The Lord McLoughlin | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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 Official portrait, 2022 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| In office 14 July 2016 – 8 January 2018 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Prime Minister | Theresa May | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Preceded by | Oliver Letwin | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Succeeded by | David Lidington | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Chairman of the Conservative Party | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| In office 14 July 2016 – 8 January 2018 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Leader | Theresa May | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Preceded by | The Lord Feldman of Elstree | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Succeeded by | Brandon Lewis | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Secretary of State for Transport | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| In office 4 September 2012 – 14 July 2016 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Prime Minister | David Cameron | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Preceded by | Justine Greening | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Succeeded by | Chris Grayling | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Government Chief Whip in the House of Commons Parliamentary Secretary to the Treasury | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| In office 12 May 2010 – 4 September 2012 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Prime Minister | David Cameron | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Preceded by | Nick Brown | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Succeeded by | Andrew Mitchell | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Opposition Chief Whip in the House of Commons | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| In office 7 December 2005 – 11 May 2010 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Leader | David Cameron | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Preceded by | David Maclean | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Succeeded by | Nick Brown | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Opposition Deputy Chief Whip in theHouse of Commons | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| In office 1 June 1998 – 7 December 2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Leader | William Hague Iain Duncan Smith Michael Howard | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Preceded by | Peter Ainsworth | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Succeeded by | John Randall | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Chair ofTransport for the North | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Assumed office 26 January 2022 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Preceded by | Louise Gittins (acting) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Personal details | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Born | Patrick Allen McLoughlin (1957-11-30)30 November 1957 (age 67) Stafford,Staffordshire, England | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Political party | Conservative | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Spouse | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Children | 2 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Alma mater | South Staffordshire College | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Signature |  | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Patrick Allen McLoughlin, Baron McLoughlin,CH, PC (born 30 November 1957[1]) is a British politician. A member of theConservative Party, he first became theMember of Parliament (MP) forWest Derbyshire following the1986 by-election. The constituency became theDerbyshire Dales for the2010 general election; McLoughlin remained the seat's MP until 2019.
As a formerminer, he is one of the few Conservative parliamentarians to have been amanual worker before being elected to Parliament.[2] On 4 September 2012, he was appointedSecretary of State for Transport.[3] On 14 July 2016, he becameChairman of the Conservative Party andChancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster, under the new administration of Conservative Prime MinisterTheresa May.[4] He resigned as chairman on 8 January 2018 and was succeeded byBrandon Lewis.[5] In January 2022, he was announced as the new chair ofTransport for the North.[6]
McLoughlin was born inStafford on 30 November 1957, the son and grandson ofcoal miners. He was educated at theCardinal Griffin Roman Catholic School inCannock, Staffordshire, and Staffordshire College of Agriculture atRodbaston College.[7] From 1974, he worked for five years as a farm worker and, after 1979, worked underground at the Littleton Colliery in Cannock. He was a member of theNational Union of Mineworkers,[8] and became an industrial representative for theNational Coal Board's Western Area Marketing Department.
McLoughlin was elected as a councillor onCannock Chase District Council, serving for seven years from 1980, and was a councillor onStaffordshire County Council from 1981 to 1987.[8] In 1982, McLoughlin served as the Chairman of theNational Young Conservatives.
Coal miners in Staffordshire were split in support of the NUMminers' strike of 1984–85. McLoughlin did not support the strike, and later came to national attention when he stood up at the 1984 Conservative Party Conference to announce that he was a working miner.[9] He moved from underground belt attendant to Area Marketing representative in September 1985, five months after the end of the strike.
McLoughlin unsuccessfully contestedWolverhampton South East at the1983 general election, losing to the sittingLabour MPRobert Edwards by 5,000 votes.[10]
Matthew Parris, then Conservative MP forWest Derbyshire, had resigned from theHouse of Commons to pursue a media career and McLoughlin was chosen to contest the1986 by-election.[11][12] He held the seat, albeit very narrowly, with a 100 majority.
In Parliament, McLoughlin served as theparliamentary private secretary, initially toAngela Rumbold (Minister of State at theDepartment for Education and Science (1987–88) and then toDavid Young,Secretary of State for Trade and Industry (1988–89). McLoughlin was made aparliamentary under-secretary of state by Prime MinisterMargaret Thatcher in 1989, and served in theDepartment for Transport until 1992, when he was moved by Prime MinisterJohn Major to serve in the same position at theDepartment of Employment. A year later, McLoughlin was moved to theDepartment of Trade and Industry.
He joined the government asAssistant Whip in 1995, becoming a Lord Commissioner in 1996. Following the Conservative Party's defeat at the1997 general election, he remained in the whips' office in opposition, becoming the Deputy Chief Whip in 1998. He was then promoted to Chief Whip byDavid Cameron in 2005. McLoughlin has also served on many select committees. As Opposition Chief Whip, he was sworn of thePrivy Council in June 2005.
Followingboundary changes, the West Derbyshire constituency was abolished at the2010 general election, and McLoughlin was elected to the successor seat ofDerbyshire Dales, achieving exactly the same number of votes. Prime MinisterDavid Cameron appointed McLoughlin as the government's Chief Whip andParliamentary Secretary to the Treasury in the Conservative-Liberal Democratcoalition government. During his tenure as Chief Whip, he was reprimanded by the SpeakerJohn Bercow for shouting in the House of Commons.[13]
In a governmentreshuffle in September 2012, McLoughlin was appointedSecretary of State for Transport. Soon after his appointment he had to cancel the award of theInterCity West Coast franchise due to major technical flaws in the bidding process.[14]
As Transport Secretary, McLoughlin oversaw large-scale government investment in rail in the wake ofincreasing passenger numbers in the years following rail privatisation. From 2014 to 2019, £38 billion of improvement works were planned, includingCrossrail, theThameslink Programme,electrification of the Great Western Main Line and theNorthern Powerhouse scheme to boost transport links in the North of England.[15]
In 2017, construction began onHS2, a high-speed link between major cities that will "triple the long-distance capacity to the North of England" as well as freeing up the West Coast Main Line for freight and commuter trains.[16] In 2015, McLoughlin said "So the argument has been won. HS2 will be built, the full ‘Y’ network, from London to Birmingham and Birmingham to Manchester and Leeds. HS2 will change the transport architecture of the north. But it will also change the economic architecture."[17]
In November 2013, he made a speech praising theimpact of the privatisation of British Rail, saying that "Privatisation sparked a railway renaissance. Since 1993, passenger journeys have doubled in the UK to a level not seen since the 1920s. On a network roughly the same size as 15 years ago, today our railway is running 4,000 more services a day. And rail freight has grown by 60%. Revenue is up more than £3 billion since privatisation, almost all of it due to higher passenger numbers rather than fare rises. Safety levels are at an all time high. Punctuality is at near record levels. And passenger satisfaction is up by 10% over the past decade."[18] However, a number of academics and journalists disputed this and subsequently argued that the evidence suggested the privatisation had largely failed, creating new inefficiencies, failing to create genuine competition and seeing steep rises in costs to passengers.[19][20]
In December 2015, he announced the winners of theNorthern andTransPennine Express franchises which include new trains, services and free wifi, saying "Arriva Rail North and First TransPennine Express went far beyond our requirements with exciting, ambitious plans that will make a real difference to customers, and – coupled with our commitment to push ahead with electrifying the vital TransPennine route – will help the region realise its full economic potential, ensuring it has a modern 21st century transport system."[21]
McLoughlin's efforts to meet and pacify Cumbrian residents ofPooley Bridge andSoulsby following the2015 floods were ridiculed inThe Independent when the ministerial party arrived on the wrong side of the collapsed bridge. The paper compared the event to a scene from the BBC comedyThe Thick of It.[22]
McLoughlin oversaw the beginning of the £15 billion road upgrade package to improve routes and add lanes.[23]
Following the resignation ofDavid Cameron as Prime Minister following the UK'svote to leave the European Union on 23 June 2016, McLoughlin was made Conservative Party chairman by new Prime MinisterTheresa May on 14 July 2016. He was appointedKnight Bachelor in the2016 Prime Minister's Resignation Honours, by his colleague in the Conservative Party, for political and public service.[24]
In a 24 July 2016 interview onThe Andrew Marr Show, Patrick McLoughlin said "Article 50 of the Lisbon Treaty will be triggered before the next general election. It's very clear that Brexit means Brexit. Brexit means that we're coming out of the European Union. We want to see our own borders under our own control."[25]
McLoughlin stepped down asChairman of the Conservative Party on 8 January 2018, saying that he had had "a very good run" and was replaced byBrandon Lewis. He also resigned asChancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster, withDavid Lidington being his successor. Prior to his resignation, McLoughlin had come under increasing pressure to resign from colleagues in the Conservative Party over the disappointing performance of the party in the2017 general election and various issues with the most recent party conference.[26][27]
McLoughlin was appointed Chairman of Visit Britain. He served until 2023.
In January 2022, McLoughlin was appointed as Chair ofTransport for the North. At the time of the appointment, he said: "I believe firmly in the potential of the North of England and know from my personal experience and professional career just how vital reliable, cost-effective and sustainable transport is to people and business."[28]
McLoughlin was nominated for a life peerage in the2019 Dissolution Honours. He was createdBaron McLoughlin, of Cannock Chase in the County of Staffordshire on 8 September 2020. Lord McLoughlin made his maiden speech on 11 November 2020, remembering his time as a whip, meetingLord Cormack and being a member of the cabinet in the Cameron/Clegg Years.[29] In 2025, he was appointed chair of theServices Committee.[30]
He is married to Lynn McLoughlin, whom he employed as a Senior Parliamentary Assistant on a salary up to £40,000.[31] His son James was also employed by the Conservative Party as a Special Advisor to the Prime Minister Theresa May.[32]
{{cite web}}:Missing or empty|url= (help)| Parliament of the United Kingdom | ||
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| Preceded by | Member of Parliament forWest Derbyshire 1986–2010 | Constituency abolished |
| New constituency | Member of Parliament forDerbyshire Dales 2010–2019 | Succeeded by |
| Political offices | ||
| Preceded by | Shadow Chief Whip of theHouse of Commons 2005–2010 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Chief Whip of theHouse of Commons 2010–2012 | Succeeded by |
| Parliamentary Secretary to the Treasury 2010–2012 | ||
| Preceded by | Secretary of State for Transport 2012–2016 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster 2016–2018 | Succeeded by |
| Party political offices | ||
| Preceded by | Conservative Deputy Chief Whip in theHouse of Commons 1998–2005 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Conservative Chief Whip in theHouse of Commons 2005–2012 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Chairman of the Conservative Party 2016–2018 | Succeeded by |
| Orders of precedence in the United Kingdom | ||
| Preceded by | Gentlemen Baron McLoughlin | Followed by |
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