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John Roper, Baron Roper

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The Right Honourable
The Lord Roper
House of Lords Chief Whip, Liberal Democrats
In office
7 June 2001 – 5 May 2005
LeaderCharles Kennedy
Preceded byJohn Harris, Baron Harris of Greenwich
Succeeded byDavid 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
LeaderRoy Jenkins
Preceded byOffice Created
Succeeded byJohn Cartwright
Member of Parliament
for Farnworth
In office
18 June 1970 – 9 June 1983
Preceded byErnest Thornton
Succeeded byConstituency abolished
Personal details
Born (1935-10-09) October 9, 1935 (age 89)
Political partyLabour Co-operative (1970-81); Social Democratic Party (1981-88); Liberal Democrats (1988-)
Alma materMagdalen College, Oxford; University of Chicago

John Francis Hodgess Roper, Baron Roper (born 10 September 1935), is a British politician.

Early life

John Roper was educated at William Hulme's Grammar School (Manchester), Reading School, Magdalen College, Oxford (studying PPE), and the University of Chicago. He started his career as an economics lecturer at the University of Manchester.

Political career

Roper first stood for Parliament for High Peak as a Labour candidate in 1964. He was elected Member of Parliament for Farnworth in 1970. 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.

House of Lords

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 retired from the House of Lords on 23 May 2015.[2]

Stasi allegations

He has controversially been accused by Anthony Glees of being a Stasi "agent of some influence" during his time at Chatham House.[3][4] 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." [5]

References

  1. ^ "No. 55850". The London Gazette. 17 May 2000.
  2. ^ http://www.parliament.uk/mps-lords-and-offices/lords/retired-lords/ Retired members of the House of Lords
  3. ^ "History on the rack", The Guardian, July 5, 2003
  4. ^ "The Intelligence Officer's Bookshelf" by Hayden B. Peake, Central Intelligence Agency, April 14, 2007
  5. ^ "The history men fall out over tales of spying, betrayal and buffoonery" by David Leigh, The Guardian, June 11, 2003
Parliament of the United Kingdom
Preceded by Member of Parliament for Farnworth
1970–1983 		Constituency abolished

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