John Henry Marks (30 May 1925 – 20 September 2022) was a British medical doctor who was Chairman of the

British Medical Association The British Medical Association (BMA) is a registered trade union for doctors in the United Kingdom. The association does not regulate or certify doctors, a responsibility which lies with the General Medical Council. The association's headquar ...

, a position he held from 1984 to 1990.

Life and career

His six-year term is unique – at the time he was leading the Association and the profession in a campaign against Kenneth Clarke's reforms of the NHS based on the untried concept of an internal market. He played a major role in defending the Abortion Act 1967 in the face of attacks by " pro-lifers" including

Victoria Gillick Victoria D. M. Gillick (''née'' Gudgeon; born 1946, in Hendon) is a British activist and campaigner best known for the eponymous 1985 UK House of Lords ruling that considered whether contraception could be prescribed to under-16s without paren ...

and the MPs

David Alton David Patrick Paul Alton, Baron Alton of Liverpool, (born 15 March 1951) is a British politician. He is a former Liberal Party and later Liberal Democrat Member of Parliament who has sat as a crossbench member of the House of Lords since 1997 ...

and Sir Russell Brain. In 1970 he successfully led the campaign against the BMA Council's decision to recommend an annual registration fee to the GMC without prior reform of its constitution. He also played a major role in campaigns in favour of restricting smacking, the wearing of

seat belt A seat belt (also known as a safety belt, or spelled seatbelt) is a vehicle safety device designed to secure the driver or a passenger of a vehicle against harmful movement that may result during a collision or a sudden stop. A seat belt reduc ...

s, and respecting the confidentiality of sufferers from

AIDS Human immunodeficiency virus infection and acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (HIV/AIDS) is a spectrum of conditions caused by infection with the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), a retrovirus. Following initial infection an individual m ...

. Marks was born in

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

, and was educated at

Tottenham County School Tottenham () is a town in North London, England, within the London Borough of Haringey. It is located in the ceremonial county of Greater London. Tottenham is centred north-northeast of Charing Cross, bordering Edmonton to the north, Walthamst ...

and the

University of Edinburgh The University of Edinburgh ( sco, University o Edinburgh, gd, Oilthigh Dhùn Èideann; abbreviated as ''Edin.'' in post-nominals) is a public research university based in Edinburgh, Scotland. Granted a royal charter by King James VI in 15 ...

, qualifying on 5 July 1948, the day that the NHS started. Following hospital posts and service in the

RAMC The Royal Army Medical Corps (RAMC) is a specialist corps in the British Army which provides medical services to all Army personnel and their families, in war and in peace. The RAMC, the Royal Army Veterinary Corps, the Royal Army Dental Corps a ...

he resided in

Elstree Elstree is a large village in the Hertsmere borough of Hertfordshire, England. It is about northwest of central London on the former A5 road, that follows the course of Watling Street. In 2011, its population was 5,110. It forms part of the ...

, and worked as a General Practitioner in Borehamwood, 1954–90. Marks was an MD, a Fellow of the

Royal College of General Practitioners The Royal College of General Practitioners (RCGP) is the professional body for general (medical) practitioners (GPs/Family Physicians/Primary Care Physicians) in the United Kingdom. The RCGP represents and supports GPs on key issues including l ...

and a

DObst RCOG The medical post-nominal suffix DObst RCOG is awarded to obstetricians and gynaecologists who have gained the Diploma of the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists. The Diploma is aimed at doctors, and especially general practitioners, w ...

of the

Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists The Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists (RCOG) is a professional association based in London, United Kingdom. Its members, including people with and without medical degrees, work in the field of obstetrics and gynaecology, that is ...

. His autobiography, ''The NHS: Beginning, Middle and End?'' was published in May 2008. In August 2018, it was noted that Marks, then 93, was one of the few surviving doctors who joined the

National Health Service The National Health Service (NHS) is the umbrella term for the publicly funded healthcare systems of the United Kingdom (UK). Since 1948, they have been funded out of general taxation. There are three systems which are referred to using the " ...

during the era of its creation 70 years prior. He died on 20 September 2022, at the age of 97.

References

1925 births 2022 deaths 20th-century English medical doctors Fellows of the Royal College of General Practitioners Alumni of the University of Edinburgh Chairs of the Council of the British Medical Association English autobiographers English medical writers English Jews People from Tottenham English male non-fiction writers People from Elstree National Health Service people Royal Army Medical Corps officers {{UK-trade-unionist-bio-stub