John Robert Louis Lee, Baron Lee of Trafford, DL (born 21 June 1942) is a British

Liberal Democrat Several political parties from around the world have been called the Liberal Democratic Party, Democratic Liberal Party or Liberal Democrats. These parties have usually followed liberalism as ideology, although they can vary widely from very progr ...

politician, who has sat as 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 ...

since 2006. He was previously a

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 Parliament (MP) from 1979 to 1992.

Parliamentary career

He contested Manchester Moss Side in October 1974, but was beaten by Labour's Frank Hatton. He was

MP for

Nelson and Colne Nelson may refer to: Arts and entertainment * ''Nelson'' (1918 film), a historical film directed by Maurice Elvey * ''Nelson'' (1926 film), a historical film directed by Walter Summers * ''Nelson'' (opera), an opera by Lennox Berkeley to a lib ...

from 1979 to 1983, and then for Pendle from June 1983 until he lost his seat in April 1992 to Gordon Prentice from Labour. He served as Junior Minister for

Defence Procurement Military acquisition or defense acquisition is the "bureaucratic management and procurement process", dealing with a nation's investments in the technologies, programs, and product support necessary to achieve its national security strategy and ...

from 1983 to 1986, and then for

Employment Employment is a relationship between two party (law), parties Regulation, regulating the provision of paid Labour (human activity), labour services. Usually based on a employment contract, contract, one party, the employer, which might be a cor ...

from 1986 to 1989, being Minister for Tourism, from 1987 to 1989. He became a non executive director in 1999, and a member of the board of the

Emerson Group The Emerson Group is one of the largest privately owned property development companies in the United Kingdom. Emerson was founded by Peter Emerson Jones in 1959 and is based in Alderley Edge, Cheshire, UK. Its subsidiaries include Orbit Develop ...

After politics

He has been chairman of the Association of Leading Visitor Attractions, a major trade body, since 1990. He is a Deputy Lieutenant of

Greater Manchester Greater Manchester is a ceremonial county in North West England. It borders Lancashire to the north, Derbyshire and West Yorkshire to the east, Cheshire to the south, and Merseyside to the west. Its largest settlement is the city of Manchester. ...

, and was High Sheriff of

in 1998. He was previously chairman of the

Christie NHS Foundation Trust The Christie, formerly known as Christie Hospital and The Christie Hospital and Holt Radium Institute, is a specialist National Health Service (NHS) single site cancer centre in Manchester, United Kingdom. The hospital is managed by The Christie ...

, Museum of Science and Industry in Manchester and the council of the

National Youth Agency The National Youth Agency (NYA) is an educational charity in England and Wales that works in partnership with a wide range of public, private and voluntary sector organizations to support and improve services for young people. The NYA's particul ...

. He was formerly a member of the

English Tourist Board VisitEngland is the official tourist board for England. Its stated mission is to "build England's tourism product, raise Britain’s profile worldwide, increase the volume and value of tourism exports and develop England and Britain’s visitor e ...

and vice-chairman of the North West Conciliation Committee of the Race Relations Board. He is Patron of ShareSoc, which represents individual shareholders society in the UK. He is the Chair of The Lee and Bakirgian Family Trust, a charitable organisation that provides financial aid to educational, community and religious institutions, particularly in Lancashire and Cheshire to promote research and to further charitable community and youth projects.

House of Lords

He left the Conservatives in May 2001, shortly before that year's

general election A general election is an electoral process to choose most or all members of a governing body at the same time. They are distinct from By-election, by-elections, which fill individual seats that have become vacant between general elections. Gener ...

, and joined the Liberal Democrats. He was made a

as Baron Lee of Trafford of Bowdon in the County of

Cheshire Cheshire ( ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in North West England. It is bordered by Merseyside to the north-west, Greater Manchester to the north-east, Derbyshire to the east, Staffordshire to the south-east, and Shrop ...

on 26 May 2006. From 2007 to 2012, he served as a Whip for the Liberal Democrats in 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 ...

. His focus areas are Defence and Tourism, specifically in the North West of England. He vowed to resign in February 2012 in protest at the House of Lords Reform Bill making its way into the

Queen's Speech A speech from the throne, or throne speech, is an event in certain monarchies in which the reigning sovereign, or their representative, reads a prepared speech to members of the nation's legislature when a session is opened. The address sets fo ...

. Since January 2021, he has served on the House of Lords Finance Committee He released his "financial autobiography" in December 2013 – ''How to Make a Million – Slowly: Guiding Principles From a Lifetime Investing''. He has also published his

pictorial An image or picture is a visual representation. An image can be two-dimensional, such as a drawing, painting, or photograph, or three-dimensional, such as a carving or sculpture. Images may be displayed through other media, including a project ...

autobiography An autobiography, sometimes informally called an autobio, is a self-written account of one's own life, providing a personal narrative that reflects on the author's experiences, memories, and insights. This genre allows individuals to share thei ...

, entitled ''Portfolio Man'', and in 2019 published a guide for young people on investing in the stock market, entitled ''Yummi Yoghurt'', which tells the story of a fictional family company that joins the stock market.

Personal life

He currently lives in Richmond, south-west London, and is deputy chair of the Museum of Richmond.

Arms

References

*''Times Guide to the House of Commons'', 1992 {{DEFAULTSORT:Lee of Trafford, John Lee, Baron 1942 births Living people Lee of Trafford, John Lee Conservative Party (UK) MPs for English constituencies Politicians from Manchester UK MPs 1979–1983 UK MPs 1983–1987 UK MPs 1987–1992 People educated at William Hulme's Grammar School Deputy lieutenants of Greater Manchester High sheriffs of Greater Manchester Life peers created by Elizabeth II