Bruce Millan (5 October 1927 – 21 February 2013) was a British Labour politician who served as a European Commissioner from 1989 to 1995.
Bruce Millan | |
|---|---|
_(cropped_and_rotated).jpg) Official portrait, 1992 | |
| European Commissioner for Regional Policy | |
| In office 6 January 1989 – 23 January 1995 | |
| President | Jacques Delors |
| Preceded by | Grigoris Varfis |
| Succeeded by | Monika Wulf-Mathies |
| Shadow Secretary of State for Scotland | |
| In office 4 May 1979 – 31 October 1983 | |
| Leader | |
| Preceded by | Teddy Taylor |
| Succeeded by | Donald Dewar |
| Secretary of State for Scotland | |
| In office 8 April 1976 – 4 May 1979 | |
| Prime Minister | James Callaghan |
| Preceded by | Willie Ross |
| Succeeded by | George Younger |
| Member of Parliament for Glasgow Govan | |
| In office 9 June 1983 – 18 October 1988 | |
| Preceded by | Andrew McMahon |
| Succeeded by | Jim Sillars |
| Member of Parliament for Glasgow Craigton | |
| In office 8 October 1959 – 9 June 1983 | |
| Preceded by | Jack Browne |
| Succeeded by | Constituency abolished |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 5 October 1927 Dundee, Scotland |
| Died | 21 February 2013 (aged 85) Glasgow, Scotland |
| Political party | Labour |
| Spouse |
Gwendoline Fairey (m. 1953) |
| Children | 2 |
| Education | Harris Academy |
| Profession | Chartered accountant |
Early life
editBruce Millan was born in Dundee, the son of a shipyard caulker and a jute weaver, and educated at Harris Academy in the city.[1] He was active in the Labour League of Youth while at school, and after it he undertook his national service with the Royal Corps of Signals while studying at the same time for accountancy examinations.[2] He became a chartered accountant in 1950.[3]
Millan married Gwendoline May Fairey on 22 August 1953. The couple had a son and a daughter.[2]
Parliamentary career
editMillan unsuccessfully contested West Renfrewshire in the 1951 general election and Glasgow Craigton in that of 1955.
He was elected as Member of Parliament (MP) for Glasgow Craigton at the 1959 general election and served for that seat, and after its abolition in 1983 for Glasgow Govan, until 1988.[4] He served in the Wilson government of 1964–1970 as Under-Secretary of State for the Air Force from 1964 to 1966, as Under-Secretary of State for Scotland from 1966 to 1970, and in the Callaghan government of 1976–1979 as Secretary of State for Scotland;[5][6]: 47 he subsequently served as Shadow Secretary of State for Scotland under new leader Michael Foot. At the time of the 1981 Labour Party Shadow Cabinet election, the first time Millan won election to the Shadow Cabinet, he was described by The Glasgow Herald as being identified with the "Centre-to-right" of the Labour Party.[7]
After Parliament
editMillan left Parliament in 1988, by applying for the Chiltern Hundreds, in order to take up the post of European Commissioner for Regional Policy and Cohesion, which he held until 1995.[5] The vacancy he left was filled by Jim Sillars of the SNP in the noteworthy Glasgow Govan by-election of 1988.[8]
In 1991, Millan received an honorary doctorate from Heriot-Watt University.[9]
Between 1999 and 2001 he chaired the Millan Committee, which proposed reforms to the provision of mental health care in Scotland.[5][8][10]: 91
References
edit- ^ "Bruce Millan". The Telegraph. London. 26 February 2013. Retrieved 27 February 2013.
- ^ a b Wilson, Brian D. H. (1 January 2017). "Millan, Bruce (1927–2013), politician". Oxford Dictionary of National Biography (online ed.). Oxford University Press. doi:10.1093/ref:odnb/106179. (Subscription or UK public library membership required.)
- ^ "MILLAN, Rt Hon. Bruce". Who's Who & Who Was Who. Vol. 2023 (online ed.). A & C Black. (Subscription or UK public library membership required.)
- ^ Wilson, Brian (25 February 2013). "Bruce Millan obituary". The Guardian. London. Retrieved 27 February 2013.
- ^ a b c "Former Scottish Secretary Bruce Millan dies aged 85". BBC News. 23 February 2013. Retrieved 27 February 2013.
- ^ Beckett, J. V. and Ken Brand (1997). Nottingham: An Illustrated History. Manchester: Manchester University Press. ISBN 0-7190-5175-4.
- ^ Parkhouse, Geoffrey (20 November 1981). "Size of Benn vote a new blow to Foot". The Glasgow Herald. p. 1. Retrieved 5 January 2021.
- ^ a b Gordon, Tom (23 February 2013). "Bruce Millan, former Scottish Secretary, dies at 85". The Herald. Retrieved 27 February 2013.
- ^ "Honorary Graduates – 1966 to present" (PDF). Heriot-Watt University. p. 8. Retrieved 27 April 2021.
- ^ Keating, Michael (2007). Scottish Social Democracy: Progressive Ideas for Public Policy. Brussels: P.I.E. Peter Lang. ISBN 978-9052010663.
External links
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