James Edward George Younger, 5th Viscount Younger of Leckie (born 11 November 1955), is an elected

hereditary peer The hereditary peers form part of the peerage in the United Kingdom. As of September 2022, there are 807 hereditary peers: 29 dukes (including five royal dukes), 34 marquesses, 190 earls, 111 viscounts, and 443 barons (disregarding subsid ...

who sits on the

Conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization i ...

benches in the

House of Lords The House of Lords, also known as the House of Peers, is the Bicameralism, upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Membership is by Life peer, appointment, Hereditary peer, heredity or Lords Spiritual, official function. Like the ...

Early life

James Younger was born on 11 November 1955. His father was

George Younger, 4th Viscount Younger of Leckie George Kenneth Hotson Younger, 4th Viscount Younger of Leckie, Baron Younger of Prestwick, (22 September 1931 – 26 January 2003), was a British Conservative Party politician and banker. Early life and career Younger's forebear, George Younger ...

, who was a prominent member of

Margaret Thatcher Margaret Hilda Thatcher, Baroness Thatcher (; 13 October 19258 April 2013) was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1979 to 1990 and Leader of the Conservative Party (UK), Leader of the Conservative Party from 1975 to 1990. S ...

's cabinet. Younger was educated at

Winchester College Winchester College is a public school (fee-charging independent day and boarding school) in Winchester, Hampshire, England. It was founded by William of Wykeham in 1382 and has existed in its present location ever since. It is the oldest of the ...

, where he was in the school football team, and the

University of St Andrews (Aien aristeuein) , motto_lang = grc , mottoeng = Ever to ExcelorEver to be the Best , established = , type = Public research university Ancient university , endowment ...

, where he read medieval history. He holds an MBA from

Henley Management College Henley Business School is a business school which now forms part of the University of Reading. It was formed by merging the previously independent Henley Management College (formerly the Administrative Staff College) with the existing business ...

Career

Younger now works in the field of personnel management and recruitment. In June 2010, Younger won the by-election to replace the 14th Earl of Northesk who died in March 2010. Younger inherited his peerage in 2003, after passage of the

House of Lords Act 1999 The House of Lords Act 1999 (c. 34) is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that reformed the House of Lords, one of the chambers of Parliament. The Act was given Royal Assent on 11 November 1999. For centuries, the House of Lords ...

, making him one of only a few excepted hereditary members of the House of Lords who was not a member before the act came into force. Younger is a deputy chairman of the Buckingham Constituency Conservative Association. On 25 June 2012, Younger was appointed a Lord-in-waiting (Lords

Whip A whip is a tool or weapon designed to strike humans or other animals to exert control through pain compliance or fear of pain. They can also be used without inflicting pain, for audiovisual cues, such as in equestrianism. They are generally e ...

). On 9 January 2013, Lord Younger was appointed as Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Intellectual Property at the

Department for Business Innovation and Skills , type = Department , logo = Department for Business, Innovation and Skills logo.svg , logo_width = 200px , logo_caption = , picture = File:Лондан. 2014. Жнівень 26.JPG , seal = , se ...

, by the

Prime Minister A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister is not ...

. On 27 July 2019, he was appointed

Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (or just Parliamentary Secretary, particularly in departments not led by a Secretary of State (United Kingdom), Secretary of State) is the lowest of three tiers of Minister (government), government minist ...

for Housing, Communities & Local Government in

Boris Johnson Alexander Boris de Pfeffel Johnson (; born 19 June 1964) is a British politician, writer and journalist who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Conservative Party from 2019 to 2022. He previously served as F ...

's ministry. On 1 January 2023, he was appointed

at the

Department for Work and Pensions , type = Department , seal = , logo = Department for Work and Pensions logo.svg , logo_width = 166px , formed = , preceding1 = , jurisdiction = Government of the United Kingdom , headquarters = Caxton House7th Floor6–12 Tothill Stree ...

References

Living people 1955 births Conservative Party (UK) Baronesses- and Lords-in-Waiting Viscounts in the Peerage of the United Kingdom People educated at Winchester College Alumni of the University of St Andrews {{UK-viscount-stub Hereditary peers elected under the House of Lords Act 1999