Norvela Forster
Encyclopedia
Norvela Felicia Forster was a United Kingdom
businesswoman, exporter and politician.
, Forster attended South Wilts Grammar School for Girls
, Salisbury
, and Bedford College, University of London where she was President of the Union Society and obtained a Bachelor of Science degree in Chemistry. She joined Imperial Chemical Industries
at Billingham
after working for them during a university vacation, but was swiftly moved from the laboratories to management.
, the technical director who ran the company's Development Department. She recalled that at one point the Department had the idea of filling a railway carriage with all their latest products and taking it around the country to demonstrate to customers; when Beeching asked where to get such a carriage, she did not know. The next day she heard of Beeching's appointment to the British Transport Commission
overlooking British Rail. In the mid-1960s she worked on licensing plastics produced at the ICI plant in Welwyn Garden City
. She also served on Hampstead Borough Council
as a Conservative
from 1962 to 1965.
council. At the 1979 European Parliament election she was elected as Member of the European Parliament
for Birmingham South, a marginal constituency which had been expected to go to the Labour Party. Her instinctive support for free trade came under pressure, when she saw that only state subsidies would maintain competition involving private companies competing against nationalised steel companies.
in the United Kingdom and other EEC
member states, which was published in 1983. That year she was rapporteur on an inquiry into air traffic; her report which recommended a removal of the cartels which set air fares, and a system of rapid resolution of disputes between airlines, was rejected by a majority in the European Parliament which sought to preserve the existing system.
Forster was defeated after boundary changes in Birmingham East at the 1984 European Parliament election. She returned to business and became a member of the Council of the Management Consultancies Association.
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
businesswoman, exporter and politician.
Education
Born in Gillingham, KentKent
Kent is a county in southeast England, and is one of the home counties. It borders East Sussex, Surrey and Greater London and has a defined boundary with Essex in the middle of the Thames Estuary. The ceremonial county boundaries of Kent include the shire county of Kent and the unitary borough of...
, Forster attended South Wilts Grammar School for Girls
South Wilts Grammar School for Girls
South Wilts Grammar School for Girls, or just South Wilts Grammar School or SWGS, is a secondary school in Salisbury, south Wiltshire, England. It is an Academy with specialist Mathematics and Computing College status.-History:...
, Salisbury
Salisbury
Salisbury is a cathedral city in Wiltshire, England and the only city in the county. It is the second largest settlement in the county...
, and Bedford College, University of London where she was President of the Union Society and obtained a Bachelor of Science degree in Chemistry. She joined Imperial Chemical Industries
Imperial Chemical Industries
Imperial Chemical Industries was a British chemical company, taken over by AkzoNobel, a Dutch conglomerate, one of the largest chemical producers in the world. In its heyday, ICI was the largest manufacturing company in the British Empire, and commonly regarded as a "bellwether of the British...
at Billingham
Billingham
Billingham is a town in the unitary authority of Stockton on Tees, in north east England, with a population of 35,765 . It was founded circa 650 by a group of Saxons known as Billa's people, which is where the name Billingham is thought to have originated...
after working for them during a university vacation, but was swiftly moved from the laboratories to management.
ICI management
In 1960 she was made an assistant to Richard BeechingRichard Beeching
Richard Beeching, Baron Beeching , commonly known as Doctor Beeching, was chairman of British Railways and a physicist and engineer...
, the technical director who ran the company's Development Department. She recalled that at one point the Department had the idea of filling a railway carriage with all their latest products and taking it around the country to demonstrate to customers; when Beeching asked where to get such a carriage, she did not know. The next day she heard of Beeching's appointment to the British Transport Commission
British Transport Commission
The British Transport Commission was created by Clement Attlee's post-war Labour government as a part of its nationalisation programme, to oversee railways, canals and road freight transport in Great Britain...
overlooking British Rail. In the mid-1960s she worked on licensing plastics produced at the ICI plant in Welwyn Garden City
Welwyn Garden City
-Economy:Ever since its inception as garden city, Welwyn Garden City has attracted a strong commercial base with several designated employment areas. Among the companies trading in the town are:*Air Link Systems*Baxter*British Lead Mills*Carl Zeiss...
. She also served on Hampstead Borough Council
Metropolitan Borough of Hampstead
The Metropolitan Borough of Hampstead was a Metropolitan borough of the County of London from 1900 to 1965, when it was amalgamated with the Metropolitan Borough of St Pancras and the Metropolitan Borough of Holborn to form the London Borough of Camden....
as a Conservative
Conservative Party (UK)
The Conservative Party, formally the Conservative and Unionist Party, is a centre-right political party in the United Kingdom that adheres to the philosophies of conservatism and British unionism. It is the largest political party in the UK, and is currently the largest single party in the House...
from 1962 to 1965.
Management consultancy
Forster left ICI in 1966, determined to use her experience to read for the Bar and become a patent attorney. To pay her way she worked as a business consultant, but when she secured a particularly big job in January 1968, she found she had no time to continue her studies and became a full time consultant. By 1970, being self-employed was becoming impractical so she established Industrial Aids Limited as a consultancy business. The business grew rapidly and allowed her to indulge her hobby of yacht racing.European Parliament
She also became more involved in politics as a member of the Bow GroupBow Group
The Bow Group is one of the oldest think tanks in the United Kingdom. Taking its name from the Bow area of London where it first met, it was founded in 1951...
council. At the 1979 European Parliament election she was elected as Member of the European Parliament
Member of the European Parliament
A Member of the European Parliament is a person who has been elected to the European Parliament. The name of MEPs differ in different languages, with terms such as europarliamentarian or eurodeputy being common in Romance language-speaking areas.When the European Parliament was first established,...
for Birmingham South, a marginal constituency which had been expected to go to the Labour Party. Her instinctive support for free trade came under pressure, when she saw that only state subsidies would maintain competition involving private companies competing against nationalised steel companies.
Airline inquiry
In 1981 she married Michael Jones, but retained her maiden name in her political life. She made a study of the operation of Chambers of CommerceChamber of commerce
A chamber of commerce is a form of business network, e.g., a local organization of businesses whose goal is to further the interests of businesses. Business owners in towns and cities form these local societies to advocate on behalf of the business community...
in the United Kingdom and other EEC
European Union
The European Union is an economic and political union of 27 independent member states which are located primarily in Europe. The EU traces its origins from the European Coal and Steel Community and the European Economic Community , formed by six countries in 1958...
member states, which was published in 1983. That year she was rapporteur on an inquiry into air traffic; her report which recommended a removal of the cartels which set air fares, and a system of rapid resolution of disputes between airlines, was rejected by a majority in the European Parliament which sought to preserve the existing system.
Forster was defeated after boundary changes in Birmingham East at the 1984 European Parliament election. She returned to business and became a member of the Council of the Management Consultancies Association.