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Paul Boateng

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Paul Yaw Boateng, Baron Boateng, CVO, PC, DL (born 14 June 1951) is a British Labour Party politician, who was the Member of Parliament (MP) for Brent South from 1987 to 2005, becoming the UK's first Black Cabinet Minister in May 2002, when he was appointed as Chief Secretary to the Treasury. Following his departure from the House of Commons, he served as the British High Commissioner to South Africa from March 2005 to May 2009. He was introduced as a member of the House of Lords on 1 July 2010.[1]

The Right Honourable
The Lord Boateng
CVO PC DL
Official portrait, 2020
British High Commissioner to South Africa
In office
14 March 2005 – 26 April 2009
MonarchElizabeth II
President
Preceded byAnn Grant
Succeeded byNicola Brewer
Chief Secretary to the Treasury
In office
29 May 2002 – 5 May 2005
Prime MinisterTony Blair
Preceded byAndrew Smith
Succeeded byDes Browne
Financial Secretary to the Treasury
In office
8 June 2001 – 28 May 2002
Prime MinisterTony Blair
Preceded byStephen Timms
Succeeded byRuth Kelly
Minister of State for Home Affairs
In office
27 October 1998 – 8 June 2001
Prime MinisterTony Blair
Preceded byAlun Michael
Succeeded byJohn Denham
Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Disabled People
In office
4 May 1997 – 27 October 1998
Prime MinisterTony Blair
Preceded byAlistair Burt
Succeeded byMargaret Hodge
Member of the House of Lords
Lord Temporal
Incumbent
Assumed office
1 July 2010
Life Peerage
Member of Parliament
for Brent South
In office
11 June 1987 – 11 April 2005
Preceded byLaurie Pavitt
Succeeded byDawn Butler
Personal details
Born (1951-06-14) 14 June 1951 (age 73)
Hackney Central, London, England
Political partyLabour
Spouse(s)Janet, Lady Boateng
Children5
Alma materUniversity of Bristol

Background and early life

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Boateng was born in Hackney, London, of mixed Ghanaian and Scottish heritage; his family later moved to Ghana when Boateng was four years old.[2] His father, Kwaku Boateng, was a lawyer and Cabinet Minister during Kwame Nkrumah's regime. Boateng had his early education at Ghana International School and attended Accra Academy, a high school in Ghana. Boateng's life in Ghana came to an abrupt end after his father went to jail in 1966 following a military coup, which toppled the Ghanaian government. His father was imprisoned without trial for four years. Boateng, then aged 15, and his sister, Rosemary, fled to the UK with their mother.

They settled in Hemel Hempstead, where he attended Apsley Grammar School. He later read law at the University of Bristol where he resided at Wills Hall and was a member of the Barneys Club. He began his career in civil rights, originally as a solicitor, though he later retrained as a barrister. He worked primarily on social and community cases, starting under renowned civil rights advocate Benedict Birnberg, involving women's rights, housing and police complaints, including a period from 1977 to 1981 as the legal advisor for the Scrap Sus Campaign. Boateng was also an executive member of the National Council for Civil Liberties. He represented Cherry Groce, a mother of six who was shot and paralysed by a police officer during a raid on her home, in search for her son.[3] He became a partner at the firm B. M. Birnberg & Co., and as a barrister, he practised at Eight King's Bench Walk.

Political career

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In 1981, Boateng was elected to represent Walthamstow on Greater London Council, of which Ken Livingstone became leader shortly after the election. As chair of the GLC's police committee and vice-chair of its ethnic minorities committee, Boateng advocated greater accountability in the Metropolitan Police and spoke out against racism in relation to their dealings with the African Caribbean and Asian communities.

Member of Parliament

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He unsuccessfully stood as a parliamentary candidate for Hertfordshire West (which included his former home town of Hemel Hempstead) at the 1983 general election. He was elected at the general election of 1987, when he became the MP for Brent South in succession to Laurence Pavitt, being one of the first non-white British MPs elected since the 1920s and the first black MP since Peter McLagan in the 19th century, elected alongside fellow Labour Party Black Sections members Bernie Grant, Diane Abbott and Keith Vaz.[4] During his victory speech, Boateng said: "We can never be free in Brent until South Africa is free too." He then declared: "Today Brent South, tomorrow Soweto!"

Like many other members of Labour's left-wing in the 1980s, he became more moderate under the leadership of Neil Kinnock. For instance, Boateng refused to join the Parliamentary Black Caucus founded by Diane Abbott, Bernie Grant, Keith Vaz and Lord David Pitt, Baron Pitt of Hampstead in 1988, which eventually collapsed. Kinnock rewarded Boateng by making him a junior Treasury spokesman in 1989, and then the first Black person to join the front bench as a party spokesperson. Boateng's portfolio included economics, industrial strategies and corporate responsibility.[5] In 1992, he became shadow minister for the Lord Chancellor's Department, a post he held until the 1997 general election, where he was a strong advocate for increasing pro bono legal services among UK law firms.[6]

Ministerial career

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With Labour's landslide victory in 1997, Boateng became the UK's first black government minister as Parliamentary Under-Secretary for Health, where he was responsible for social services, mental health and disabled people. In that position, he published guidelines to end the denial of adoptions purely on the basis of race.[7]

In 1998, Boateng became a Minister of State at the Home Office and subsequently became Number 2 Minister there. He was made a Privy Counsellor in 1999. He earned a reputation for being tough on crime, particularly with regard to aggressive begging on the streets.[8] He also worked with Eric Holder, then United States Deputy Attorney-General, and Louis Freeh, then Director of the FBI, on issues related to international drug trafficking and interdiction.[9]

Boateng's portfolio was expanded in 2000, and he became the first Minister for Young People, where his priority was to listen to and be a voice for Britain's youth.[10] He launched the Youth, Citizenship and Social Change programme, then the UK's largest research project designed to examine social exclusion and promoting citizenship among young people.[11] He also played a leading role in establishing and launching the £450,000,000 Children's Fund designed to tackle child poverty.[12] Boateng's ministerial colleagues encouraged him to stand as the Labour candidate to be the Mayor of London; however, he ruled himself out and strongly criticised his former GLC colleague Ken Livingstone. Boateng supported the candidacy of Frank Dobson, with whom he had served in the Department of Health.[13]

Cabinet history

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In 2001, Boateng was made Financial Secretary to the Treasury, and was promoted to the position of Chief Secretary to the Treasury in May 2002, becoming Britain's first black cabinet minister. He was quoted as saying: "My colour is part of me but I do not choose to be defined by my colour." His appointment was greeted with praise by civil rights activists who said that his appointment gave hope to young black youths, and would inspire them to become involved in politics.[14] To commemorate this historic achievement, Parliament commissioned a painting of Boateng by Jonathan Yeo, which is displayed in the collection of 21st Century Parliamentarians.[15]

In his role as Chief Secretary to the Treasury, Boateng was responsible for finalising the Spending Review of 2002 and leading the Spending Review of 2004. Coordinating with Sir Peter Gershon's report, Boateng announced in 2004 the government's efficiency programme to save more than £20,000,000,000 in the public sector.[16]

Boateng played a leading role in coordinating the Every Child Matters policy paper, which called for the reform of children's services, including greater accountability and coordination among government agencies.[17] He was also a passionate advocate for increasing development aid to Africa and the developing nations. Foreshadowing his future role, he made numerous trips to Africa, meeting with business and government leaders in an effort to highlight the fact that international aid and the Millennium Development Goals were key priorities for the government.[18][19][20] Boateng also assisted Gordon Brown in drafting the Africa Commission report, which called for increasing aid to Africa from Western nations to $50 billion a year.[21][22]

In March 2005, Boateng announced that he would not stand for re-election as an MP at the general election. Dawn Butler was selected by the Constituency Labour Party to replace him and was elected in Brent South.

High Commissioner to South Africa

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Due to Boateng's passion and enthusiasm for the government's Africa Commission Report and his associations with African leaders[23] Tony Blair named him to be the next High Commissioner to South Africa for a term of four years, making him the first black ambassador in British history.[21][24] Many Africans praised the appointment, stating that it was an important symbolic break from Britain's colonial past and saw it as a symbol of Tony Blair's commitment to the continent. Boateng is credited with building a close relationship with the African National Congress government in South Africa, and it was reported that he privately worked to bring together bitter rivals in the crisis in Zimbabwe,[25] although he publicly condemned the Zimbabwean government's illegal occupation of land from white farmers[26] and the resulting turmoil, which Boateng labelled a "human rights crisis."[27] He has also addressed the World Economic Forum on issues concerning Africa.[28] In 2008, he participated in a number of talks with political leaders in the United States to encourage them to support the Doha Development Round trade negotiations that would open Western markets to goods from Africa and other developing countries.[29]

Appointment to the House of Lords

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On 28 May 2010, it was announced in the 2010 Dissolution Honours that Boateng would become a member of the House of Lords.[30] On 27 June 2010 he was created Baron Boateng, of Akyem in the Republic of Ghana and of Wembley in the London Borough of Brent[31] and was introduced to the Lords on 1 July 2010; he was supported by Lord Ouseley and Lord Janner. Boateng's maiden speech to the House of Lords highlighted the needs of poor and disadvantaged children, both in rural and urban areas. He called on the Government to examine the impact that the Budget and forthcoming Spending Review would have on children at risk.[32] In December 2011, he initiated a debate in the House of Lords to discuss cuts in funding to the Citizens Advice Bureau centres, which Lord Boateng vehemently opposed.[33]

He is a member of Labour Friends of Israel.[34]

Roles outside politics

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Boateng is an active Methodist and is a lay preacher;[35] he served as a Methodist delegate to the World Council of Churches and as Vice-Moderator of its programme to combat racism. During the South African General Elections of 1994, which ended apartheid, he was a member of the delegation sent by the Association of Western European Parliamentarians Against Apartheid to monitor the elections.

He previously served on the board of the English National Opera (1984 to 1997) and the English Touring Opera (1993 to 1997). In 1993, he wrote the foreword to the HarperCollins collected works edition of Jane Austen's Sense and Sensibility.[36] He has been a commentator and television presenter on programmes including Channel 4's Nothing But The Truth and BBC Radio 4's Looking Forward to the Past.[37]

In 2011, he was a non-executive Director of Aegis Defence Services, a private security, military and risk management company founded by controversial arms dealer Lt Colonel Tim Spicer, who was at the heart of the Sandline affair[38][39] but had left by 2013.[40]

Boateng was serving on the executive board of the international Christian charity Food for the Hungry, in 2012[41] and is a trustee of the Planet Earth Institute along with chairman Álvaro Sobrinho.[citation needed]

Boateng is a vice-president of The London Library.[42]

In 2014, he became the chair of charity BookAid International.[43]

In 2019, he became Chancellor of the University of Greenwich.[44]

Honours and awards

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In 1988, the Southern Christian Leadership Conference honoured Boateng as the recipient of the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Award for his contributions to the field of civil rights.[45]

In 2003, Boateng was named on the list of "100 Great Black Britons".[46]

He received honorary Doctor of Law degrees from West London University on 25 July 2018, Lincoln University (Pennsylvania) in 2004[47] and the University of Bristol in 2007.[48]

Boateng was appointed Commander of the Royal Victorian Order (CVO) in the 2023 Birthday Honours for services as a trustee of the Duke of Edinburgh's International Award.[49]

Personal life

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Boateng is married to Janet, a former councillor in Lambeth.[50] They have two sons and three daughters.[51] In November 2011, Boateng's son Benjamin, then aged 27, was jailed for almost four years for a sex attack on a woman.[52]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "Queen of England Elevates Paul Boateng". GhanaWeb. 30 November 2001. Archived from the original on 13 March 2014. Retrieved 26 April 2013.
  2. ^ Thomas, Ian, "Paul Yaw Boateng" Archived 12 June 2018 at the Wayback Machine, Black History Month 365, 19 August 2015.
  3. ^ "BBC ON THIS DAY | 15 | 1987: Officer cleared in Groce shooting case". BBC News. 15 January 1973. Archived from the original on 22 August 2011. Retrieved 26 August 2011.
  4. ^ Rule, Sheila (3 April 1989). "British M.P.s Form Caucus to Advance Rights of Minorities". The New York Times. p. A7. Retrieved 19 April 2020.
  5. ^ "Paul Boateng". 100 Great Black Britons. 29 May 2002. Archived from the original on 25 August 2011. Retrieved 26 August 2011.
  6. ^ "Pro Bono Work Needs Greater Support". Thelawyer.com. 11 July 1995. Archived from the original on 25 August 2013. Retrieved 26 August 2011.
  7. ^ "UK | Adoption rules to end 'misguided' practices". BBC News. 18 November 1998. Archived from the original on 1 November 2002. Retrieved 26 August 2011.
  8. ^ "Crackdown on beggars signalled". BBC News. 12 March 2000. Archived from the original on 16 February 2003. Retrieved 26 August 2011.
  9. ^ "Ministerial Meetings (US)". Parliamentary Debates (Hansard). 29 October 1999. Archived from the original on 28 December 2012. Retrieved 26 August 2011.
  10. ^ "Paul Boateng: 'We understand the vital importance of feedback'". The Independent. London. 14 December 2002. Archived from the original on 25 May 2022. Retrieved 26 August 2011.
  11. ^ "British Youth in the Spotlight". BBC News. 23 June 1999. Retrieved 26 August 2011.
  12. ^ "Poor Children to Get Help". BBC News. 15 November 2000. Retrieved 26 August 2011.
  13. ^ Leapman, Ben (29 May 2002). "Boateng: from Leftie to Blairite". Evening Standard. London. Archived from the original on 3 March 2016. Retrieved 3 April 2018.
  14. ^ "Black Minister Makes Cabinet History". BBC News. 29 May 2002. Archived from the original on 13 November 2008. Retrieved 26 August 2011.
  15. ^ "Artwork – Paul Boateng MP – UK Parliament". Parliament.uk. 20 April 2010. Archived from the original on 22 November 2011. Retrieved 26 August 2011.
  16. ^ "2004 Spending Review: A drive for £20bn efficiencies following Gershon review". PublicTechnology.net. 13 July 2004. Archived from the original on 27 September 2011. Retrieved 26 August 2011.
  17. ^ "Every child matters". Pgce.soton.ac.uk. Archived from the original on 23 February 2011. Retrieved 26 August 2011.
  18. ^ "Boateng meets Ghanaian economic community, civil society". ModernGhana.com. 16 February 2005. Archived from the original on 25 August 2013. Retrieved 26 August 2011.
  19. ^ "afrol News – Britain pays part of Ghana's debts". Afrol.com. Archived from the original on 28 September 2011. Retrieved 26 August 2011.
  20. ^ Boateng, Paul (3 September 2004). "SA cast in big role in Africa". Financial Mail. Archived from the original on 25 July 2011. Retrieved 26 August 2011.
  21. ^ a b Landberg, Reed V. (14 March 2005). "U.K. Treasury's Boateng to Take Job in South Africa (Update1)". Bloomberg L.P. Archived from the original on 24 August 2013. Retrieved 26 August 2011.
  22. ^ "[ARCHIVED CONTENT] Speech by the Chief Secretary to the Treasury, Paul Boateng MP, at the South Africa Conference – HM Treasury". Webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk. Archived from the original on 7 April 2010. Retrieved 26 August 2011.
  23. ^ unknown (17 July 2005). "A diplomat with Africa in his veins". Times LIVE. Archived from the original on 25 August 2013. Retrieved 4 August 2014.
  24. ^ Freeman, Simon (14 March 2005), "Boateng Moved to Africa Post"[dead link‍], Times Online. Archived 11 June 2011 at the Wayback Machine
  25. ^ Walker, Tim (12 March 2008). "A diplomat who could yet be the British Obama". The Spectator. Retrieved 26 August 2011.
  26. ^ "Zimbabwe broke land deal". Newzimbabwe.com. Archived from the original on 17 December 2012. Retrieved 26 August 2011.
  27. ^ "ReliefWeb » Document Preview » 'Human rights crisis' in Zimbabwe". Archived from the original on 25 March 2006. Retrieved 25 March 2006.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  28. ^ "A crocodile with two stomachs; the World Economic Forum". SABCNews. Archived from the original on 29 June 2011. Retrieved 26 August 2011.
  29. ^ "UK Envoy Calls for Urgent Citizen Advocacy on Trade". Allafrica.com. 18 March 2008. Archived from the original on 29 June 2011. Retrieved 26 August 2011.
  30. ^ "At a glance: The new working peers". The Guardian. London. 28 May 2010. Archived from the original on 8 January 2014. Retrieved 26 August 2011.
  31. ^ "No. 59476". The London Gazette. 1 July 2010. p. 12451.
  32. ^ Department of the Official Report (Hansard), House of Lords, Westminster. "Lords Hansard text for 22 July 2010". Publications.parliament.uk. Archived from the original on 30 March 2014. Retrieved 17 May 2014.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  33. ^ Department of the Official Report (Hansard), House of Lords, Westminster (8 December 2011). "Lords Hansard text for 8 Dec 2011". Publications.parliament.uk. Archived from the original on 10 July 2014. Retrieved 4 August 2014.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  34. ^ "LFI Supporters in Parliament". Labour Friends of Israel. Archived from the original on 2 October 2019. Retrieved 8 September 2019.
  35. ^ "Methodist serves as Britain's first mixed race Cabinet minister". Wfn.org. 13 January 2003. Archived from the original on 13 June 2011. Retrieved 26 August 2011.
  36. ^ "Patricia Latkin". Jasna.org. Archived from the original on 28 September 2011. Retrieved 26 August 2011.
  37. ^ "The Lord Boateng, PC Authorised Biography – Debrett's People of Today, The Lord Boateng, PC Profile". Debretts.com. 14 June 1951. Archived from the original on 19 June 2013. Retrieved 26 August 2011.
  38. ^ "AEGIS – About Us". Aegisworld.com. Archived from the original on 12 November 2011. Retrieved 29 October 2011.
  39. ^ "Advisory Committee on Business Appointments | Home". Acoba.independent.gov.uk. Archived from the original on 30 August 2011. Retrieved 26 August 2011.
  40. ^ "About us". Aegis. Archived from the original on 14 November 2011.
  41. ^ [1] Archived 2 January 2012 at the Wayback Machine
  42. ^ "Patrons, Presidents and Trustees". londonlibrary.co.uk. Archived from the original on 31 March 2019. Retrieved 26 November 2019.
  43. ^ Carpenter, Caroline (4 March 2014). "Lord Boateng new chair of Book Aid International". www.The Bookseller. Retrieved 4 August 2017.
  44. ^ "Paul Boateng inaugurated as Chancellor of the University of Greenwich". gre.ac.uk. 15 July 2019. Retrieved 11 October 2021.
  45. ^ "January 15, 2010 – Assemblymember Isadore Hall, III Receives 2010 Martin Luther King, Jr. Award". Archived from the original on 2 February 2010. Retrieved 2 February 2010.
  46. ^ "Paul Boateng". 100 Great Black Britons. Archived from the original on 25 August 2011. Retrieved 15 June 2010.
  47. ^ "Lincoln University". Lincoln.edu. Archived from the original on 19 July 2011. Retrieved 26 August 2011.
  48. ^ "Rt. Hon. Paul Boateng: Doctor of Laws – University of Bristol". Bristol.ac.uk. Archived from the original on 25 August 2013. Retrieved 29 October 2011.
  49. ^ "No. 64082". The London Gazette (Supplement). 17 June 2023. p. B4.
  50. ^ Pierce, Andrew (12 November 2008). "Wife of Paul Boateng investigated for allegedly bullying black staff". The Daily Telegraph. London. Archived from the original on 3 May 2019. Retrieved 3 April 2018.
  51. ^ Allen, Kate (24 September 2004), "Treasure trove", Inside Housing. Archived 7 April 2014 at the Wayback Machine.
  52. ^ "Lord Boateng's 'arrogant' son jailed for sex assault at party". Evening Standard. London. 12 April 2012.

Further reading

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Wikimedia Commons has media related to Paul Boateng.
Parliament of the United Kingdom
Preceded by Member of Parliament
for Brent South
1987–2005 		Succeeded by
Political offices
Preceded by Minister for the Disabled
1997–1998 		Succeeded by
Preceded by Minister of State for Home Affairs
1998–2001 		Succeeded by
Preceded by Financial Secretary to the Treasury
2001–2002 		Succeeded by
Preceded by Chief Secretary to the Treasury
2002–2005 		Succeeded by
Diplomatic posts
Preceded by
Ann Grant
 British High Commissioner to South Africa
2005–2009 		Succeeded by
Orders of precedence in the United Kingdom
Preceded by Gentlemen
Baron Boateng 		Followed by
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