Russell Johnston, Baron Russell-Johnston
Encyclopedia
Liberal Democrats
The Liberal Democrats are a social liberal political party in the United Kingdom which supports constitutional and electoral reform, progressive taxation, wealth taxation, human rights laws, cultural liberalism, banking reform and civil liberties .The party was formed in 1988 by a merger of the...
politician.
Early life
Russell Johnston was born in Edinburgh and educated at Portree High SchoolPortree High school
Portree High School is a state co-educational comprehensive school in Portree, on the Isle of Skye in Scotland. The school currently enrolls 640 pupils and employs 60 teachers...
on the Isle of Skye. He later attended Edinburgh University (graduating with a Master of Arts
Master of Arts (Scotland)
A Master of Arts in Scotland can refer to an undergraduate academic degree in humanities and social sciences awarded by the ancient universities of Scotland – the University of St Andrews, the University of Glasgow, the University of Aberdeen and the University of Edinburgh, while the University of...
in history in 1957) and Moray House College of Education, before working as a schoolteacher.
In 1961, he won The Observer
The Observer
The Observer is a British newspaper, published on Sundays. In the same place on the political spectrum as its daily sister paper The Guardian, which acquired it in 1993, it takes a liberal or social democratic line on most issues. It is the world's oldest Sunday newspaper.-Origins:The first issue,...
Mace, speaking with David Harcus and respresenting The University of Edinburgh
University of Edinburgh
The University of Edinburgh, founded in 1583, is a public research university located in Edinburgh, the capital of Scotland, and a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The university is deeply embedded in the fabric of the city, with many of the buildings in the historic Old Town belonging to the university...
. In 1995, the competition was renamed the John Smith Memorial Mace
John Smith Memorial Mace
The John Smith Memorial Mace is an annual debating tournament contested by universities in England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales....
and is now run by the English-Speaking Union
English-Speaking Union
The English-Speaking Union is an international educational charity which was founded by the journalist Evelyn Wrench in 1918. The ESU aims to "bring together and empower people of different languages and cultures," by building skills and confidence in communication, such that individuals realize...
.
Political career
He was elected to the House of Commons and represented InvernessInverness (UK Parliament constituency)
Inverness was a county constituency of the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom from 1918 until 1983. It elected one Member of Parliament by the first-past-the-post system of election....
for the Liberal Party
Liberal Party (UK)
The Liberal Party was one of the two major political parties of the United Kingdom during the 19th and early 20th centuries. It was a third party of negligible importance throughout the latter half of the 20th Century, before merging with the Social Democratic Party in 1988 to form the present day...
(1964–1983) and Inverness, Nairn and Lochaber
Inverness, Nairn and Lochaber (UK Parliament constituency)
Inverness, Nairn and Lochaber was a county constituency of the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom from 1983 to 1997. It elected one Member of Parliament by the first-past-the-post system of election.-History:...
as a Member of Parliament
Member of Parliament
A Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...
(MP) for the Liberal Party (1983–1988) and for the Liberal Democrats
Liberal Democrats
The Liberal Democrats are a social liberal political party in the United Kingdom which supports constitutional and electoral reform, progressive taxation, wealth taxation, human rights laws, cultural liberalism, banking reform and civil liberties .The party was formed in 1988 by a merger of the...
(1988–1997). He also served as leader of the Scottish Liberal Party and as deputy leader of the Liberal Democrats (1988–1992).
In October 1966, he proposed a bill of federal law in order to deal with the Scotland and Wales case.
He was knighted in 1985.
In the 1992 election, he made history by holding his seat with just 26% of the vote -the lowest percentage ever for a winning candidate- in a close four-way battle with Labour, the SNP, and the Conservatives.
Upon his retirement from the House of Commons in 1997, he was created a life peer
Life peer
In the United Kingdom, life peers are appointed members of the Peerage whose titles cannot be inherited. Nowadays life peerages, always of baronial rank, are created under the Life Peerages Act 1958 and entitle the holders to seats in the House of Lords, presuming they meet qualifications such as...
as Baron Russell-Johnston of Minginish in Highland, changing his surname by deed poll
Deed poll
A deed poll is a legal document binding only to a single person or several persons acting jointly to express an active intention...
to allow his forename to be incorporated into his title.
He was member of the Council of Europe Parliamentary Assembly from 1985 to his death in 2008, leading the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe (ALDE-PACE) from 1994 to 1999, and sitting as the President of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe
Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe
The Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe , which held its first session in Strasbourg on 10 August 1949, can be considered the oldest international parliamentary assembly with a pluralistic composition of democratically elected members of parliament established on the basis of an...
from 1999 until 2002.
Personal life
He lived for some years in Dolphin SquareDolphin Square
Dolphin Square is a block of private apartments and business complex built near the River Thames at Pimlico in London, between 1935 and 1937.At one time, the huge development was home to more than 70 MPs, and at least 10 lords...
in London.
Johnston married Joan Graham Menzies in 1967. They had three sons. At the time of his death, Lord and Lady Russell-Johnston had been estranged for over ten years, but remained close to one another.
Lord Russell-Johnston died on the eve of his 76th birthday. He had been suffering from cancer, for which he was receiving chemotherapy
Chemotherapy
Chemotherapy is the treatment of cancer with an antineoplastic drug or with a combination of such drugs into a standardized treatment regimen....
, but had continued to work on human rights
Human rights
Human rights are "commonly understood as inalienable fundamental rights to which a person is inherently entitled simply because she or he is a human being." Human rights are thus conceived as universal and egalitarian . These rights may exist as natural rights or as legal rights, in both national...
issues for the Council of Europe
Council of Europe
The Council of Europe is an international organisation promoting co-operation between all countries of Europe in the areas of legal standards, human rights, democratic development, the rule of law and cultural co-operation...
. He collapsed and died in a street in Paris.