Jack Nixon Browne, Baron Craigton

CBE The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding valuable service in a wide range of useful activities. It comprises five classes of awards across both civil and military divisions, the most senior two o ...

PC (3 September 1904 – 28 July 1993) was a

Scottish Scottish usually refers to something of, from, or related to Scotland, including: *Scottish Gaelic, a Celtic Goidelic language of the Indo-European language family native to Scotland *Scottish English *Scottish national identity, the Scottish ide ...

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 ...

politician.

Early life

The son of Edwin Gilbert Izod, he adopted the surname Browne in 1920 as his family felt his more unusual surname a handicap. Educated at

Cheltenham College Cheltenham College is a public school ( fee-charging boarding and day school for pupils aged 13–18) in Cheltenham, Gloucestershire, England. The school opened in 1841 as a Church of England foundation and is known for its outstanding linguis ...

, Browne served in

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

as an Acting Group Captain in Balloon Command of the

Royal Air Force The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the Air force, air and space force of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies. It was formed towards the end of the World War I, First World War on 1 April 1918, on the merger of t ...

. He was awarded the

in 1944. Browne managed the Carntyne Greyhound Stadium, Glasgow, in the later 1920s. Whilst there he tried to "cash-in" on the new craze of 1928, dirt track racing. He built a racetrack inside the greyhound track. The venture was not successful, but as Jack Nixon-Browne he raced in both meetings he staged. He won most of his races in the second meeting as he had unlimited time to practice.

Political career

He unsuccessfully contested the working-class constituency of Glasgow Govan in 1945, but was elected as Member of Parliament for the seat in 1950, holding it until 1955. He was then elected as Member for Glasgow Craigton in 1955, holding that seat until September 1959 at which point he was elevated to 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 parliamentary private secretary to the

Secretary of State for Scotland The secretary of state for Scotland (; ), also referred to as the Scottish secretary, is a Secretary of State (United Kingdom), secretary of state in the Government of the United Kingdom, with responsibility for the Scotland Office. The incum ...

from 1952 until April 1955, when he was appointed a Parliamentary

Under-Secretary of State for Scotland The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Scotland is a junior ministerial post (of Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State rank) in the Government of the United Kingdom, supporting the Secretary of State for Scotland. The post is also kn ...

. In November 1959 he was created 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. Life peers are appointed by the monarch on the advice of the prime minister. With the exception of the D ...

, as Baron Craigton, of Renfield in the County of the City of

Glasgow Glasgow is the Cities of Scotland, most populous city in Scotland, located on the banks of the River Clyde in Strathclyde, west central Scotland. It is the List of cities in the United Kingdom, third-most-populous city in the United Kingdom ...

. In October 1959, he was promoted to

Minister of State for Scotland The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Scotland is a junior ministerial post (of Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State rank) in the Government of the United Kingdom, supporting the Secretary of State for Scotland. The post is also kno ...

, holding that office until October 1964. He was appointed a

Privy Counsellor The Privy Council, formally His Majesty's Most Honourable Privy Council, is a formal body of advisers to the sovereign of the United Kingdom. Its members, known as privy counsellors, are mainly senior politicians who are current or former ...

in 1961. He later held a number of important business positions, including chairman of United Biscuits Holdings, and was associated with environmental groups including the World Wildlife Fund.

Arms

References

External links

* 1904 births 1993 deaths Anglo-Scots Craigton Members of the Parliament of the United Kingdom for Scottish constituencies Members of the Parliament of the United Kingdom for Glasgow constituencies Commanders of the Order of the British Empire Unionist Party (Scotland) MPs UK MPs 1950–1951 UK MPs 1951–1955 UK MPs 1955–1959 Craigton Royal Air Force officers Royal Air Force personnel of World War II Members of the Privy Council of the United Kingdom Ministers in the Eden government, 1955–1957 Ministers in the Macmillan and Douglas-Home governments, 1957–1964 Life peers created by Elizabeth II {{Conservative-UK-MP-1900s-stub