Norman Anthony Francis St John-Stevas, Baron St John of Fawsley, PC, FRSL (sin-jən-stee-vəs; born 18 May 1929), is a British politician, author, constitutional expert and barrister. A member of the Conservative Party, he served as the Leader of the House of Commons in the government of Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher from 1979 to 1981. He was a Member of Parliament (MP) representing the constituency of Chelmsford from 1964 to 1987, and was made a life peer in 1987.
His surname is compounded from the surnames of his father (Stevas) and mother (St John-O'Connor).
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St John-Stevas was educated at two independent schools, St Joseph's Salesian School in Burwash, East Sussex, and then Ratcliffe College in Leicester. He then went on to Cambridge University, where he read law at Fitzwilliam College. He graduated with first class honours and won the Whitlock Prize. He served as the President of the Cambridge Union in 1950.
St John-Stevas also studied at Oxford University, where he gained a BCL at Christ Church and was the Secretary of the Oxford Union. He gained a PhD from the University of London and a JSD from Yale University. He also studied briefly for the Roman Catholic priesthood at the English College in Rome.
He was called to the Bar at the Middle Temple in 1952.
St John-Stevas was appointed as a Lecturer at Southampton University (1952–1953) and King's College London (1953–1956). He then went to Oxford University to tutor in Jurisprudence at Christ Church (1953–1955) and Merton College (1955–1957). In 1959, he joined The Economist and became its Legal and Political Correspondent.
Having first run as a candidate for a parliamentary seat in 1951 (Dagenham), St John-Stevas was elected as the Member of Parliament for the constituency of Chelmsford in Essex at the 1964 general election. He held this seat until he stepped down at the 1987 general election.
In the later stages of Prime Minister Edward Heath's government, St John-Stevas was Parliamentary Under Secretary of State at the Department of Education and Science (where Margaret Thatcher was the Secretary of State), and the Minister for the Arts (1973–1974).
After the defeat of Heath's government, St John-Stevas served as a member of the Shadow Cabinet from 1974 to 1979, being the Shadow Spokesman for Education between 1975 and 1978, and Shadow Leader of the House of Commons between 1978 and 1979.
When the Conservative Party was returned to power after at the 1979 general election, St John-Stevas was appointed as Minister for the Arts for a second time from 1979 to 1981, while simultaneously holding the roles of Leader of the House of Commons and Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster.
In his roles as Leader of the House, St John-Stevas is largely credited with the creation of the House of Commons' system of select committees. These committees enable backbench MPs to hold ministers to account, and remain a force to be reckoned with today.
In early 1981, St John-Stevas was the first of the Tory "wets" to be dismissed from the Cabinet by the Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher (whom he had previously nicknamed "Tina" for her "there is no alternative" rhetoric). For many years, he was a member of the Bow Group.
St John-Stevas stood down from the House of Commons at the 1987 general election. He was subsequently elevated to the House of Lords as a life peer with the title Baron St John of Fawsley of Preston Capes in the County of Northamptonshire.
He was Chairman of the Royal Fine Art Commission from 1985 to 1999, which was wracked by controversy. It was hoped that his appointment would revitalise and popularise the commission. Instead, the commission became a mouth piece for Lord St John's own views and preferences (most prominently in the annual Building of the Year award). Lord St John adorned his office with paintings from national collections, documents were presented in red boxes and he was served by a chauffeur and ex-civil servants, in accommodation more lavish than that of most secretaries of state: prompting one commentator to comment that "...if he cannot have power, he must have the trappings". This was all criticised in a savage government review by Sir Geoffrey Chipperfield.[1]
His tenure as Master of Emmanuel College at Cambridge University (1991 to 1996) was equally controversial. He built a new conference centre (the Queen's Building) at the cost of some £8 million, the costs of which were pushed upwards by Lord St John's insistence on re-opening the quarry in Ketton, Rutland to obtain limestone from the same source from which the college's Wren chapel was built.[2] Lord St John maintains his links with Emmanuel, which he uses from time to time as a venue for events of the Royal Fine Art Commission Trust.[3]
Lord St John is a prominent Roman Catholic. He is a Patron of the Society of King Charles the Martyr, and Grand Bailiff for England and Wales of the Military and Hospitaller Order of St Lazarus.
Lord St John is noted for his large number of personal affectations, including proffering his hand in papal fashion, lapsing into Latin while speaking, and deliberately mispronouncing modern words.[1] A loyal monarchist, Lord St John enjoys a close relationship with the British royal family.[4][5] Soon after elevation to the Lords, photographs of him, in purple bedroom slippers, appeared in Hello! magazine, lounging in the bedroom of his Northampton rectory, a signed photograph of the late Princess Margaret prominently displayed. All personal notes were written in purple ink and after his elevation to the Lords, he used only official House of Lords headed stationery. He lives in Westminster and is an active member of the House of Lords.
By Norman St John Stevas
Edited by Norman St John Stevas
| Parliament of the United Kingdom | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Hubert Ashton |
Member of Parliament for Chelmsford 1964–1987 |
Succeeded by Simon Burns |
| Political offices | ||
| Preceded by The Viscount Eccles |
Minister of State for the Arts 1973–1974 |
Succeeded by Hugh Jenkins |
| Preceded by Michael Foot |
Leader of the House of Commons 1979–1981 |
Succeeded by Francis Pym |
| Preceded by Harold Lever |
Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster 1979–1981 |
|
| Preceded by The Lord Donaldson of Kingsbridge |
Minister of State for the Arts 1979–1981 |
Succeeded by Paul Channon |
| Academic offices | ||
| Preceded by Charles Wroth |
Master of Emmanuel College, Cambridge 1991–1996 |
Succeeded by John Ffowcs Williams |