Shirley Williams, Baroness Williams of Crosby
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| The Right Honourable Shirley Williams Baroness Williams of Crosby, PC |
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| In office 10 September 1976 – 4 May 1979 |
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| Prime Minister | James Callaghan |
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| Preceded by | Edmund Dell |
| Succeeded by | Angus Maude |
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| In office 10 September 1976 – 4 May 1979 |
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| Prime Minister | James Callaghan |
| Preceded by | Fred Mulley |
| Succeeded by | Mark Carlisle |
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| In office 28 February 1974 – 8 April 1976 |
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| Prime Minister | Harold Wilson |
| Preceded by | office created |
| Succeeded by | Roy Hattersley |
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| Born | 27 July 1930 London, UK |
| Political party | Labour Party (1964 - 1981) SDP (1981 - 1988) Liberal Democrats(1988 - present) |
| Alma mater | Somerville College, Oxford |
| Occupation | Journalist |
Shirley Williams, Baroness Williams of Crosby PC (born 27 July 1930), is a British politician and academic. Originally a Labour Member of Parliament (MP), she was one of the "Gang of Four" rebels who founded the Social Democratic Party (SDP) in 1981.[1] In 2001-2004, she served as Leader of the Liberal Democrats in the House of Lords, and now serves as an Advisor on Nuclear Proliferation to Prime Minister Gordon Brown. Williams also serves as Emeritus Professor of Electoral Politics at the Kennedy School of Government.
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[edit] Early life
Born Shirley Vivien Teresa Brittain Catlin, Williams is the daughter of political scientist and philosopher Sir George Catlin, and novelist Vera Brittain. She began her career as a journalist after graduating from Somerville College, Oxford several years after Margaret Thatcher's graduation from the same college. She also was a Fulbright Scholar and studied at Columbia University in New York City. Williams was first married to the philosopher Sir Bernard Williams from 1955 to 1974, and then married to Richard E. Neustadt, a professor at Harvard University, from 1987 until his death in 2003.
Baroness Williams served as a full professor at Harvard's Kennedy School of Government from 1988 to 2001 and thereafter as Public Service Professor of Electoral Politics, Emerita.
Baroness Williams was a pupil at Talbot Heath School in Bournemouth, Dorset.
[edit] Member of Parliament
At the 1964 general election, Williams was elected as Labour MP for the constituency of Hitchin in Hertfordshire, and rose quickly to a junior ministerial position. Between 1971 and 1973 she served as shadow Home Secretary. In 1974 she became Secretary of State for Prices and Consumer Protection under Harold Wilson, and, when Wilson was succeeded in 1976 by James Callaghan, she became Secretary of State for Education and Paymaster General, two cabinet positions held at the same time.
[edit] Creating the SDP
Williams lost her seat to Bowen Wells in the Labour Party general-election defeat of 1979 (her seat was renamed Hertford and Stevenage in 1974). In 1981, unhappy with the influence of the far left in the Labour Party, she resigned from it to form the SDP, along with Roy Jenkins, David Owen and Bill Rodgers. Later that year, following the death of Conservative Sir Graham Page, she won a by-election in Crosby in Merseyside, becoming the first elected SDP MP.
[edit] General Election defeat
Despite becoming SDP President, she lost her seat in the 1983 general election. She then stood for Cambridge in the 1987 general election, but lost to the Conservative candidate. Williams supported the SDP's 1988 merger with the Liberal Party to form the Liberal Democrats. Also during this time, Williams served as a BBC broadcaster on "In Conversation with Shirley Williams" and has appeared on many television and radio programmes, including as a commentator on BBC's "Question Time" more than any other panelist.
[edit] Life peer
Williams was awarded a life peerage with the title The Baroness Williams of Crosby, of Stevenage in the County of Hertfordshire, PC, in 1993 and subsequently served as Leader of the Liberal Democrats in the House of Lords from 2001 to 2004.
Among other nonprofit boards, Williams serves on the Advisory Council of the Institute for Public Policy Research, (USA) Council on Foreign Relations (CFR), Chatham House (president), the Twentieth Century Fund, and the Washington-based think-tank Nuclear Threat Initiative (NTI).
In June 2007, after Gordon Brown replaced Tony Blair as Prime Minister, Williams conditionally accepted a formal Government position as Advisor on Nuclear Proliferation provided she could serve as an independent advisor. The Office of Prime Minister is currently reviewing her conditions.
[edit] Personal life
In 1988, Williams moved to the United States, to serve as a professor at Harvard University, but remained active in politics and public service in the UK, USA, and internationally. Williams helped draft constitutions in Russia, Ukraine, and South Africa; served as director of Harvard's Project Liberty, an initiative designed to assist the emerging democracies in Central and Eastern Europe; as UN Special Representative to the former Yugoslavia; and as a member of the European Union's Comite des Sages, among other top policy positions. Upon her elevation to the House of Lords in 1993, however, she returned to the UK to continue public life.
Baroness Williams, among other ongoing activities, is reportedly working on her autobiography.
[edit] Further reading
Shirley Williams has published several books including:
- God and Caesar: Personal Reflections on Politics and Religion (2003)
- New Party - The New Technology (1988)
- A Job to Live (1985)
- Politics is for People (1981)
There is a substantial article on Shirley Williams by Phillip Whitehead in the Dictionary of Labour Biography, by Greg Rosen (ed), Politicos Publishing, 2001.
[edit] Notes
- ^ The SDP later merged with the Liberal Party to form the Liberal Democrats.
[edit] External links
- Baroness Williams of Crosby (profile on the Liberal Democrats' website)
| Parliament of the United Kingdom | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by William Madden |
Member of Parliament for Hitchin 1964–1974 |
Succeeded by Ian Stewart |
| Preceded by (new constituency) |
Member of Parliament for Hertford and Stevenage 1974–1979 |
Succeeded by Bowen Wells |
| Preceded by Graham Page |
Member of Parliament for Crosby 1981–1983 |
Succeeded by Malcolm Thornton |
| Political offices | ||
| Preceded by James Callaghan |
Shadow Home Secretary 1971–1973 |
Succeeded by Roy Jenkins |
| Preceded by Office Created |
Secretary of State for Prices and Consumer Protection 1974–1976 |
Succeeded by Roy Hattersley |
| Preceded by Frederick Mulley |
Secretary of State for Education and Science 1976–1979 |
Succeeded by Mark Carlisle |
| Preceded by Edmund Dell |
Paymaster-General 1976–1979 |
Succeeded by Angus Maude |
| Preceded by The Lord Rodgers of Quarry Bank |
Liberal Democrat Leader in the House of Lords 2001–2004 |
Succeeded by The Lord McNally |
