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John Edward Tomlinson, Baron Tomlinson (1 August 1939 – 20 January 2024) was a British Labour Co-operative politician. He served as a life peer in the House of Lords from 1998 until his death, and had previously been a Member of Parliament from 1974 to 1979, and a Member of the European Parliament (MEP) from 1984 to 1999.

Tomlinson was a pro-European Labour moderate who was Harold Wilson’s final Parliamentary Private Secretary.

Early life

Born in London, Tomlinson was educated at Westminster City School and the Co-operative College in Loughborough. He later studied health services management at Brunel University, and in 1982 he was awarded an MA in industrial relations from the University of Warwick.

Professional and early political career

Tomlinson was active in Yorkshire politics, secretary of Sheffield Co-operative Party and an executive member of Yorkshire Labour Party. He was the youngest councillor on Sheffield City Council from 1964. He worked as head of research for the Amalgamated Union of Engineering Workers 1968–70.

Parliamentary career

Tomlinson stood for Parliament without success in 1966 at Bridlington and in 1970 at Walthamstow East. He was elected to the House of Commons as Labour Member of Parliament for Meriden in the February 1974 general election, defeating the sitting Conservative MP Keith Speed. In the October 1974 General Election he retained the seat, defeating a new Conservative candidate, the former Chairman of the Highway Planning Committee in the London Borough of Hammersmith, and Chairman of the Hyde Park Tories (the Conservative Party's open air speakers) Christopher Horne. He lost his seat in the 1979 general election to the Conservative candidate, Iain Mills.

During his five years in the Commons, he held a series of government posts:

• Parliamentary Private Secretary (PPS) to Prime Minister Harold Wilson (1975–76);
• Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Foreign and Commonwealth Office (1976–79);
• Parliamentary Secretary, Ministry of Overseas Development (1977–79)

After his defeat in 1979, he lectured at Solihull College of Technology. After unsuccessfully standing in the new constituency of North Warwickshire at the general election held in June 1983, in 1984, Tomlinson was elected as Labour Co-operative Member of the European Parliament (MEP) for the new euro-constituency of Birmingham West. He was re-elected in the 1989 European election and in the 1994 election, but did not stand for re-election under the new list system in the 1999 election.

Tomlinson .

In the European Parliament, he was, notably, Deputy Leader of the European Parliamentary Labour Party (EPLP), Chair of the cross-party intergroup on Sports policy and the Parliament's rapporteur on the EU budget for 1990.

On 21 July 1998, he was created a life peer as Baron Tomlinson, of Walsall in the County of West Midlands.

Tomlinson was latterly Chair of the Association of Independent Higher Education Providers.

Elections contested

UK Parliament elections

European Parliament elections

Death

Tomlinson died on 20 January 2024, at the age of 84. He died at Heartlands Hospital in Birmingham following a brief illness.

References

1. ^ "John Tomlinson: Labour peer dies aged 84 after brief illness". BBC News. 25 January 2024. Retrieved 31 January 2024.
2. 'The European Parliament' (9 ed.), London: John Harper Publishing, ISBN 978-0-9934549-5-0
3. "No. 55205". The London Gazette. 21 July 1998. p. 8087.
4. "1966 - 1966 General Election - Bridlington". Parliament.uk.
5. "1970 - 1970 General Election - East Walthamstow". Parliament.uk.
6. "1974 - February 1974 General Election - Meriden". Parliament.uk.
7. "1974 - October 1974 General Election - Meriden". Parliament.uk.
8. "1979 - 1979 General Election - Meriden". Parliament.uk.
9. "1983 - 1983 General Election - North Warwickshire". Parliament.uk.
10. ^ "Elections to the European Parliament 1979-99, part 1". Election Demon. Archived from the original on 1 February 2020. Retrieved 6 February 2024.
11. "Deceased Lords". UK Parliament. Retrieved 22 January 2024.

Sources

• https://web.archive.org/web/20050608163239/http://european-convention.eu.int/CVs/pdf/TOMLINSON.pdf

External links

• Hansard 1803–2005: contributions in Parliament by John Tomlinson
• Voting Record — Lord Tomlinson (Public Whip)
• Announcement of his introduction at the House of Lords House of Lords minutes of proceedings, 22 July 1998

• 1939 births
• 2024 deaths
• Labour Party (UK) MPs for English constituencies
• Councillors in Sheffield
• Alumni of Brunel University London
• Alumni of the University of Warwick
• Labour Co-operative life peers
• UK MPs 1974
• UK MPs 1974–1979
• Labour Co-operative MEPs
• MEPs for England 1984–1989
• MEPs for England 1989–1994
• MEPs for England 1994–1999
• Labour Party (UK) councillors
• Parliamentary Private Secretaries to the Prime Minister
• Life peers created by Elizabeth II
• People educated at Westminster City School