Eric Forth

Thatcherite minister who made his reputation in opposition as a true, but troublesome, parliamentarian

Published: 20 May 2006

Eric Forth, politician: born Glasgow 9 September 1944; MEP (Conservative) for North Birmingham 1979-84; MP (Conservative) for Mid Worcestershire 1983-97, for Bromley and Chislehurst 1997-2006; PPS to Minister of State, Department of Education 1986-87, Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State 1992-94, Minister of State 1994-97; Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department of Trade and Industry 1988-90; Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department of Employment 1990-92; PC 1997; Chairman, Conservative Way Forward 1997-2001; married 1967 Linda St Clair (two daughters; marriage dissolved 1994), 1994 Carroll Goff (one stepson); died London 17 May 2006.

Eric Forth, who served as a Conservative MP for 23 years, enjoyed an unbroken junior ministerial career from 1988 until the Tories were ejected from office in 1997. But, whereas many of his contemporaries had by then disappeared into oblivion or electoral defeat, Forth's best years, when he made his reputation as a true parliamentarian, were yet to come.

Article Length: 1376 words (approx.)