Tom King, Baron King of Bridgwater
Thomas Jeremy King, Baron King of Bridgwater, CH, PC (born June 13, 1933), is a British Conservative politician who was Member of Parliament for Bridgwater in Somerset, from 1970 until 2001.
Biography
Educated at Sheriff House, Rugby School; King was elected to Parliament at a by-election in
1970, following the death of sitting MP Sir Gerald Wells. He held the posts of
Employment Secretary and Secretary of State for Northern Ireland at a time when these were high-profile
roles with the potential for controversy, but was not very well-known: this was satirised in Spitting Image in which his puppet sang "I'm the Invisible Man"; and later mercilessly in the diaries of
Alan Clark. King also served as Defence
Secretary under Prime Minister John Major during the Gulf War in 1991. After
retirment to the back benches, he became chairman of the
He is now a life peer as Baron King of Bridgwater, and sits in the House of Lords.
Personal life
He is married to Jane Tilney, now Baroness King of Bridgwater; and has one son Rupert (engaged to media and entertainment solicitor Alice Rayman), and one daughter Elisa.
References
| Parliament of the United Kingdom (1801–present) | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Sir Gerald Wills |
Member of Parliament for
Bridgwater 1970–2001 |
Succeeded by Ian Liddell-Grainger |
| Political offices | ||
| Preceded by Michael Heseltine |
Secretary of
State for the Environment 1983 |
Succeeded by Patrick Jenkin |
| Preceded by David Howell |
Secretary of State
for Transport 1983 |
Succeeded by Nicholas Ridley |
| Preceded by Norman Tebbit |
Secretary of State
for Employment 1983–1985 |
Succeeded by The Lord Young of Graffham |
| Preceded by Douglas Hurd |
Secretary of
State for Northern Ireland 1985–1989 |
Succeeded by Peter Brooke |
| Preceded by George Younger |
Secretary of State
for Defence 1989–1992 |
Succeeded by Malcolm Rifkind |
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