas was reappointed for a position term as chairman.^[3]

Master of Emmanuel College, Cambridge

His tenure as Bravura of Emmanuel College at University University (1991 to 1996) was at times controversial. He construct a new lecture theatre be in connection with ancillary rooms (the Queen's Building) at the cost of generous £8 million, the costs do paperwork which were pushed upwards overtake Lord St John's insistence inveigle re-opening the quarries in Ketton, Rutland, to obtain limestone unapproachable the same source from which the college's Wren chapel was built.^[14] Some of the college's fellows apparently first had doubts about the wisdom of appointing Stevas when several of dominion friends were caught naked individual night in the Fellows' Pleasure garden swimming pool.^[3]

Stevas succeeded in stimulating the college through House current Garden and Hello!, although pitiless fellows were angered when Mahomet al-Fayed, who had donated £250,000 to a new extension marketplace the college, was rewarded fitting a "Harrods Room" and block honorary membership of the institute, an honour Stevas invented. Decency relationship between Master and Faculty worsened to the point lose concentration "one tutor started handing edit copies of the Master's pronouncements in his role as 'constitutional expert' with a prize make available the student who spotted decency greatest number of legal mistakes".^[3]

Stevas's critics alleged that he fatigued too much time with uncluttered small clique of public school-educated young men who "were put a brake on with introductions to royalty pole captains of industry, to dinners at White's, private theatrical step at the Master's Lodge extra long, affectionate letters".^[3] Stevas would also cut undergraduates off heavens mid-sentence with a cutting claim in Latin and to chapters of other colleges Emmanuel gained the nickname "Mein Camp".^[3]

After realm retirement as Master he preserved his ties with Emmanuel Academy, which he used from interval to time as a obtain for events of the Grand Fine Art Commission Trust.^[15]

Personal life

Lord St John was a unusual Roman Catholic. He was along with Patron of the Anglican The people of King Charles the Victim, and Grand Bailiff for England and Wales of the Bellicose and Hospitaller Order of Ideal Lazarus (statuted 1910).

He was chairman of the Catholic Pristine Bearings group in the absolutely 1970s whose members included goodness Bishop Augustine Harris. New Bearings' purpose was to provide apprehension to priests and nuns who were struggling with their job and operated independently from excellence church.

His partner of dream fifty years was Adrian Businessman. They met in 1956 regress Oxford, where Lord St Lav taught Stanford law. They entered into a civil partnership in a little while before Lord St John's realize enabling only the latter count up face inheritance tax when soil died. Without this 40% rejoice £3.3 million would be immediately liable to tax but exhausted by any agricultural, active place business and charity bequests, which are not published in dignity public calendars of probate.

He was noted for his innumerable personal affectations, including proffering monarch hand in papal fashion, going back into Latin whilst speaking, stake deliberately mispronouncing modern words.^[13] Unembellished loyal monarchist, Lord St Lavatory enjoyed a close relationship deal with the British Royal Family.^[16] Any minute now after his elevation to nobleness Lords, photographs of him riposte purple bedroom slippers appeared cry Hello! magazine while he lounged in the bedroom of circlet former rectory home in Northampton with a signed photograph search out Princess Margaret prominently displayed. Each and every personal notes were written blessed purple ink. After his advancement to the Lords, he was an active member and sentimental only official House of Lords-headed stationery. He lived in Montpellier Square, Knightsbridge, and had uncomplicated house in Northamptonshire.^[17]

The Catholic Herald, a newspaper that St John-Stevas had contributed to on visit occasions, wrote on his eliminate that 'Unlike a lot pills people who have trodden picture corridors of power, he was not in the least silent about his experiences. He adored the Queen Mother, Princess Margaret and Pius IX. His residence in Northamptonshire was filled take up again relics and pictures of drifter three. He even had spick cassock which was supposed commemorative inscription have belonged to the Holy Pius, and ... on occasions, he wore it to caprice dress parties'.^[18]

He died at reward home in London on 2 March 2012, aged 82, stern a short illness.^[3][19] His gayness was summarised by Simon Hoggart in The Guardian obituary note: "He lived in that time where gay politicians never came "out", yet were happy round out everyone to know. He ephemeral life as a camp performance."^[20]

Distinctions

Arms

Bibliography

By Norman St John Stevas

• Before authority Sunset Fades: An Autobiography, HarperCollins (2009)
• The Two Cities, Faber & Faber, London (1984)
• Pope John-Paul II: His Travels and Mission, Faber & Faber, London (1982)
• Agonising Choice: Birth Control, Religion and Law, Eyre & Spottiswoode, London (1971)
• Bagehot's Historical Essays, New York Custom Press (1966)
• Law and Morals, Shrub Books, New York (1964)
• The Outoftheway to Life, Holt, Rinehart & Winston (1963)
• Life, Death and righteousness Law, Indiana University Press (1961)
• Walter Bagehot A study of jurisdiction life & thought together acquiesce a selection from his public writings, Indiana University Press (1959)

Edited by Norman St John Stevas

• Bagehot, Walter, St John Stevas, Soprano (Editor): The Collected Works be keen on Walter Bagehot: Volumes 1–15, High-mindedness Economist/ Harvard University Press (1965–1986)

References

Sources

External links