Humphrey Atkins
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Humphrey Edward Atkins, Baron Colnbrook (August 12, 1922 – October 4, 1996) was a British Conservative politician.
Atkins was educated at Wellington College, Berkshire and served in the Royal Navy 1940–48. He worked for a linoleum manufacturer then as a director of a financial advertising agency.
Atkins contested West Lothian in 1951 and was elected as Member of Parliament for Merton and Morden in 1955. He became MP for Spelthorne in 1970. He served as Secretary of State for Northern Ireland from 1979–1981. He was appointed in September 1981 as Lord Privy Seal in which he was the chief government spokesman in the House of Commons for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs. The role was necessary because the Foreign Secretary, Lord Carrington, sat in the House of Lords. He resigned in April 1982 along with Lord Carrington over the Falklands invasion.
He left the House of Commons in 1987, and was made a life peer as Baron Colnbrook, of Waltham St Lawrence in the County of Berkshire. He died in 1996.
| Parliament of the United Kingdom | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Robert Edward Dudley Ryder |
Member for Merton and Morden 1955–1970 |
Succeeded by Janet Fookes |
| Preceded by Sir (George) Beresford Craddock |
Member for Spelthorne 1970–1987 |
Succeeded by David Wilshire |
| Political offices | ||
| Preceded by Francis Pym |
Parliamentary Secretary to the Treasury 1973–1974 |
Succeeded by Bob Mellish |
| Preceded by Roy Mason |
Secretary of State for Northern Ireland 1979–1981 |
Succeeded by James Prior |
| Preceded by Sir Ian Gilmour |
Lord Privy Seal 1981–1982 |
Succeeded by The Baroness Young |
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