Tributes to the late Lord Belstead

Part of the debate – in the House of Lords at 2:30 pm on 5 December 2005.

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Photo of Lord Strathclyde Lord Strathclyde Leader of the Opposition In the House of Lords, House of Lords 2:30, 5 December 2005

My Lords, I begin by thanking the Leader of the House for her tribute to Lord Belstead, which will have been appreciated by Peers right across the House. She has rightly reminded us of his long public service as a Minister, spanning some 22 years, 17 of them as a Minister in six major departments. It is a remarkable record, even if one were not to take into account his distinguished service as Leader in this House, which is closest to all our hearts.

It says a lot about John Belstead that, for all that great public career, he remained largely unknown to the public, and indeed to most media commentators. Even now, in this House, many Peers will not remember him. He was decidedly not a figure of the "new politics" or of the age of spin, but somehow I do not think that would have bothered him at all. He was a modest man—none more so—but he did what he thought was right in a quiet, unfailingly polite but resolute fashion. He was a character that this House instinctively liked: understated, courteous, loyal and a listener.

With all the difficulties associated with succeeding Willie Whitelaw, he rang the changes by leading in a very different style. Not for him chairing great meetings on policy—no, you always knew where to find John Belstead: sitting on the Front Bench for hours, listening to our debates. I have to admit that it was not always comfortable for the Front Bench Minister to find the Leader sitting next to him.

The House also liked his way on policy, which was to seek consensus, to build from the facts and understand the other point of view. He was a genuinely gentle man; a compassionate conservative, long before that phrase was first heard. He was an enlightened Home Office Minister with a deep concern for those in prisons, which saw him agree to serve as chairman of the Parole Board after stepping down from the Government. He had a lifelong and informed interest in education. The great trust placed on him by that shrewdest of judges of men, the late Viscount Whitelaw, says much about the respect he merited.

As the noble Baroness reminded us, he was Leader of the House at a sometimes abrasive time; a time of sharp public conflict on some areas of policy that lapped over into this House. He would have preferred, I am sure, not to have wielded some of the strong whips he agreed to wield. But in this, too, he did his duty, but never in a way that weakened his deep sense of loyalty to the whole House and to our shared values. We will all miss him, and we are much the better for having seen his example.