Anthony Robert Greaves, Baron Greaves (27 July 1942 – 23 March 2021) was a British politician and
life peer
In the United Kingdom, life peers are appointed members of the peerage whose titles cannot be inherited, in contrast to hereditary peers. In modern times, life peerages, always created at the rank of baron, are created under the Life Peerages ...
. He was a
Liberal Democrat
Several political party, political parties from around the world have been called the Liberal Democratic Party or Liberal Democrats. These parties usually follow a liberal democracy, liberal democratic ideology.
Active parties
Former parties ...
member of 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 ...
.
Education and early career
Greaves was born on 27 July 1942 in
Bradford
Bradford is a city and the administrative centre of the City of Bradford district in West Yorkshire, England. The city is in the Pennines' eastern foothills on the banks of the Bradford Beck. Bradford had a population of 349,561 at the 2011 ...
,
Yorkshire
Yorkshire ( ; abbreviated Yorks), formally known as the County of York, is a Historic counties of England, historic county in northern England and by far the largest in the United Kingdom. Because of its large area in comparison with other Eng ...
. His father, Geoffrey Greaves, was a police driving instructor and his mother was Moyra Greaves (). He was educated at
Queen Elizabeth Grammar School, Wakefield
Queen Elizabeth Grammar School (QEGS) is an independent, public school for boys in Wakefield, West Yorkshire, England. The school was founded by Royal Charter of Queen Elizabeth I in 1591 at the request of leading citizens in Wakefield (headed ...
before attending
Hertford College, Oxford
Hertford College ( ), previously known as Magdalen Hall, is a colleges of the University of Oxford, constituent college of the University of Oxford in England. It is located on Catte Street in the centre of Oxford, directly opposite the main ga ...
, where he obtained a
BA in
Geography
Geography (from Greek: , ''geographia''. Combination of Greek words ‘Geo’ (The Earth) and ‘Graphien’ (to describe), literally "earth description") is a field of science devoted to the study of the lands, features, inhabitants, and ...
.
After moving to the north-west he became a member of
Lancashire County Council
Lancashire County Council is the upper-tier local authority for the non-metropolitan county of Lancashire, England. It consists of 84 councillors. Since the 2017 election, the council has been under Conservative control.
Prior to the 2009 La ...
for 25 years, and also a local
councillor
A councillor is an elected representative for a local government council in some countries.
Canada
Due to the control that the provinces have over their municipal governments, terms that councillors serve vary from province to province. Unl ...
on
Colne
Colne () is a market town and civil parish in the Borough of Pendle in Lancashire, England. Located northeast of Nelson, north-east of Burnley, east of Preston and west of Leeds.
The town should not be confused with the unrelated Colne Val ...
Borough Council and subsequently on
Pendle Borough Council Pendle may refer to:
* Borough of Pendle in Lancashire, England
** Pendle (UK Parliament constituency)
* Pendle Hill in Lancashire, England
** Forest of Pendle, hilly landscape surrounding the hill
* Pendle College of the University of Lancaster
* ...
, on which he served until his death.
Community Politics
Greaves was the mover—rather than author—of a motion at the
Liberal Assembly
The Liberal Party Assembly was the annual party conference of the British Liberal Party before its merger with the Social Democratic Party in 1988 to form the Liberal Democrats; the name is still used by the continuity Liberal Party created as ...
in 1970 which committed the
Liberal Party
The Liberal Party is any of many political parties around the world. The meaning of ''liberal'' varies around the world, ranging from liberal conservatism on the right to social liberalism on the left.
__TOC__ Active liberal parties
This is a li ...
to pursuing community politics.
He stood as the
Liberal Democrat
Several political party, political parties from around the world have been called the Liberal Democratic Party or Liberal Democrats. These parties usually follow a liberal democracy, liberal democratic ideology.
Active parties
Former parties ...
candidate for the
Pendle Pendle may refer to:
* Borough of Pendle in Lancashire, England
** Pendle (UK Parliament constituency)
* Pendle Hill in Lancashire, England
** Forest of Pendle, hilly landscape surrounding the hill
* Pendle College of the University of Lancaster
* ...
constituency in the
1997 General Election, finishing third with 11.6% of the vote.
House of Lords
Greaves was made a
life peer
In the United Kingdom, life peers are appointed members of the peerage whose titles cannot be inherited, in contrast to hereditary peers. In modern times, life peerages, always created at the rank of baron, are created under the Life Peerages ...
on 4 May 2000 as Baron Greaves, of
Pendle Pendle may refer to:
* Borough of Pendle in Lancashire, England
** Pendle (UK Parliament constituency)
* Pendle Hill in Lancashire, England
** Forest of Pendle, hilly landscape surrounding the hill
* Pendle College of the University of Lancaster
* ...
in the County of Lancashire.
He was an advocate of
social liberalism
Social liberalism (german: Sozialliberalismus, es, socioliberalismo, nl, Sociaalliberalisme), also known as new liberalism in the United Kingdom, modern liberalism, or simply liberalism in the contemporary United States, left-liberalism ...
, and went on record opposing some of the reforms to his party brought about by
Sir Menzies Campbell
Walter Menzies Campbell, Baron Campbell of Pittenweem, (; born 22 May 1941), often known as Ming Campbell, is a British Liberal Democrat politician, advocate and former athlete. He was the Member of Parliament (MP) for North East Fife from 1 ...
and
Nick Clegg
Sir Nicholas William Peter Clegg (born 7 January 1967) is a British media executive and former Deputy Prime Minister of the United Kingdom who has been president for global affairs at Meta Platforms since 2022, having previously been vicepr ...
.
In 2010 Greaves went on record to express his personal frustration at the auction of a manorial title, the Lordship of Pendle, suspiciously close to his own. Greaves' concerns were later shown to be legitimate when it transpired that the Lordship of the
Forest of Pendle
The Forest of Pendle is the name given to an area of hilly landscape to the east of Pendle Hill in eastern Lancashire, roughly defining the watershed between the River Ribble and its tributary the River Calder. The forest is not identical to th ...
belongs to the
Barons Clitheroe and forms part of the
Honour of Clitheroe
The Honour of Clitheroe is an ancient grouping of manors and royal forests centred on Clitheroe Castle in Lancashire, England; an honour traditionally being the grant of a large landholding complex, not all of whose parts are contiguous. In the ...
holdings they have held since the Second World War. Its sale was invalid and had not been authorised by its owners.
Criticism of sexual harassment claimants
In 2013 Lord Greaves attracted criticism for offering comment that appeared to make light of accusations, by four Liberal Democrat members, of sexual harassment by another Liberal Democrat peer,
Lord Rennard
Christopher John Rennard, Baron Rennard, (born 8 July 1960) is a British life peer in the House of Lords, appointed to the Liberal Democrats' benches in 1999. He was Director of Campaigns & Elections for the Liberal Democrats from 1989 to 20 ...
. Greaves wrote on a Liberal Democrat party message board: "We don’t know the details of anything that may have happened. But it is hardly an offence for one adult person to make fairly mild sexual advances to another. What matters is whether they are . . . rebuffed. In passing, I would note and guess that if the allegations as made are a matter for resignation, perhaps around a half of the male members of the Lords over the age of 50 would probably not be seen again."
In 2015 he described complainants—who had all by then resigned from the Liberal Democrats—of having 'a deliberate vendetta' against Rennard, writing "I certainly accuse some of the women of not telling the truth and of a deliberate vendetta where the facts became lost in the fog of vitriol."
Death
Greaves died at his home in Winewall,
Trawden
Trawden is a village in the Trawden Forest parish of Pendle, at the foot of Boulsworth Hill, in Lancashire, England. The village co-operatively owns and runs its library, shop, community centre and pub.
Activities
As a way of encouraging peop ...
,
Lancashire
Lancashire ( , ; abbreviated Lancs) is the name of a historic county, ceremonial county, and non-metropolitan county in North West England. The boundaries of these three areas differ significantly.
The non-metropolitan county of Lancashi ...
, on 23 March 2021, aged 78.
His death was sudden: he had made his last speech in the Lords less than a week earlier. His funeral took place on 9 April 2021.
References
External links
Lord Greavesprofile at the Liberal Democrat website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Greaves, Tony
1942 births
2021 deaths
20th-century English politicians
21st-century English politicians
Alumni of Hertford College, Oxford
Liberal Democrats (UK) councillors
Liberal Democrats (UK) life peers
Liberal Democrats (UK) parliamentary candidates
Liberal Party (UK) councillors
Members of Lancashire County Council
People educated at Queen Elizabeth Grammar School, Wakefield
People from the Borough of Pendle
Politicians from Bradford
Life peers created by Elizabeth II