| The Right Honourable The Lord Colnbrook KCMG PC |
|
|---|---|
| Lord Privy Seal | |
| In office 11 September 1981 – 7 April 1982 |
|
| Prime Minister | Margaret Thatcher |
| Preceded by | Ian Gilmour |
| Succeeded by | The Baroness Young |
| Secretary of State for Northern Ireland | |
| In office 4 May 1979 – 11 September 1981 |
|
| Prime Minister | Margaret Thatcher |
| Preceded by | Roy Mason |
| Succeeded by | James Prior |
| Chief Whip of the House of Commons Parliamentary Secretary to the Treasury |
|
| In office 2 December 1973 – 4 March 1974 |
|
| Prime Minister | Edward Heath |
| Preceded by | Francis Pym |
| Succeeded by | Bob Mellish |
| Member of Parliament for Spelthorne |
|
| In office 18 June 1970 – 11 June 1987 |
|
| Preceded by | Beresford Craddock |
| Succeeded by | David Wilshire |
| Member of Parliament for Merton and Morden |
|
| In office 26 May 1955 – 18 June 1970 |
|
| Preceded by | Robert Ryder |
| Succeeded by | Janet Fookes |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 12 August 1922 Chalfont St Peter, Buckinghamshire[1] |
| Died | 4 October 1996 (aged 74) |
| Political party | Conservative |
Humphrey Edward Gregory Atkins, Baron Colnbrook KCMG PC (12 August 1922 – 4 October 1996) was a British politician. A member of the Conservative Party, he served in the Cabinet of Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher from 1979-82.
Atkins was educated at Wellington College, Berkshire, and served in the Royal Navy from 1940–48. He worked for a linoleum manufacturer then as a director of a financial advertising agency.
Atkins contested the constituency of West Lothian in 1951, and was elected as Member of Parliament (MP) for Merton and Morden in 1955. He became MP for Spelthorne in 1970.
Atkins was Conservative Chief Whip from 1973-79, and served as Secretary of State for Northern Ireland from 1979–1981. He was appointed in September 1981 as Lord Privy Seal, in which role he was the chief government spokesman in the House of Commons for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs. The role was necessary because the Foreign Secretary, Lord Carrington, sat in the House of Lords. He resigned in April 1982 along with Lord Carrington over the Falklands invasion.
Atkins left the House of Commons in 1987, and was made a life peer as Baron Colnbrook of Waltham St Lawrence in the County of Berkshire. He died in 1996.
| Parliament of the United Kingdom | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Robert Ryder |
Member of Parliament for Merton and Morden 1955–1970 |
Succeeded by Janet Fookes |
| Preceded by Beresford Craddock |
Member of Parliament for Spelthorne 1970–1987 |
Succeeded by David Wilshire |
| Political offices | ||
| Preceded by Charles Morris |
Treasurer of the Household 1970–1973 |
Succeeded by Bernard Weatherill |
| Preceded by Francis Pym |
Chief Whip of the House of Commons 1973–1974 |
Succeeded by Bob Mellish |
| Parliamentary Secretary to the Treasury 1973–1974 |
||
| Preceded by Roy Mason |
Secretary of State for Northern Ireland 1979–1981 |
Succeeded by James Prior |
| Preceded by Ian Gilmour |
Lord Privy Seal 1981–1982 |
Succeeded by The Baroness Young |
|
|||||||
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||