Prime Minister Tony Blair Name John Baron Preceded by Nicholas Lyell Role British Politician | Preceded by Arthur Davidson Party Labour Party Preceded by Samuel Silkin | |
 | ||
Leader Michael Foot
Neil Kinnock
John Smith
Margaret Beckett (Acting)
Tony Blair Leader James Callaghan
Michael Foot Succeeded by Gareth Williams, Baron Williams of Mostyn Education Aberystwyth University, Gonville and Caius College, Cambridge | ||
John Morris, Baron Morris of Aberavon, KG PC QC (born 5 November 1931) is a retired British politician. He was a moderate Labour Member of Parliament (MP) from 1959 to 2001 and Secretary of State for Wales from 1974 to 1979.
Contents
- Background and education
- Professional career
- Political career
- Other positions held
- Honours
- Styles of address
- References
Background and education
Morris was born in Capel Bangor, Aberystwyth in the County of Ceredigion. He was educated at Ardwyn School, the University College of Wales, Aberystwyth and Gonville and Caius College, Cambridge.
Professional career
Morris was a barrister and was called to the Bar by Gray's Inn in 1954. He practised at 2 Bedford Row Chambers, took silk in 1973 and was made a Bencher of Gray's Inn in 1984. Between 1982 and 1997 Morris was a Recorder of the Crown Court.
Political career
He represented Aberavon as its Labour MP from 1959 and was the longest serving Welsh MP until his retirement in 2001, when he was succeeded by Hywel Francis.
He served as Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State at the Ministry of Power and the Ministry of Transport, and Minister of State at the Ministry of Defence. Having been sworn of the Privy Council in the 1970 Birthday Honours, Morris joined the Cabinet as Secretary of State for Wales between 5 March 1974 and 4 May 1979 and returned to Government as the Attorney General for England and Wales and Northern Ireland between 1997 and 1999, having shadowed the role since 1983. As such, he was one of only a small handful of Labour ministers to hold office under Harold Wilson, James Callaghan and Tony Blair.
Other positions held
Lord Morris has been Chancellor of the University of South Wales since its formation in 2013. The University of South Wales was formed by a merger between University of Glamorgan (where Lord Morris was Chancellor since 2002) and the University of Wales, Newport. He succeeded fellow Labour politician Lord Merlyn-Rees as the Chancellor for the University of Glamorgan. Lord Morris was President of the London Welsh Trust, which runs the London Welsh Centre, Gray's Inn Road, from 2001 until 2008. He is also a council member of The Prince's Trust.
Honours
He was raised to the peerage for life as Baron Morris of Aberavon, of Aberavon in the County of West Glamorgan and of Ceredigion in the County of Dyfed in the 2001 Dissolution Honours, was made Lord Lieutenant of Dyfed a year later and was appointed to the Order of the Garter as a Knight Companion (KG) in 2003.