Antony Buck

Sir Philip Antony Fyson Buck QC (19 December 1928 – 6 October 2003) was a British Conservative politician.

Sir Antony Buck QC
Parliamentary Under-Secretary Ministry of Defence
In office 1972–1974
Prime Minister	Edward Heath
Member of Parliament for Colchester
In office 1961–1983
Member of Parliament for Colchester North
In office 1983–1992
Personal details
Born	19 December 1928 Cambridge, Cambridgeshire[1]
Died	6 October 2003 (aged 74) Lambeth, London, England
Political party	Conservative

Early life and career

The son of Arthur F. Buck, a farmer and agricultural merchant, and his wife Laura (née Fyson), a founder member of the Royal College of Nursing,[2][3] Buck was born in Cambridge, Cambridgeshire. He was educated at The King's School, Ely and Trinity Hall, Cambridge, where he studied Law and History and was the chairman of the Cambridge University Conservative Association as the successor to Geoffrey Howe. He then trained as a barrister and was called to the bar by the Inner Temple in 1954, becoming a prominent criminal lawyer and a Queen's Counsel in 1974.[4]

Political career

He was elected MP for Colchester in a 1961 by-election. A strong supporter of the modernising Conservatism championed by Edward Heath, Buck served as the Under-Secretary for Defence from 1972 to 1974 with responsibility for the Royal Navy,[5] but his fortunes declined when Heath lost the election in 1974, and he managed the unsuccessful leadership campaign for his old friend Geoffrey Howe. Buck then lost his place on the executive of the 1922 Committee, although he later regained it. Nevertheless, he remained a perceptive observer of defence policy, opposing the closure of Colchester's military hospital and other cuts. He was also chairman of the Parliamentary Ombudsman Committee. He was held in high regard by his constituency party and continued to serve as the MP for Colchester until 1983 when he became MP for Colchester North after boundary changes. He retired from parliament in 1992.

Marriages

Buck married three times. His daughter Louisa, from his 34-year first marriage to Judy Grant, is an art critic. In 1994, tabloid newspaper reports of a relationship between his second wife, Bienvenida (née Perez-Blanco) and Air Chief Marshal Sir Peter Harding, were followed by Harding's resignation as Chief of the Defence Staff.[6][7] His third wife was Russian born Tamara Norashkaryan.[8]

References

1. England & Wales, Civil Registration Birth Index, 1916–2007
2. https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/obituaries/1443831/Sir-Antony-Buck.html
3. https://www.theguardian.com/news/2003/oct/11/guardianobituaries.conservatives
4. "Obituary: Sir Antony Buck". The Daily Telegraph. London, UK. 22 October 2003. Retrieved 12 July 2008.
5. Sir Antony Buck obituary, The Times, 11 October 2003; accessed 30 May 2014.
6. Morgan, Piers (2002). "...As Hugh Cudlipp said..." British Journalism Review. 13 (2): 19–24. doi:10.1177/095647480201300204. ISSN 0956-4748. S2CID 144781197. Archived from the original on 29 July 2012. Retrieved 2 June 2012.
7. "Caretaker defence chief likely to be appointed as successor". The Independent. 15 March 1994. Retrieved 2 June 2012.
8. Asplin, Sharon (11 October 2003). "Tributes to former Essex MP". East Anglian Daily Times. Retrieved 28 February 2012.

External links

• Hansard 1803–2005: contributions in Parliament by Antony Buck