John Roper, Baron Roper
The Lord Roper | |
|---|---|
| House of Lords Chief Whip, Liberal Democrats | |
| In office 7 June 2001 – 5 May 2005 | |
| Leader | Charles Kennedy |
| Preceded by | John Harris, Baron Harris of Greenwich |
| Succeeded by | David Shutt, Baron Shutt of Greetland |
| Director, Institute for Security Studies of Western European Union | |
| In office April 1990 – September 1995 | |
| Chief Whip, Social Democrat Party | |
| In office 26 March 1981 – 9 June 1983 | |
| Leader | Roy Jenkins |
| Preceded by | Office Created |
| Succeeded by | John Cartwright |
| Member of Parliament for Farnworth | |
| In office 18 June 1970 – 9 June 1983 | |
| Preceded by | Ernest Thornton |
| Succeeded by | Constituency abolished |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 9 October 1935 |
| Political party | Labour Party (1970-81); Social Democratic Party (1981-88); Liberal Democrats (1988-) |
| Alma mater | Magdalen College, Oxford; University of Chicago |
John Francis Hodgess Roper, Baron Roper (born 10 September 1935), is a British politician.
John Roper was educated at William Hulme's Grammar School (Manchester), Reading School, Magdalen College, Oxford (studying PPE), and the University of Chicago.
Roper started his career as an economics lecturer at the University of Manchester. He then went into politics and was elected Member of Parliament for Farnworth. He sat as a Labour Co-operative MP (1970–81) and for the Social Democratic Party (SDP) from 1981 to 1983, when he was also the party's Chief Whip. His Farnworth seat was subsequently abolished, and he contested Worsley at the 1983 general election, finishing third in a three-way marginal.
On 12 May 2000 he was created a Life peer as Baron Roper, of Thorney Island in the City of Westminster.[1] He was the Liberal Democrat Chief Whip in the House of Lords until 2005. He was subsequently appointed to the Privy Council of the United Kingdom. In 2008, he was elected Principal Deputy Chairman of Committees.
He has controversially been accused by Anthony Glees of being a Stasi "agent of some influence" during his time at Chatham House.[2][3] Lord Roper rejects the charge indignantly. He says he was engaged in building bridges with East Germany in the 1980s as part of a Foreign Office-approved policy of thawing relations.
"He was deceived, he says, about the background of an undercover Stasi officer he employed as a research fellow when he was director of studies at Chatham House." [4]
References
- ^ "No. 55850". The London Gazette. 17 May 2000.
- ^ "History on the rack", The Guardian, July 5, 2003
- ^ "The Intelligence Officer's Bookshelf" by Hayden B. Peake, Central Intelligence Agency, April 14, 2007
- ^ "The history men fall out over tales of spying, betrayal and buffoonery" by David Leigh, The Guardian, June 11, 2003
External links
- Hansard 1803–2005: contributions in Parliament by John Roper
- Lord Roper profile at the site of Liberal Democrats
- Whos Who 2002 entry
- 1935 births
- Living people
- British economists
- Members of the Parliament of the United Kingdom for English constituencies
- Alumni of Magdalen College, Oxford
- Liberal Democrat life peers
- People educated at Reading School
- Labour Co-operative MPs
- Social Democratic Party (UK) MPs
- UK MPs 1970–74
- UK MPs 1974
- UK MPs 1974–79
- UK MPs 1979–83