Alastair John Lyndhurst Bruce, 5th Baron Aberdare (born 2 May 1947), is a British nobleman, and since 2009 a

crossbench A crossbencher is a minor party or independent politician, independent member of some legislatures, such as the Parliament of Australia. In the British House of Lords the term refers to members of the parliamentary group of non-political peers. ...

hereditary peer The hereditary peers form part of the peerage in the United Kingdom. As of April 2025, there are 800 hereditary peers: 30 dukes (including six royal dukes), 34 marquesses, 189 earls, 108 viscounts, and 439 barons (not counting subsidiary ...

elected under 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 ...

Early life and education

Lord Aberdare was born at 12 Avenue Road in

St John's Wood St John's Wood is a district in the London Borough of Camden, London Boroughs of Camden and the City of Westminster, London, England, about 2.5 miles (4 km) northwest of Charing Cross. Historically the northern part of the Civil Parish#An ...

, London, the son of

Morys Bruce, 4th Baron Aberdare Morys George Lyndhurst Bruce, 4th Baron Aberdare (16 June 1919 – 23 January 2005), was a Conservative politician, and from 1999 until his death, one of ninety-two elected hereditary peers in the British House of Lords. He was the eldest son o ...

, and Maud Helen Sarah Dashwood, only daughter of Sir John Dashwood, 10th Baronet. His godparents included Lord Terrington and Diana Bowes-Lyon. Aberdare was educated at Eton and

Christ Church, Oxford Christ Church (, the temple or house, ''wikt:aedes, ædes'', of Christ, and thus sometimes known as "The House") is a Colleges of the University of Oxford, constituent college of the University of Oxford in England. Founded in 1546 by Henry V ...

. He succeeded his father upon the latter's death in 2005.

Career

IBM International Business Machines Corporation (using the trademark IBM), nicknamed Big Blue, is an American Multinational corporation, multinational technology company headquartered in Armonk, New York, and present in over 175 countries. It is ...

, 1969–1991 * Partner, Bruce Naughton Wade, 1991–1999 * Director, ProbusBNW, 1999–? * Trustee, National Botanic Garden of Wales, 1994–2006 * Fellow, Royal Society for the encouragement of Arts, Manufactures & Commerce * Honorary Fellow of

Cardiff University Cardiff University () is a public research university in Cardiff, Wales. It was established in 1883 as the University College of South Wales and Monmouthshire and became a founding college of the University of Wales in 1893. It was renamed Unive ...

since July 2008 * Sub Prior of the Venerable Order of St John of Jerusalem, Priory of Wales.

Offices

Lord Aberdare is president of the Cynon Valley History Society.

House of Lords

In July 2009, Lord Aberdare was elected to sit in the House of Lords, following the death of Lord Bledisloe in May 2009. A by-election took place under the terms of the House of Lords Act 1999, which provided for 92 hereditary peers to keep their seats in the reformed House, with vacancies in their number filled from amongst all non-sitting hereditary peers. The result was announced in the Chamber of the Lords on 15 July 2009, following the voting by 27 of the 29 Crossbench peers eligible to take part. His maiden speech, made on 26 November 2009 during the debate on the Queen's Speech, focused on the transition from education to employment.

Family

He married Elizabeth Mary Culbert Foulkes in 1971; they have two children: *Hon. Hector Morys Napier Bruce (born 1974) *Hon. Sarah Katherine Mary Bruce (born 1976)

References

*"Aberdare, Baron (Bruce) (Baron UK 1873)" ''Debrett's Peerage & Baronetage 1995'' London: Debrett's Peerage Limited, 1995, p. 4. *Who's Who 2008, A & C Black, 2008; online edn, Oxford University Press, December 2007.

External links

* 1947 births Living people People from St John's Wood People educated at Eton College Alumni of Christ Church, Oxford Crossbench hereditary peers 5 Deputy lieutenants of Dyfed Hereditary peers elected under the House of Lords Act 1999 {{UK-baron-stub