Neil Balfour
Encyclopedia
Neil Roxburgh Balfour is a British
merchant banker and financier who had a second career as a politician.
, the leading British public school for Roman Catholics. He went on to University college
, Oxford University
, and then read for the Bar. Although being called to the Bar in 1968 (Middle Temple
), Balfour did not practice but instead joined Baring Brothers & Co
, the commercial bankers.
, the only daughter of Prince Paul of Yugoslavia
. She bore him one son, Nicholas Augustus Roxburgh Balfour on 6th June 1970, but their marriage fell apart and they were divorced in 1978. However, Balfour wrote a sympathetic official biography of his father-in-law in 1980, called "Paul of Yugoslavia: Britain's Maligned Friend". Balfour remarried in 1978 to Serena Mary Churchill Russell, niece of the Duke of Marlborough. She bore him two children, Consuelo Lily Balfour (born 29 November 1979) and Alastair Albert David Balfour (born 20 August 1981). Neil had another son, Kam William Balfour (born 5 July 1995 in Warsaw, Poland). He also has two stepdaughters, Morgan Alexandra McConnell (born 19 June 1973) and Lucinda Mary McConnell (born 14 August 1975).
candidate at the Chester-le-Street
by-election in 1973, a seat that it had little chance of winning. Balfour was candid about his chances but hoped to come a strong second, despite his campaign being based in a caravan in a garden. In the event, the Conservative vote collapsed to the Liberals and he lost his deposit
; the Labour campaign accused the Liberals of dirty tricks but regarded Balfour as an honourable opponent.
, Balfour moved jobs to join the European Banking Co. Ltd as an assistant manager. He served as an Executive Director from 1980 to 1983. In the October 1974 general election
he fought Hayes and Harlington
, and he was elected to the European Parliament
in the 1979 European Parliament elections from the Yorkshire North
constituency.
. In December 1982, he made an impressive speech attacking the MEPs voting to withdraw a budget rebate for the United Kingdom that had been accepted by the European Council
. However, the next year, he led a more moderate group in supporting a short freeze in payment of the rebate because he worried that opposing it would lead the Parliament to vote to stop payments altogether.
, the Conservative MP for Ryedale
(part of his former European Parliament constituency), died in 1986, and Balfour was selected to defend the seat in a by-election.
The by-election took place at a time when the Conservatives were unpopular and the Liberals nominated a popular local teacher, Elizabeth Shields
. On polling day, Shields won the seat comfortably. Balfour returned to merchant banking, and from 1991 was Chairman of Mermaid Overseas Ltd. In 1999 he became involved with the emerging Polish
market as a Director of Mostostal Warszawa SA, serving as Chief Executive Officer from 2000 to 2002.
in which he declared "as a committed Europhile" that the best solution would be to allow Britain to opt in to EU laws it liked, and supported the call from Conrad Black
for Britain to negotiate membership of the North American Free Trade Agreement
.
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...
merchant banker and financier who had a second career as a politician.
Education
Balfour was educated at Ampleforth CollegeAmpleforth College
Ampleforth College in North Yorkshire, England, is the largest Roman Catholic co-educational boarding independent school in the United Kingdom. It opened in 1802, as a boys' school, and is run by the Benedictine monks and lay staff of Ampleforth Abbey...
, the leading British public school for Roman Catholics. He went on to University college
University College, Oxford
.University College , is a constituent college of the University of Oxford in England. As of 2009 the college had an estimated financial endowment of £110m...
, Oxford University
University of Oxford
The University of Oxford is a university located in Oxford, United Kingdom. It is the second-oldest surviving university in the world and the oldest in the English-speaking world. Although its exact date of foundation is unclear, there is evidence of teaching as far back as 1096...
, and then read for the Bar. Although being called to the Bar in 1968 (Middle Temple
Middle Temple
The Honourable Society of the Middle Temple, commonly known as Middle Temple, is one of the four Inns of Court exclusively entitled to call their members to the English Bar as barristers; the others being the Inner Temple, Gray's Inn and Lincoln's Inn...
), Balfour did not practice but instead joined Baring Brothers & Co
Barings Bank
Barings Bank was the oldest merchant bank in London until its collapse in 1995 after one of the bank's employees, Nick Leeson, lost £827 million due to speculative investing, primarily in futures contracts, at the bank's Singapore office.-History:-1762–1890:Barings Bank was founded in 1762 as the...
, the commercial bankers.
Family
In 1969, Balfour married HRH Princess Elizabeth of YugoslaviaPrincess Elizabeth of Yugoslavia
-Arms:HRH Princess Jelisaveta was granted heraldic arms in June 2008. Her motto translates into English as Service Is Love In Action.-Ancestry:-See also:*Politics of Serbia*Serbian presidential elections, 2004*Prince Paul of Yugoslavia*-References:...
, the only daughter of Prince Paul of Yugoslavia
Prince Paul of Yugoslavia
Prince Paul of Yugoslavia, also known as Paul Karađorđević , was Regent of the Kingdom of Yugoslavia during the minority of King Peter II. Peter was the eldest son of his first cousin Alexander I...
. She bore him one son, Nicholas Augustus Roxburgh Balfour on 6th June 1970, but their marriage fell apart and they were divorced in 1978. However, Balfour wrote a sympathetic official biography of his father-in-law in 1980, called "Paul of Yugoslavia: Britain's Maligned Friend". Balfour remarried in 1978 to Serena Mary Churchill Russell, niece of the Duke of Marlborough. She bore him two children, Consuelo Lily Balfour (born 29 November 1979) and Alastair Albert David Balfour (born 20 August 1981). Neil had another son, Kam William Balfour (born 5 July 1995 in Warsaw, Poland). He also has two stepdaughters, Morgan Alexandra McConnell (born 19 June 1973) and Lucinda Mary McConnell (born 14 August 1975).
Byelection campaign
Balfour was the Conservative PartyConservative 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...
candidate at the Chester-le-Street
Chester-le-Street (UK Parliament constituency)
Chester-le-Street was a county constituency centred on the town of Chester-le-Street in County Durham. It returned one Member of Parliament to the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom....
by-election in 1973, a seat that it had little chance of winning. Balfour was candid about his chances but hoped to come a strong second, despite his campaign being based in a caravan in a garden. In the event, the Conservative vote collapsed to the Liberals and he lost his deposit
Deposit (politics)
A deposit is a sum of money that a candidate must pay in return for the right to stand for election to certain political offices, particularly seats in legislatures.-United Kingdom:...
; the Labour campaign accused the Liberals of dirty tricks but regarded Balfour as an honourable opponent.
Further politics
After fighting Chester-le-Street again in the February 1974 general electionUnited 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,...
, Balfour moved jobs to join the European Banking Co. Ltd as an assistant manager. He served as an Executive Director from 1980 to 1983. 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...
he fought Hayes and Harlington
Hayes and Harlington (UK Parliament constituency)
Hayes and Harlington is a borough 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 system of election.-Boundaries:...
, and he was elected to the European Parliament
European Parliament
The European Parliament is the directly elected parliamentary institution of the European Union . Together with the Council of the European Union and the Commission, it exercises the legislative function of the EU and it has been described as one of the most powerful legislatures in the world...
in the 1979 European Parliament elections from the Yorkshire North
Yorkshire North (European Parliament constituency)
Yorkshire North was a European Parliament constituency covering much of North Yorkshire and part of Humberside in England.Prior to its uniform adoption of proportional representation in 1999, the United Kingdom used first-past-the-post for the European elections in England, Scotland and Wales...
constituency.
European Parliament
In the European Parliament, Balfour concentrated on trade policy. He attacked member state governments for lacking any will to remove state aids to industry and to institute free trade. As budget spokesman for the Conservative MEPs, he attacked the European Community's budgeting process but, in October 1981, joined with other Conservative MEPs in signing a letter calling on the UK to join the European Monetary SystemEuropean Monetary System
There are three stages of monetary cooperation in the European Union.-Background:European currency exchange rate stability has been one of the most important objectives of European policy makers at least since the Second World War....
. In December 1982, he made an impressive speech attacking the MEPs voting to withdraw a budget rebate for the United Kingdom that had been accepted by the European Council
European Council
The European Council is an institution of the European Union. It comprises the heads of state or government of the EU member states, along with the President of the European Commission and the President of the European Council, currently Herman Van Rompuy...
. However, the next year, he led a more moderate group in supporting a short freeze in payment of the rebate because he worried that opposing it would lead the Parliament to vote to stop payments altogether.
Ryedale
Balfour stood down at the 1984 European Parliament election. He had been appointed Chairman of the York Trust Ltd in 1983, which later became York Mount Group. However, he did not give up Parliamentary ambitions. John SpenceJohn Spence (politician)
John Deane Spence was a British Conservative Party politician.Spence was educated at Queen's University, Belfast and worked as a building and civil engineering contractor, merchant banker and farmer....
, the Conservative MP for Ryedale
Ryedale (UK Parliament constituency)
Ryedale was a constituency in North Yorkshire 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 system of election...
(part of his former European Parliament constituency), died in 1986, and Balfour was selected to defend the seat in a by-election.
The by-election took place at a time when the Conservatives were unpopular and the Liberals nominated a popular local teacher, Elizabeth Shields
Elizabeth Shields
Elizabeth Lois Shields is a British politician.Shields studied at the University of York and became a teacher and lecturer. She served as a councillor on Ryedale District Council from 1980 for Norton....
. On polling day, Shields won the seat comfortably. Balfour returned to merchant banking, and from 1991 was Chairman of Mermaid Overseas Ltd. In 1999 he became involved with the emerging Polish
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
market as a Director of Mostostal Warszawa SA, serving as Chief Executive Officer from 2000 to 2002.
Policy stance
In 2000 he wrote a letter to The SpectatorThe Spectator
The Spectator is a weekly British magazine first published on 6 July 1828. It is currently owned by David and Frederick Barclay, who also owns The Daily Telegraph. Its principal subject areas are politics and culture...
in which he declared "as a committed Europhile" that the best solution would be to allow Britain to opt in to EU laws it liked, and supported the call from Conrad Black
Conrad Black
Conrad Moffat Black, Baron Black of Crossharbour, OC, KCSG, PC is a Canadian-born member of the British House of Lords, and a historian, columnist and publisher, who was for a time the third largest newspaper magnate in the world. Lord Black controlled Hollinger International, Inc...
for Britain to negotiate membership of the North American Free Trade Agreement
North American Free Trade Agreement
The North American Free Trade Agreement or NAFTA is an agreement signed by the governments of Canada, Mexico, and the United States, creating a trilateral trade bloc in North America. The agreement came into force on January 1, 1994. It superseded the Canada – United States Free Trade Agreement...
.