John Cope, Baron Cope of Berkeley

John Ambrose Cope, Baron Cope of Berkeley, PC (born 13 May 1937) is a Conservative Party politician in the United Kingdom.[1]


The Lord Cope of Berkeley

Opposition Chief Whip of the House of Lords
In office
18 September 2001  2 July 2007
LeaderIain Duncan Smith
Michael Howard
David Cameron
Preceded byThe Lord Henley
Succeeded byThe Baroness Anelay of St John's
Paymaster General
In office
14 April 1992  20 July 1994
Prime MinisterJohn Major
Preceded byThe Lord Belstead
Succeeded byDavid Heathcoat-Amory
Treasurer of the Household
In office
11 June 1983  15 June 1987
Prime MinisterMargaret Thatcher
Preceded byAnthony Berry
Succeeded byDavid Hunt
Member of Parliament
for Northavon
In office
9 June 1983  8 April 1997
Preceded byConstituency established
Succeeded bySteve Webb
Member of Parliament
for South Gloucestershire
In office
28 February 1974  13 May 1983
Preceded byFrederick Corfield
Succeeded byConstituency abolished
Member of the House of Lords
Lord Temporal
In office
4 October 1997  13 May 2020
Life Peerage
Personal details
Born (1937-05-13) 13 May 1937
Political partyConservative

Education

Cope was educated at Oakham School before qualifying as a Chartered Accountant.[2]

Career

Cope contested Woolwich East in the 1970 General Election, but was defeated by Labour's Christopher Mayhew. Thereafter he served as Member of Parliament for South Gloucestershire from 1974 to 1983. When that constituency was abolished for the 1983 general election, he was returned for the new Northavon constituency, serving until his defeat in the 1997 general election by the Liberal Democrat Steve Webb. Within the Conservative Party, he was an Assistant Whip from June 1979 to June 1981.

His first political office was as a Lord Commissioner of the Treasury (June 1981 to June 1983), and then he was Treasurer of HM Household (1983-1987), and was then appointed Minister of State for Employment (with a special focus on small businesses) 1987–1989. He was then Minister of State for Security and Finance at the Northern Ireland Office until November 1990. In the meantime, in 1988, he was sworn as a member of the Privy Council. Cope served as Paymaster-General (HM Treasury) in John Major's government between 1992 and 1994.[3]

He was made a life peer as Baron Cope of Berkeley, of Berkeley in the County of Gloucestershire on 4 October 1997.[4] He served as Opposition Chief Whip in the House of Lords, on the Conservative front bench, from 2001 to 2007, when he was replaced by Baroness Anelay.

In 2012 Cope made the opening speech to the House of Lords, presenting a motion for the Loyal Address on the opening day of Parliament.[5]

He retired from the House of Lords on 13 May 2020, his 83rd birthday.[6]

Charity work

Lord Cope is a patron of the charity Kids for Kids, helping children in rural areas of Darfur, Sudan.[7] He is a patron of The West of England MS Therapy Centre,[8] a charity helping those in Bristol and the surrounding areas live independent lives whilst coping with MS and other neurological conditions, Lord Cope is also President of the Friends of the Royal National Hospital for Rheumatic Diseases in Bath.[9]

Lord Cope has also been a Trustee of War Memorials Trust since 1999; this is a conservation charity that works for the protection of war memorials across the United Kingdom.[10]

References

Parliament of the United Kingdom
Preceded by
Frederick Corfield
Member of Parliament
for South Gloucestershire

19741983
Constituency abolished
New constituency Member of Parliament
for Northavon

19831997
Succeeded by
Steve Webb
Political offices
Preceded by
Anthony Berry
Treasurer of the Household
1983–1987
Succeeded by
David Hunt
Preceded by
The Lord Belstead
Paymaster General
1992–1994
Succeeded by
David Heathcoat-Amory
Preceded by
The Lord Henley
Opposition Chief Whip of the House of Lords
2001–2007
Succeeded by
The Baroness Anelay of St John's
Party political offices
Preceded by
The Lord Henley
Conservative Chief Whip of the House of Lords
2001–2007
Succeeded by
The Baroness Anelay of St John's
Orders of precedence in the United Kingdom
Preceded by
The Lord Davies of Oldham
Gentlemen
Baron Cope of Berkeley
Succeeded by
The Lord Hunt of Kings Heath
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.