Bruce Thomas George (1 June 1942 – 24 February 2020) was a British Labour Party politician, who served as the Member of Parliament (MP) for Walsall South from

February 1974 The following events occurred in February 1974: February 1, 1974 (Friday) *Joelma fire, A fire killed 177 people and injured 293 others in the 23-story Joelma Building at São Paulo in Brazil. Another 11 later died of their injuries. The bl ...

until 2010.

Early life

George was born in

Mountain Ash Mountain ash may refer to: * ''Eucalyptus regnans'', the tallest of all flowering plants, native to Australia * Mountain-ashes or rowans, varieties of trees and shrubs in the genus ''Sorbus'' See also * Mountain Ash, Rhondda Cynon Taf Mounta ...

Mid-Glamorgan , Government= Mid Glamorgan County Council , Status= Non-metropolitan county (1974–1996) Preserved county (1996–) , Start= 1974 , End= 1996 , Arms= ''Coat of arms of Mid ...

, to Phyllis George and her husband Edgar George, a policeman. He was educated at the

Grammar School A grammar school is one of several different types of school in the history of education in the United Kingdom and other English-speaking countries, originally a school teaching Latin, but more recently an academically oriented secondary school ...

and the

University of Wales, Swansea Swansea University ( cy, Prifysgol Abertawe) is a public university, public research university located in Swansea, Wales, United Kingdom. It was chartered as University College of Swansea in 1920, as the fourth college of the University of Wales. ...

, where he was awarded a Bachelor of Arts degree in political theory and government. He finished his education at the

University of Warwick , mottoeng = Mind moves matter , established = , type = Public research university , endowment = £7.0 million (2021) , budget = £698.2 million (2020� ...

where he earned a master's degree in

comparative politics Comparative politics is a field in political science characterized either by the use of the ''comparative method'' or other empirical methods to explore politics both within and between countries. Substantively, this can include questions relatin ...

. He was an assistant lecturer in social studies at the Glamorgan Polytechnic from 1964 to 1966. He lectured in politics at the

Manchester Polytechnic Manchester Metropolitan University is located in the centre of Manchester, England. The university has over 40,000 students and over 4,000 members of staff. It is home to four faculties (Arts and Humanities, Business and Law, Health and Educat ...

from 1968 until he became a senior politics lecturer at the Birmingham Polytechnic in 1970. He left this post when he was elected to Parliament in 1974. He was also a tutor with the

Open University The Open University (OU) is a British public research university and the largest university in the United Kingdom by number of students. The majority of the OU's undergraduate students are based in the United Kingdom and principally study off- ...

from 1970 until 1973.

Parliamentary career

George contested

Southport Southport is a seaside town in the Metropolitan Borough of Sefton in Merseyside, England. At the 2001 census, it had a population of 90,336, making it the eleventh most populous settlement in North West England. Southport lies on the Iris ...

at the 1970 general election but was defeated by the sitting

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 in ...

MP,

Ian Percival Sir Walter Ian Percival QC (11 May 1921 – 4 April 1998) was a British Conservative Party politician. Background Percival was educated at Latymer Upper School and St Catharine's College, Cambridge. He was commissioned from Sandhurst into The ...

, coming third in the poll. He was elected to the

House of Commons The House of Commons is the name for the elected lower house of the bicameral parliaments of the United Kingdom and Canada. In both of these countries, the Commons holds much more legislative power than the nominally upper house of parliament. T ...

for Walsall South at the February 1974 general election. George served as a member of the House of Commons Defence Select Committee from 1979 until 2005, serving as Chairman of the Committee from 1998 to 2005. He became a member of the Privy Council in 2000. Although he was an MP for 36 years, George was never on the

frontbench In many parliaments and other similar assemblies, seating is typically arranged in banks or rows, with each political party or caucus grouped together. The spokespeople for each group will often sit at the front of their group, and are then know ...

. He is seen as a supporter of

NATO The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO, ; french: Organisation du traité de l'Atlantique nord, ), also called the North Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovernmental military alliance between 30 member states – 28 European and two No ...

and a strong military. He was Leader of the UK Delegation to the NATO Parliamentary Assembly and was elected Vice-President of the Assembly in November 2007. In 2002, he was elected President of the Parliamentary Assembly of the

Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe The Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) is the world's largest regional security-oriented intergovernmental organization with observer status at the United Nations. Its mandate includes issues such as arms control, pro ...

, and was re-elected in 2003. Between 2004 and June 2006, he served as President Emeritus and Special Advisor on Mediterranean Affairs. He also regularly acted as an election monitor, especially in disputed Presidential elections in

Ukraine Ukraine ( uk, Україна, Ukraïna, ) is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the second-largest European country after Russia, which it borders to the east and northeast. Ukraine covers approximately . Prior to the ongoing Russian inv ...

and

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States Georgia may also refer to: Places Historical states and entities * Related to the ...

. On 18 February 2010, George announced that he would stand down at the 2010 general election. He was succeeded in his constituency by

Valerie Vaz Valerie Carol Marian Vaz (born 7 December 1954) is a British Labour Party politician and solicitor serving as the Member of Parliament (MP) for Walsall South since 2010. She served as the Shadow Leader of the House of Commons from 2016 to 202 ...

After the House of Commons

In May 2011, George was awarded the Medal of Honour by the President of Georgia for his considerable contribution to the democratisation of that country. In October 2011, he was made an Honorary Freeman of the Borough by Walsall Council in recognition of his 36 years' service as Member of Parliament for Walsall South. In 2012, he was awarded the OSCE Medal in recognition of his contribution to the work of the OSCE before, during and after his Presidency of the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly.

Personal life and death

George married Lisa Toelle in 1992. George was an Honorary Political Advisor to

The Royal British Legion The Royal British Legion (RBL), formerly the British Legion, is a British charity providing financial, social and emotional support to members and veterans of the British Armed Forces, their families and dependants, as well as all others in n ...

and Vice-President of the UK's largest professional security organisation, The Security Institute. In 1981, he was a visiting lecturer at the

University of Essex The University of Essex is a public research university in Essex, England. Established by royal charter in 1965, Essex is one of the original plate glass universities. Essex's shield consists of the ancient arms attributed to the Kingdom of Es ...

and later a Visiting Professor at the University of Portsmouth, Institute of Criminal Justice Studies. George was a supporter of Walsall F.C. On 24 February 2020, George died due to complications of Alzheimer's disease in London, at the age of 77.

Publications

* ''The State of the Alliance'' Co-Authored by Bruce George, 1987, Avalon Publishing, * ''Jane's NATO Handbook'' Edited by Bruce George, 1990, Jane's Information Group * ''Jane's NATO Handbook'' Edited by Bruce George, 1991, Jane's Information Group * ''The British Labour Party and Defence'' by Bruce George, 1992, Greenwood Press * ''Worth Saving: The Story of the Staffordshire Regiment's Fight for Survival'' by Bruce George and Nick Ryan, 1996, Dalesman Publishing Company Ltd

References

External links

Official Website
* ttps://www.theyworkforyou.com/mp/bruce_george/walsall_south TheyWorkForYou.com – Bruce George MP* {{DEFAULTSORT:George, Bruce 1942 births 2020 deaths Labour Party (UK) MPs for English constituencies Members of the Privy Council of the United Kingdom UK MPs 1974 UK MPs 1974–1979 UK MPs 1979–1983 UK MPs 1983–1987 UK MPs 1987–1992 UK MPs 1992–1997 UK MPs 1997–2001 UK MPs 2001–2005 UK MPs 2005–2010 Alumni of Swansea University Alumni of the University of Warwick Academics of the Open University Academics of the University of Essex Academics of the University of Glamorgan Academics of Birmingham City University Academics of Manchester Metropolitan University People educated at Mountain Ash Comprehensive School Deaths from Alzheimer's disease Deaths from dementia in England