Keith Speed
Encyclopedia
Sir Herbert "Keith" Speed, RD
, DL
(born 11 March 1934, Evesham) is a Conservative Party
politician in the United Kingdom and former Member of Parliament
. He is a descendant of cartographer and historian John Speed
.
He was elected MP
for Meriden
in Warwickshire
in a by-election
on 28 March 1968, and held the seat until 1974. New constituency boundaries were drawn up prior to the February 1974 general election
and Speed lost his Meriden seat to Labour's John Tomlinson
.
He was selected to succeed Bill Deedes
as Conservative Candidate for the seat of Ashford
in Kent
in the October 1974 General Election
, and was elected as MP with a majority of over 6,000.
On 4 May 1979 he was appointed Parliamentary Undersecretary of State for Defence, a position known then as the Navy Minister. He was sacked by Margaret Thatcher
in May 1981, after refusing to hand in his resignation. This was because he was unable to accept the reductions in the strength of the Royal Navy
proposed by Mrs Thatcher and then Secretary of State for Defence
, John Nott
. With typical service humour, a Royal Navy saying of the time was the fictitious order "Less (K)notts, more Speed!". Later events in the Falklands War
showed the shrewdness of his position, and he was made a Knight Bachelor
in 1992. He retired as an MP in 1997.
In 1982 he wrote a book, Sea Change (see bibliography), which outlined the background to the Falklands conflict and expressed admiration for former Soviet Admiral Sergey Gorshkov
.
As of April 2005, Sir Keith Speed is a Deputy Lord-Lieutenant for the County Of Kent, and Vice President of the Maritime Volunteer Service.
RD
Rd or RD may refer to:-Media and entertainment:* Radiant Dawn, a tactics, turn based strategy RPG for the Wii* Radical Dreamers, a text-based role playing game on the Satellaview made in 1996...
, DL
Deputy Lieutenant
In the United Kingdom, a Deputy Lieutenant is one of several deputies to the Lord Lieutenant of a lieutenancy area; an English ceremonial county, Welsh preserved county, Scottish lieutenancy area, or Northern Irish county borough or county....
(born 11 March 1934, Evesham) is a Conservative Party
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...
politician in the United Kingdom and former 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,...
. He is a descendant of cartographer and historian John Speed
John Speed
John Speed was an English historian and cartographer.-Life:He was born at Farndon, Cheshire, and went into his father's tailoring business where he worked until he was about 50...
.
He was elected MP
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,...
for Meriden
Meriden (UK Parliament constituency)
-Elections in the 2000s:-Elections in the 1990s:- Notes and references :...
in Warwickshire
Warwickshire
Warwickshire is a landlocked non-metropolitan county in the West Midlands region of England. The county town is Warwick, although the largest town is Nuneaton. The county is famous for being the birthplace of William Shakespeare...
in a by-election
By-election
A by-election is an election held to fill a political office that has become vacant between regularly scheduled elections....
on 28 March 1968, and held the seat until 1974. New constituency boundaries were drawn up prior to the February 1974 general election
United Kingdom general election, February 1974
The United Kingdom's general election of February 1974 was held on the 28th of that month. It was the first of two United Kingdom general elections held that year, and the first election since the Second World War not to produce an overall majority in the House of Commons for the winning party,...
and Speed lost his Meriden seat to Labour's John Tomlinson
John Tomlinson, Baron Tomlinson
John Edward Tomlinson, Baron Tomlinson , is a British Labour Co-operative politician. He is currently a life peer in the House of Lords, and was previously a Member of Parliament from 1974 to 1979, and an Member of the European Parliament from 1984 to 1999.Born in London, Tomlinson was educated...
.
He was selected to succeed Bill Deedes
Bill Deedes
William Francis Deedes, Baron Deedes, KBE, MC, PC, DL was a British Conservative Party politician, army officer and journalist; he is to date the only person in Britain to have been both a member of the Cabinet and the editor of a major daily newspaper, The Daily Telegraph.-Early life and...
as Conservative Candidate for the seat of Ashford
Ashford (UK Parliament constituency)
Ashford is a parliamentary constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It elects one Member of Parliament by the first past the post voting system.-Boundaries:...
in Kent
Kent
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...
in the October 1974 General Election
United Kingdom general election, October 1974
The United Kingdom general election of October 1974 took place on 10 October 1974 to elect 635 members to the British House of Commons. It was the second general election of that year and resulted in the Labour Party led by Harold Wilson, winning by a tiny majority of 3 seats.The election of...
, and was elected as MP with a majority of over 6,000.
On 4 May 1979 he was appointed Parliamentary Undersecretary of State for Defence, a position known then as the Navy Minister. He was sacked by Margaret Thatcher
Margaret Thatcher
Margaret Hilda Thatcher, Baroness Thatcher, was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1979 to 1990...
in May 1981, after refusing to hand in his resignation. This was because he was unable to accept the reductions in the strength of the Royal Navy
Royal Navy
The Royal Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Founded in the 16th century, it is the oldest service branch and is known as the Senior Service...
proposed by Mrs Thatcher and then Secretary of State for Defence
Secretary of State for Defence
The Secretary of State for Defence, popularly known as the Defence Secretary, is the senior Government of the United Kingdom minister in charge of the Ministry of Defence, chairing the Defence Council. It is a Cabinet position...
, John Nott
John Nott
Sir John William Frederic Nott KCB is a former British Conservative Party politician prominent in the late 1970s and early 1980s...
. With typical service humour, a Royal Navy saying of the time was the fictitious order "Less (K)notts, more Speed!". Later events in the Falklands War
Falklands War
The Falklands War , also called the Falklands Conflict or Falklands Crisis, was fought in 1982 between Argentina and the United Kingdom over the disputed Falkland Islands and South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands...
showed the shrewdness of his position, and he was made a Knight Bachelor
Knight Bachelor
The rank of Knight Bachelor is a part of the British honours system. It is the most basic rank of a man who has been knighted by the monarch but not as a member of one of the organised Orders of Chivalry...
in 1992. He retired as an MP in 1997.
In 1982 he wrote a book, Sea Change (see bibliography), which outlined the background to the Falklands conflict and expressed admiration for former Soviet Admiral Sergey Gorshkov
Sergey Gorshkov
Admiral of the Fleet of the Soviet Union Sergey Georgiyevich Gorshkov was a Soviet naval officer during the Cold War who oversaw the expansion of the Soviet Navy into a global force....
.
As of April 2005, Sir Keith Speed is a Deputy Lord-Lieutenant for the County Of Kent, and Vice President of the Maritime Volunteer Service.