George Thomson, Baron Thomson of Monifieth
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The Right Honourable The Lord Thomson of Monifieth KT PC DL FRSE |
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|---|---|
| European Commissioner for Regional Policy | |
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In office 6 January 1973 – 5 January 1977 |
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| President | François-Xavier Ortoli |
| Preceded by | Albert Borschette |
| Succeeded by | Antonio Giolitti |
| Shadow Secretary of State for Defence | |
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In office 8 July 1970 – 10 April 1972 |
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| Leader | Harold Wilson |
| Preceded by | Geoffrey Rippon |
| Succeeded by | Fred Peart |
| Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster | |
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In office 6 October 1969 – 20 June 1970 |
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| Prime Minister | Harold Wilson |
| Preceded by | Frederick Lee |
| Succeeded by | Anthony Barber |
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In office 6 April 1966 – 7 January 1967 |
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| Prime Minister | Harold Wilson |
| Preceded by | Douglas Houghton |
| Succeeded by | Frederick Lee |
| Minister without Portfolio | |
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In office 17 October 1968 – 6 October 1969 |
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| Prime Minister | Harold Wilson |
| Preceded by | Patrick Gordon-Walker |
| Succeeded by | The Lord Drumalbyn |
| Secretary of State for Commonwealth Affairs | |
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In office 29 August 1967 – 17 October 1968 |
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| Prime Minister | Harold Wilson |
| Preceded by | Herbert Bowden |
| Succeeded by | Michael Stewart (Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs) |
| Member of Parliament for Dundee East |
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In office 17 July 1952 – 1 March 1973 |
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| Preceded by | Thomas Cook |
| Succeeded by | George Machin |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
16 January 1921 Penn, England, UK |
| Died | 3 October 2008 (aged 87) London, England, UK |
| Political party |
Labour Party (Before 1981) Social Democratic (1981–1988) Liberal Democrats (1988–2008) |
| Spouse(s) | Grace Thomson |
| Children | Caroline |
George Morgan Thomson, Baron Thomson of Monifieth, KT, PC, DL, FRSE (16 January 1921 – 3 October 2008) was a journalist and British politician who served as a Labour Party MP. He was a member of Harold Wilson's cabinet, and later became a European Commissioner.
In the 1980s, he joined the Social Democratic Party. Following the SDP's merger with the Liberal Party, he became a Liberal Democrat and sat as a Liberal Democrat member of the House of Lords.
Thomson was educated at Grove Academy, Broughty Ferry, Dundee, and served in the Royal Air Force from 1941–46. He was the assistant editor and then editor of Forward, a socialist newspaper, from 1946–53.
At the 1950 and 1951 general elections, Thomson stood unsuccessfully in Glasgow Hillhead. In 1952, he was elected Member of Parliament in a by-election for Dundee East, where he served until his resignation in 1972. He served in the Wilson government as Minister of State, Foreign Office, from October 1964 to April 1966, then as Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster from 1966–67, and again from 1969–70, Secretary of State for Commonwealth Affairs from 1967–68, and Minister without Portfolio from 1968–69. During his time as Commonwealth Secretary he had responsibility for trying to reach a settlement of the Southern Rhodesia (now Zimbabwe) question and for implementing sanctions against the regime there. He was one of the first British Commissioners of the European Community (EC) from 1973–77, with responsibility for regional policy. As chairman of the Independent Broadcasting Authority from 1981–88 he oversaw the introduction of Channel 4 and TV-am.
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