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Mark Lancaster, Baron Lancaster of Kimbolton

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The Right Honourable
The Lord Lancaster of Kimbolton
TD  PC
Minister of State for the Armed Forces

In office
13 June 2017 – 16 December 2019
Prime Minister Theresa May
Boris Johnson
Preceded by Mike Penning
Succeeded by Anne-Marie Trevelyan
Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Defence Veterans, Reserves and Personnel

In office
12 May 2015 – 13 June 2017
Prime Minister David Cameron
Theresa May
Preceded by Anna Soubry
Succeeded by Tobias Ellwood
Lord Commissioner of the Treasury

In office
9 September 2012 – 12 May 2015
Prime Minister David Cameron
Preceded by Jeremy Wright
Succeeded by Charlie Elphicke
Member of the House of Lords
Lord Temporal
Incumbent
Assumed office
12 October 2020
Life Peerage
Member of Parliament
for Milton Keynes North
North East Milton Keynes
(2005–2010)

In office
5 May 2005 – 6 November 2019
Preceded by Brian White
Succeeded by Ben Everitt
Personal details
Born 12 May 1970(1970-05-12) (age 54)[1]
Cambridge, Cambridgeshire, England
Nationality British
Political party Conservative
Spouse(s) Katherine Reader (m. 1995–2007)
Caroline Dinenage (m. 2014)
Children 2
Residence Gosport, Hampshire
Alma mater University of Buckingham
University of Exeter
Website lancaster4mk.com
Military service
Allegiance United Kingdom
Service/branch British Army
Years of service 1988–present
Rank Brigadier
Unit Royal Engineers
British Army Reserve
Commands 217 (London) Field Squadron (EOD)
Battles/wars

Brigadier John Mark Lancaster, Baron Lancaster of Kimbolton,[2] TD  PC (born 12 May 1970) is a British Conservative Party politician, a Member of the House of Lords and a British Army reserve officer. He previously served as Member of Parliament for North East Milton Keynes from 2005 until 2010, and then its successor seat Milton Keynes North from the seat's creation at the 2010 general election until his retirement from the House of Commons at the 2019 general election. He served as a Minister in several appointments after the formation of the Coalition Government in 2010, first as Lord Commissioner of Her Majesty's Treasury, before in May 2015 moving to the Ministry of Defence, first as the Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Veterans, Reserves and Personnel, and then, from 13 June 2017, as Minister of State for the Armed Forces. He served in this role until his retirement from Government on 16 December 2019. He was granted a life peerage in the 2019 Dissolution Honours, and was created Baron Lancaster of Kimbolton on 16 September 2020. He was introduced to the House of Lords on 12 October 2020.

Early life[]

Lancaster was born on 12 May 1970 in Cambridge. He was privately educated at Kimbolton School in Huntingdonshire where his father Ronald Lancaster was chaplain from 1963–88.[3] He graduated as a BSc in Business Studies from the University of Buckingham in 1992 and MBA from the University of Exeter Business School in 1993.[4][5] He was a company director for the family firm Kimbolton Fireworks before he was elected to Parliament.[5]

Political career[]

Lancaster served on Huntingdonshire District Council between 1995 and 1999.[6][5]

Lancaster stood unsuccessfully as the Conservative candidate for Nuneaton at the 2001 general election. He was defeated by the Labour candidate Bill Olner.

House of Commons[]

Lancaster was elected as Member of Parliament gaining North East Milton Keynes for the Conservatives in the 2005 general election, and succeeding Brian White of the Labour Party.

Between 2005 and 2010 he served in Opposition, first as an Opposition Whip in 2006–2007, before moving to be the Shadow Minister for International Development in 2007 until the 2010 General Election.

During his time as a backbench MP, He served on the Office of Deputy Prime Minister Select Committee, (2005), Defence Select Committee (2006),[7] Housing, Communities and Local Government Committee (2008–09) and the International Development Select Committee (2009–10).[8]

After his re-election in 2010 and the formation of the Coalition Government, he was initially appointed as the PPS to the Secretary of State for International Development,[9] From 2012 to 2015, he was a government whip and a Lord Commissioner of the Treasury.[5] He then moved to the Ministry of Defence where he was Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Defence Veterans, Reserves and Personnel (2015–2017) and Minister for the Armed Forces (2017–2019).[5]

In November 2019, he announced his retirement from the House of Commons.[10]

House of Lords[]

Lancaster was nominated for a peerage in the 2019 Dissolution Honours.[11] On 16 September 2020, he was created Baron Lancaster of Kimbolton by Queen Elizabeth II.[12] He was Introduced to the House of Lords on 12 October 2020, and sits in the House as a Conservative Party life peer.[13] He made his maiden speech on 27 October 2020, while expressing regret that as a bomb disposal expert and with his family ties to fireworks making, that it didn't occur on 5 November.[14]

He was appointed as a member of the NATO Parliamentary Assembly on 9 November 2021.

Political views[]

Lancaster has stated his disagreement with the UK Government's policy on the 2003 invasion of Iraq. In an interview with the BBC, he stated "It may well be much harder to get the British public to back other overseas adventures by the military because of what's happened in Iraq".[15] Lancaster voted against legislation allowing gay couples to marry at the Bill's second reading, but supported minor 'tidying up' legislation supporting the principle once the main Bill had passed through the House of Commons.[16] He later tweeted in July 2016 that he had been wrong to have opposed the second reading.[citation needed]

In 2011 Lancaster introduced his own private member's bill, which enabled special Olympic 1 kg gold and silver coins to be struck by the Royal Mint as part of the 2012 Olympic legacy. In 2013 Lancaster was successful in his four-year campaign to get Khat classified as a category C drug following calls from his constituents.[citation needed]

Military career[]

Marklancaster

Lieutenant Colonel Lancaster, 2015

Lancaster was commissioned a second lieutenant in the Corps of Royal Engineers on 4 December 1988, holding a Short-Service Limited Commission (SSLC).[17] Between 1988 and 1990 Lancaster served in the British Army on an extended SSLC in Hong Kong with the Queen's Gurkha Engineers before going to university. On 1 March 1990, he transferred his commission to the Army Reserve and was promoted lieutenant on 1 July 1991.[18] He was promoted captain on 1 June 1997 (seniority from 16 October 1995),[19] with promotion to major on 13 May 2004 (seniority from 1 March 2002).[20]

Lancaster has been on active service three times, in Kosovo (1999–2000), Bosnia (2001–2002) and Afghanistan (2006).[21] He continues to serve in the General Staff Corps (late Royal Engineers), having previously commanded an Explosive Ordnance Disposal unit.[22] Lancaster was promoted to lieutenant-colonel on 1 February 2012 and to colonel on 22 June 2017.[23][24] He was Deputy Commander of 77th Brigade from June 2018 to July 2020.[25] and was appointed Chair of the Reserve Forces 2030 review in January 2020.[26] He was promoted to brigadier on 1 August 2020.[27] and currently serves as Deputy Director Joint Warfare at UK's Strategic Command.[28] He was appointed as the Deputy Colonel Commandant Brigade of Gurkhas on 1 September 2019,[29] and Honorary Colonel of the Cayman Islands Regiment on 2 July 2021. He received a number of military honours and decorations between 2000 and 2016, including the Territorial Decoration (TD) in 2002 and the Volunteer Reserves Service Medal (VRSM) in 2011. He was awarded a bar to the VRSM for a further five years service in 2016 and a second bar for a further five years service in 2021.

Personal life[]

Lancaster lives in Gosport with his wife, Conservative MP for Gosport Caroline Dinenage.[30] He previously married Katherine Reader 1995 before separating in 2006 and divorcing in 2009. He briefly partnered Amanda Evans with whom he has a daughter. In February 2014, he married Caroline Dinenage, who had also been previously married.[31][32] Lancaster is a supporter of MK Dons, and enjoys playing cricket, which includes the House of Commons team.[33]

He was awarded an honorary doctorate from the University of Buckingham in 2008.[4][5][28][34]

Honours[]

Remembrance Sunday 2016 (25343449129) (Mark Lancaster cropped)

Lancaster wearing medals on Remembrance Day 2016

Ribbon Description Notes
NATO Medal for Kosovo
  • 2000
NATO Former Republic of Yugoslavia Medal
  • 2002

With clasp ' Former Yugoslavia '

OSM for Afghanistan
  • 2006
  • With "AFGHANISTAN" Clasp
Queen Elizabeth II Golden Jubilee Medal
  • 2002
  • UK Version of this Medal
Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal
  • 2012
  • UK Version of this Medal
Queen Elizabeth II Platinum Jubilee Medal
  • 2022
  • UK Version of this Medal
Efficiency Decoration (TD)
Volunteer Reserves Service Medal
  • 2011
  • 2016 bar for 5 years further service
  • 2021 2nd bar for 5 years further service
  • 10 Years Service in the Army Reserves

References[]

  1. ↑ "Mark Lancaster". 13 February 2007. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/shared/mpdb/html/405.stm. 
  2. ↑ "No. 62069". 3 October 2017. p. 18307. https://www.thegazette.co.uk/London/issue/62069/page/18307 
  3. ↑ "Lancaster, Rev. Ronald, (born 9 March 1931), Founder, 1964, Managing Director, 1986–2006, Director and Chairman, 2007–19, Kimbolton Fireworks Limited". Digital object identifier:10.1093/ww/9780199540884.013.u42824. https://www.ukwhoswho.com/view/10.1093/ww/9780199540884.001.0001/ww-9780199540884-e-42824. 
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 "Biography of Mark Lancaster". http://www.conservatives.com/People/Members_of_Parliament/Lancaster_Mark.aspx. 
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 5.4 5.5 "Lancaster, (John) Mark, (born 12 May 1970), MP (C) Milton Keynes North, since 2010 (Milton Keynes North East, 2005–10); Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Ministry of Defence, since 2015". Oxford University Press. 1 December 2020. Digital object identifier:10.1093/ww/9780199540884.013.U45442. 
  6. ↑ "Huntingdonshire Council Election Results 1973–2011". Plymouth University. http://www.electionscentre.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2015/06/Huntingdonshire-1973-2011.pdf. 
  7. ↑ "Mark Lancaster: Electoral history and profile". London: Guardian News and Media. https://www.theguardian.com/politics/person/6047/mark-lancaster. 
  8. ↑ "International Development Committee: Members". http://www.parliament.uk/parliamentary_committees/international_development/international_development_members.cfm. 
  9. ↑ "Ministers and Senior Management Organisation Chart". November 2017. http://www.dfid.gov.uk/Documents/aboutdfid/organogram.pdf. 
  10. ↑ "Mark Lancaster to stand down as Milton Keynes North MP". BBC News. 2 November 2019. https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-beds-bucks-herts-50275204. 
  11. ↑ "Dissolution Peerages 2019" (pdf). Prime Minister's Office, 10 Downing Street. 2019. https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/905975/Dissolution_Peerages_2019.pdf. 
  12. ↑ "Crown Office". The London Gazette. 21 September 2020. p. 15966. https://www.thegazette.co.uk/notice/3635048. 
  13. ↑ "MPs and Lords - Parliamentary career for Lord Lancaster of Kimbolton". https://members.parliament.uk/member/1544/career. 
  14. ↑ "Town and Country Planning (General Permitted Development) (England) (Amendment) (No. 2) Order 2020" United Kingdom: House of Lords col. 157–158 https://hansard.parliament.uk/Lords/2020-10-27/debates/E2D53CDD-4648-468C-9960-195EC2897F7B/details#contribution-5AFC8152-055E-469A-B12F-4C55B757F664 
  15. ↑ Easton, Mark (20 March 2007). "Iraq: has it changed UK politics?". http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/6462665.stm. 
  16. ↑ "Mark Lancaster MP, Milton Keynes North". https://www.theyworkforyou.com/mp/mark_lancaster/north_east_milton_keynes. 
  17. ↑ "No. 51616". 16 January 1989. p. 615. https://www.thegazette.co.uk/London/issue/51616/supplement/615 
  18. ↑ "No. 52740". 9 December 1991. p. 18966. https://www.thegazette.co.uk/London/issue/52740/supplement/18966 
  19. ↑ "No. 55279". 12 October 1998. p. 11064. https://www.thegazette.co.uk/London/issue/55279/supplement/11064 
  20. ↑ "No. 58580". 15 January 2008. p. 494. https://www.thegazette.co.uk/London/issue/58580/supplement/494 
  21. ↑ "The Rt Hon Mark Lancaster TD". https://www.gov.uk/government/people/mark-lancaster. 
  22. ↑ "Bomb Disposal and Search Specialists". http://www.army.mod.uk/royalengineers/units/28649.aspx?p=28664. 
  23. ↑ "No. 60071". 28 February 2012. p. 3905. https://www.thegazette.co.uk/London/issue/60071/supplement/3905 
  24. ↑ "No. 62069". 3 October 2017. p. 18307. https://www.thegazette.co.uk/London/issue/62069/supplement/18307 
  25. ↑ "The New Line Up At The Ministry Of Defence". Ministry of Defence. 10 January 2018. https://www.forces.net/news/new-line-ministry-defence. 
  26. ↑ "The role of reserves in the foreseeable security environment". Tallinn, Estonia. 30 September 2020. https://abcd.icds.ee. 
  27. ↑ "No. 63145". 13 October 2020. p. 17255. https://www.thegazette.co.uk/London/issue/63145/supplement/17255 
  28. ↑ 28.0 28.1 "Mark Lancaster - Member of the House of Lords". https://www.linkedin.com/in/mark-lancaster-17417836/. 
  29. ↑ "The Brigade of Gurkhas". The London Gazette. 5 November 2019. p. 19879. https://www.thegazette.co.uk/London/issue/62817/supplement/19879. 
  30. ↑ "IPSA record". IPSA. http://www.theipsa.org.uk/mp-costs/your-mp/jack-brereton/http://www.theipsa.org.uk/mp-costs/your-mp/mark-lancaster/. 
  31. ↑ "GCity MP splits from mother of his baby". 5 March 2009. https://www.miltonkeynes.co.uk/news/city-mp-splits-from-mother-of-his-baby-1-868457. 
  32. ↑ "Gosport MP Caroline Dinenage weds fellow politician at House of Commons chapel". 17 February 2014. http://www.portsmouth.co.uk/news/gosport-mp-caroline-dinenage-weds-fellow-politician-at-house-of-commons-chapel-1-5881270. 
  33. ↑ "The home of cricket resounds to the sound of leather on Campbell Park willow". Local Sunday Newspapers. 4 July 2007. http://www.mk-news.co.uk/mknews-news/displayarticle.asp?id=106763. 
  34. ↑ "The Rt Hon Mark Lancaster TD". https://www.gov.uk/government/people/mark-lancaster. 

External links[]

Parliament of the United Kingdom
Preceded by
Brian White 		Member of Parliament for North East Milton Keynes
2005–2010 		Constituency replaced by Milton Keynes North
Constituency created from North East Milton Keynes Member of Parliament for Milton Keynes North
2010–2019 		Succeeded by
Ben Everitt
Political offices
Preceded by
Mike Penning 		Minister of State for the Armed Forces
2017–2019 		Succeeded by
Anne-Marie Trevelyan
Orders of precedence in the United Kingdom
Preceded by
The Lord Sharpe of Epsom 		Gentlemen
Baron Lancaster of Kimbolton 		Followed by
The Lord Mendoza
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