Leon Brittan
DL | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Vice-President of the European Commission | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
In office 16 March 1999 – 15 September 1999 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
President | Manuel Marín (acting) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Preceded by | Manuel Marín | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Succeeded by | Neil Kinnock | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
William Whitelaw | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Succeeded by | Douglas Hurd | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Chief Secretary to the Treasury | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
In office 5 January 1981 – 11 June 1983 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Prime Minister | Margaret Thatcher | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Preceded by | John Biffen | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Succeeded by | Peter Rees | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Minister of State for Home Affairs | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
In office 4 May 1979 – 5 January 1981 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Prime Minister | Margaret Thatcher | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Preceded by | The Lord Boston of Faversham | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Succeeded by | Patrick Mayhew | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Member of Parliament for Richmond (Yorks) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
In office 9 June 1983 – 31 December 1988 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Preceded by | Timothy Kitson | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Succeeded by | William Hague | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Member of Parliament for Cleveland and Whitby | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
In office 28 February 1974 – 13 May 1983 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Preceded by | James Tinn | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Succeeded by | Constituency abolished | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Personal details | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Born | Leon Brittan 25 September 1939 London, England | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Died | 21 January 2015 London, England | (aged 75)||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Political party | Conservative | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Spouse |
Diana Peterson (m. 1980)Haberdashers' Aske's Boys' School | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Alma mater | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Profession | Barrister | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Awards | Knight Bachelor (1989) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Leon Brittan, Baron Brittan of Spennithorne,
Early life
Leon Brittan was born in London, the son of Rebecca (née Lipetz) and Joseph Brittan, a doctor. His parents were
He was educated at the
Political career
MP and minister
After unsuccessfully contesting the constituency of
At the
In 1984, after the
In September 1986, Brittan was cleared by a High Court Judge of acting unlawfully when, as Home Secretary, he gave MI5 permission to tap the telephone of a leader of the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament.[12]
In September 1985, Brittan was moved to
Brittan had been criticised as a poor communicator and for his role in the suppression of a
Resignation over the Westland affair
Brittan resigned as Trade and Industry Secretary in January 1986 over the Westland affair.[18] Brittan had authorised the leaking of a letter from the Solicitor General that had accused Michael Heseltine of inaccuracies in his campaign for Westland to be rescued by a consortium of European investors.[18] The rest of the government, led by Margaret Thatcher, supported a deal with the American business Sikorsky Fiat.[18]
Jonathan Aitken wrote of Brittan's resignation: "Soon after a poisonous meeting of Tory backbenchers at the 1922 Committee, he fell on his sword. It was a combination of a witch hunt and a search for a scapegoat – tainted by an undercurrent of anti-Semitism. […] I believed what should have been obvious to anyone else, that he was being used as a lightning conductor to deflect the fire that the Prime Minister had started and inflamed".[14] It was later revealed that Brittan had attempted to persuade British Aerospace and General Electric Company (GEC) to withdraw from the European consortium.[18]
In October 1986, in a House of Commons debate, Brittan made a bitter attack on Michael Heseltine, accusing him of "thwarting the Government at every turn" in its handling of the Westland affair. Brittan said that Government decisions "should have the support of all its members and should not be undermined from within".[19]
In 1989, Brittan revealed in a Channel 4 programme that two senior Downing Street officials, Bernard Ingham and Charles Powell, had approved the leaking of the letter from the Solicitor General. Brittan's claim led to calls from some Labour MPs for a new inquiry into the Westland affair.[20]
European Commission
Brittan was
In 1993 he became European Commissioner for Trade and in 1995 European Commissioner for External Affairs, also serving as a Vice-President of the European Commission. Brittan resigned with the rest of the Santer Commission in 1999 amid accusations of fraud against Jacques Santer and Édith Cresson.[18] During his time as a Vice-President of the European Commission, one subsequently prominent member of his official office was Nick Clegg,[25] who became leader of the Liberal Democrats in December 2007[26] and deputy prime minister in May 2010.[27]
Peerage
Brittan was created a
Brittan's wife Diana (née Clemetson, born 1940),[1] Lady Brittan of Spennithorne, was named a Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire (DBE) in the 2004 Birthday Honours "for public service and charity".[30]
Death
Brittan died at his home in London on 21 January 2015, aged 75; he had been ill with cancer for some time. He had two stepdaughters.[31]
False allegations
Paedophile dossier
In 1984, in his capacity as Home Secretary, Brittan was handed a 40-page dossier by Geoffrey Dickens MP which detailed alleged paedophile activity in the 1980s, including, according to Dickens, allegations concerning "people in positions of power, influence and responsibility".[32][33] The whereabouts of the dossier is currently unknown.[32] Brittan denied any knowledge of the matter in an e-mail to a Channel 4 News reporter in 2013,[34] and later replied that he had no recollection of it to a query from The Independent newspaper.[35]
Brittan later declared in 2014 that Dickens had met him at the Home Office and that he had written to Dickens on 20 March 1984, explaining what had been done about the files.[34] In an article for The Times, journalist James Gillespie quoted a letter from Dickens dated 7 January 1984 in which he thanked Brittan for his "splendid support". He also gave examples of the allegations in the dossier, including a woman protesting that her 16-year-old son had become homosexual after working in Buckingham Palace kitchens and a civil servant advocating persons caught by Customs and Excise importing child pornography should be referred to the police.[36]
An initial review by Home Office civil servant Mark Sedwill in 2013 concluded that copies of Dickens's material had "not been retained" but that Brittan had acted appropriately in dealing with the allegations. In November 2014, a review by Peter Wanless followed. Wanless said there was no evidence to suggest that files had been removed to cover up abuse.[37]
Allegations pursued by Labour MP
In June 2014, Brittan was interviewed under caution by police in connection with the alleged rape of a 19-year-old student in his central London flat in 1967 before he became an MP. They had not pursued the allegation when it was first made because of insufficient evidence. The police reopened the investigation after
In October 2014, the Labour MP Jimmy Hood used parliamentary privilege to refer to claims that Brittan had been linked to child abuse.[42][43]
After Brittan died in January 2015, Watson accused him of "multiple child rape"; he said he had spoken to two people who claimed they were abused by Brittan.
On 1 September 2017, it was reported that the Metropolitan Police had paid substantial compensation to Brittan's widow for having raided the Brittans' home "after accepting that the searches had been unjustified and should never have taken place."[50] Carl Beech, whose claims spurred Operation Midland, was convicted of perverting the course of justice in July 2019.[51]
Honours
Brittan was created a
Commonwealth honours
Country | Date | Appointment | Post-nominal letters |
---|---|---|---|
United Kingdom | 1978 – 21 January 2015 | Queen's Counsel[52] |
QC |
United Kingdom | 1981 – 21 January 2015 | Member of Her Majesty's Most Honourable Privy Council |
PC |
United Kingdom | 31 December 1988 – 21 January 2015 | Knight Bachelor | Kt |
United Kingdom | 1 August 2001 – 25 September 2014 | Deputy Lieutenant of North Yorkshire[53] |
DL |
Foreign honours
Country | Date | Appointment | Post-nominal letters |
---|---|---|---|
Estonia | Order of the Cross of Terra Mariana (2nd Class) |
Scholastic
Location | Date | School | Position |
---|---|---|---|
England | 1993–2005 | Teesside University | Chancellor |
Location | Date | School | Degree | Gave Commencement Address |
---|---|---|---|---|
England | 1990 | Newcastle University | Doctor of Civil Law (DCL)[54] | |
England | 1990 | University of Hull | Doctor of Laws (LL.D)[55] |
|
Scotland | 1991 | University of Edinburgh | Doctorate[56] | |
England | 1992 | University of Bradford | Doctor of Laws (LL.D)[57] |
|
England | 1992 | University of Durham |
Doctor of Civil Law (DCL)[58] | |
England | 1995 | University of Bath | Doctor of Laws (LL.D)[59] |
|
England | Teesside University | Doctor of Laws (LL.D)[60] |
Memberships and fellowships
Country | Date | Organisation | Position |
---|---|---|---|
United Kingdom | 1960 | Cambridge Union | President |
United Kingdom | 1983 – 21 January 2015 | Inner Temple | Bencher[61] |
Arms
|
References
- ^ doi:10.1093/odnb/9780198614128.013.109058. (Subscription or UK public library membershiprequired.)
- ^ a b "Man in the News; Crisis Commander". The New York Times. 23 April 1984. Retrieved 7 November 2016.
- doi:10.1093/ww/9780199540884.013.U8773. Retrieved 18 May 2019. (Subscription or UK public library membershiprequired.)
- ^ Hope, Christopher (19 February 2014). "Who do they think they are? One in 11 MPs is married, related or have ancestors who sat in Commons". The Daily Telegraph. London. Retrieved 20 February 2014.
- ^ "The man Amy and Lily go to when they want a hit". The Times. London. 27 January 2008. Retrieved 20 February 2021.
- ^ a b "Brittan returns to Parliament as peer". BBC News. 31 December 1999. Retrieved 3 July 2014.
- ^ Parkhouse, Geoffrey (23 September 1982). "Brittan warns 'wets' of cuts". The Glasgow Herald. Retrieved 3 July 2014.
- ^ Russell, William (13 August 1984). "Brittan keeps up attack on miners' union leaders". The Glasgow Herald. Retrieved 13 January 2014.
- ISBN 978-0-435-31237-4.
- ^ "Aide Handled Crisis In Thatcher Style". The Palm Beach Post. Florida. 28 April 1984. Retrieved 3 July 2014.
- ^ "National Archives: Libya warned Britain before WPc Yvonne Fletcher was shot, secret papers show". The Daily Telegraph. London. 3 January 2014. Retrieved 3 July 2014.
- ^ "Judge clears Brittan over phone tap on CND leader". The Glasgow Herald. 3 September 1986. Retrieved 11 March 2014.
- ^ a b "Thatcher's biggest-ever cabinet shuffle sees Home Secretary Brittan demoted". The Montreal Gazette. 3 September 1985. Retrieved 13 January 2014.
- ^ ISBN 978-1-4088-3184-7.
- ^ Castle, Stephen (27 January 2015). "Leon Brittan, 75, Dies; Quit Thatcher Cabinet in Leak Case". The New York Times. Retrieved 22 August 2015.
- ^ "The BBC Story: Real Lives 1985". BBC. Retrieved 13 January 2014.
- ^ "BBC set for confrontation with Brittan". The Glasgow Herald. 7 August 1985. Retrieved 16 January 2014.
- ^ a b c d e f "1986: Leon Brittan quits over Westland". On This Day. BBC. 24 January 1986. Retrieved 28 October 2012.
- ^ McGregor, Stephen (30 October 1986). "Thatcher accused of Westland plot". The Glasgow Herald. Retrieved 8 February 2014.
- ^ Trotter, Stuart (6 April 1989). "Westland affair re-opened by Brittan". The Glasgow Herald. Retrieved 8 February 2014.
- ^ "The Rt. Hon. The Lord (Leon) Brittan of Spennithorne QC DL" (biography). Industry Forum Ltd. Archived from the original on 26 July 2011.
- ^ a b Langdon, Julia (22 January 2015). "Lord Brittan of Spennithorne obituary". The Guardian. London. Retrieved 23 January 2015.
- ^ "Council Regulation (EEC) No 4064/89 of 21 December 1989 on the control of concentrations between undertakings". Eur Lex. Retrieved 13 April 2020.
- ^ "91/619/EEC: Commission Decision of 2 October 1991 declaring the incompatibility with the common market of a concentration (Case No IV/M.053 – Aerospatiale- Alenia/de Havilland) – Council Regulation (EEC) No 4064/89". Eur Lex. Retrieved 13 April 2020.
- ^ "Nick Clegg". Liberal Democrats. Archived from the original on 20 May 2011.
- ^ "Nick Clegg is new Lib Dem leader". BBC News. 18 December 2007. Retrieved 19 November 2014.
- ^ "David Cameron is UK's new prime minister". BBC News. 12 May 2010. Retrieved 19 November 2014.
- ^ a b "No. 55762". The London Gazette. 14 February 2000. p. 1611.
- ^ "Ex-Home Secretary Lord Brittan made trade adviser". BBC News. 19 August 2010. Retrieved 20 February 2021.
- ^ "No. 57315". The London Gazette (1st supplement). 12 June 2004. p. 6.
- ^ Mason, Rowena (22 January 2015). "Leon Brittan, former home secretary, dies aged 75". The Guardian. London. Retrieved 22 January 2015.
- ^ a b Boffey, Daniel (6 July 2014). "Tebbit hints at political cover-up over child abuse in 1980s". The Guardian. London. Retrieved 6 July 2014.
- ^ "Tory MP warned of powerful paedophile ring 30 years ago". The Independent. London. 22 February 2013. Retrieved 6 July 2014.
- ^ a b O'Brien, Paraic (2 July 2014). "Leon Brittan: I was handed 'paedophile' dossier". Channel 4 News. Retrieved 3 July 2014.
- ^ Hickman, Martin (3 March 2013). "Police failings put dozens of children at risk from notorious paedophile ring". The Independent. London. Retrieved 3 July 2014.
- ^ Gillespie, James (25 January 2015). "New evidence 'clears' Brittan over MP's paedophile dossier". The Times. London. Retrieved 15 May 2019.
- ^ "'No cover-up found' in abuse review by Peter Wanless". BBC News. Manchester. 11 November 2014. Retrieved 11 November 2014.
- ^ Merrill, Jamie (6 July 2014). "Exclusive: Lord Brittan questioned by police over rape allegation". The Independent on Sunday. London. Retrieved 6 July 2014.
- ^ "Brittan says historical rape claim 'wholly unfounded'". BBC News. 7 July 2014. Retrieved 7 July 2014.
- ^ Hanning, James (28 June 2015). "Lord Brittan police failed to tell dying peer he would not face prosecution despite legal advice". The Independent. London. Retrieved 28 June 2015.
- ^ Halliday, Josh (7 October 2015). "Scotland Yard apologises to Lord Brittan's widow over rape claim". The Guardian. London. Retrieved 8 October 2015.
- ^ Dominiczak, Peter (26 October 2014). "Labour MP is condemned for linking Leon Brittan to child abuse". The Daily Telegraph. London. Retrieved 20 February 2021.
- ^ "Coalfield Communities". Parliamentary Debates (Hansard). House of Commons. 28 October 2014. col. 255. Retrieved 19 November 2014.
- ^ Millmo, Cahal (25 January 2015). "Leon Brittan sex abuse allegations: Two come forward to claim they were abused by former Home Secretary". The Independent on Sunday. London. Retrieved 20 February 2021.
- ^ Mendick, Robert (26 September 2015). "'VIP child abuse ring' accuser served time in prison for fraud". The Daily Telegraph. London. Retrieved 30 July 2019.
- ^ Hanning, James (25 January 2015). "Lord Brittan: The accusations against the former Home Secretary that refused to die". The Independent on Sunday. London. Retrieved 8 February 2015.
- ^ Barrett, David (8 March 2015). "Police search home of Lord Bramall as part of paedophile sex abuse inquiry". The Daily Telegraph. London. Retrieved 20 February 2021.
- ^ Halliday, Josh (7 October 2015). "Panorama report: sex abuse claim against Leon Brittan 'began as joke'". The Guardian. London. Retrieved 30 July 2019.
- ^ Laville, Sandra; Syal, Rajeev (21 March 2016). "Operation Midland: inquiry into alleged VIP paedophile ring collapses". The Guardian. London. Retrieved 22 March 2016.
- ^ Evans, Martin (1 September 2017). "Met Police pays compensation to Lord Bramall and Lady Brittan over disastrous Operation Midland investigation". The Daily Telegraph. London. Retrieved 2 September 2017.
- ^ Evans, Martin (22 July 2019). "Carl Beech aka Nick found guilty of making up Westminster VIP paedophile ring". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 22 July 2019.
- ^ "Sir Leon Brittan European Commission Vice President" (PDF). University of Pittsburgh. Retrieved 2 September 2021.
- ^ "Deputy Lieutenant Commissions Lieutenancy of the County of North Yorkshire". The London Gazette. Retrieved 2 September 2021.
- ^ "Newcastle University Honorary Graduates" (PDF). Newcastle University. Retrieved 2 September 2021.
- ^ "Sir Leon Brittan European Commission Vice President" (PDF). University of Pittsburgh. Retrieved 2 September 2021.
- ^ "University of Edinburgh Honorary Graduates Database". University of Edinburgh. Archived from the original on 1 September 2015. Retrieved 2 September 2021.
- ^ "Sir Leon Brittan European Commission Vice President" (PDF). University of Pittsburgh. Retrieved 2 September 2021.
- ^ "University of Durham Honorary Degrees". University of Durham. Retrieved 3 September 2021.
- ^ "Honorary graduates, 1990 to 1999". University of Bath. Retrieved 2 September 2021.
- ^ "Teesside University Honorary Graduates". Teesside University. Retrieved 3 September 2021.
- ^ "Sir Leon Brittan European Commission Vice President" (PDF). University of Pittsburgh. Retrieved 2 September 2021.
- ^ Debrett's Peerage. 2008.
External links
- Hansard 1803–2005: contributions in Parliament by Leon Brittan
- Portraits of Leon Brittan at the National Portrait Gallery, London
- Announcement of his introduction at the House of Lords (House of Lords minutes of proceedings, 29 February 2000)