Hugh William Mackay, 14th Lord Reay, Baron Mackay (19 July 1937 – 10 May 2013) was a British politician and

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

member of the

House of Lords The House of Lords is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Like the lower house, the House of Commons of the United Kingdom, House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminster in London, England. One of the oldest ext ...

. He was the only male

Lord of Parliament A Lord of Parliament () was the holder of the lowest form of peerage, entitled as of right to take part in sessions of the pre- Union Parliament of Scotland. Since that Union in 1707, it has been the lowest rank of the Peerage of Scotland, ran ...

to sit in the

following the abolition of the automatic right of all British hereditary peers to sit in the House of Lords in 1999, the only female being The Lady Saltoun.

Biography

Lord Reay was the only son of Aeneas Alexander Mackay, 13th Lord Reay. He was educated at

Eton College Eton College ( ) is a Public school (United Kingdom), public school providing boarding school, boarding education for boys aged 13–18, in the small town of Eton, Berkshire, Eton, in Berkshire, in the United Kingdom. It has educated Prime Mini ...

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 to the title upon his father's death in 1963, sitting in the House of Lords first as a cross-bencher, then as a Liberal, and finally, from 1972, as a Conservative. He championed causes from the abolition of capital punishment to restrictions on onshore wind farms. He sat as an appointed

Member of the European Parliament A member of the European Parliament (MEP) is a person who has been Election, elected to serve as a popular representative in the European Parliament. When the European Parliament (then known as the Common Assembly of the European Coal and S ...

from 1973 until the first elections in 1979. He also served as a delegate to the

Council of Europe The Council of Europe (CoE; , CdE) is an international organisation with the goal of upholding human rights, democracy and the Law in Europe, rule of law in Europe. Founded in 1949, it is Europe's oldest intergovernmental organisation, represe ...

, living at the family's Dutch estates in Ophemert. He subsequently was appointed as a House of Lords whip in 1989 by

Margaret Thatcher Margaret Hilda Thatcher, Baroness Thatcher (; 13 October 19258 April 2013), was a British stateswoman who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1979 to 1990 and Leader of the Conservative Party (UK), Leader of th ...

. In 1991, he was moved by her successor,

John Major Sir John Major (born 29 March 1943) is a British retired politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Conservative Party (UK), Leader of the Conservative Party from 1990 to 1997. Following his defeat to Ton ...

, to the Department of Trade and Industry as a Parliamentary Under Secretary of State, but he left the government at the 1992 general election. With the 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 ...

, Lord Reay along with almost all other hereditary peers lost his automatic right to sit in the House of Lords, however, he was one of the 92 elected hereditary peers to remain in the House of Lords pending completion of House of Lords reform. Lord Reay was the hereditary

Clan Chief The Scottish Gaelic word means children. In early times, and possibly even today, Scottish clan members believed themselves to descend from a common ancestor, the founder of the clan, after whom the clan is named. The clan chief (''ceannard ci ...

Clan Mackay Clan Mackay ( ; ) is an ancient and once-powerful Scottish Highlands, Highland Scottish clan from the far north of the Scottish Highlands, but with roots in the old Mormaer of Moray, Kingdom of Moray. They supported Robert I of Scotland, Rober ...

, and Lord of Ophemert and Zennewijnen in the Netherlands.

Family

Lord Reay was married twice. With his first wife Tessa Keswick, (née the Honourable Annabel Terese Fraser), a daughter of

Lord Lovat Lord Lovat () is a title of the rank Lord of Parliament in the Peerage of Scotland. It was created in 1458 for Hugh Fraser by summoning him to the Scottish Parliament as Lord Fraser of Lovat, although the holder is referred to simply as Lo ...

(she then became wife of Henry Keswick), he had two sons and one daughter. With his second wife Victoria Isabella, youngest daughter of the late 1st Baron Bruntisfield, he had two daughters. He was succeeded by his elder son, Aeneas Mackay, Master of Reay (born 20 March 1965), a banker, who married, on 14 January 2010, Mia Ruulio, elder daughter of Markus Ruulio of

Helsinki Helsinki () is the Capital city, capital and most populous List of cities and towns in Finland, city in Finland. It is on the shore of the Gulf of Finland and is the seat of southern Finland's Uusimaa region. About people live in the municipali ...

. His heir is his son, the Honourable Alexander Shimi Markus Mackay (born 21 April 2010).

Links

Profile
, mapsstatsandpolitics.talktalk.net; accessed 26 March 2016.

thepeerage.com; accessed 26 March 2016.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Reay, Hugh Mackay, 14th Lord 1937 births 2013 deaths Alumni of Christ Church, Oxford Conservative Party (UK) Baronesses- and Lords-in-Waiting Conservative Party (UK) MEPs Crossbench hereditary peers Liberal Party (UK) hereditary peers Mackay, Hugh MEPs for the United Kingdom 1973–1979 People educated at Eton College Hugh 14 Hereditary peers elected under the House of Lords Act 1999 Scottish clan chiefs