The Lord Robertson of Port Ellen | |
|---|---|
 Official portrait, 2020 | |
| 10thSecretary General of NATO | |
| In office 14 October 1999 – 17 December 2003 | |
| Deputy | Sergio Balanzino Alessandro Minuto-Rizzo |
| Preceded by | Javier Solana |
| Succeeded by | Jaap de Hoop Scheffer |
| Secretary of State for Defence | |
| In office 3 May 1997 – 11 October 1999 | |
| Prime Minister | Tony Blair |
| Preceded by | Michael Portillo |
| Succeeded by | Geoff Hoon |
| Shadow Secretary of State for Scotland | |
| In office 21 October 1993 – 2 May 1997 | |
| Leader | John Smith Margaret Beckett(acting) Tony Blair |
| Shadowing | Ian Lang Michael Forsyth |
| Preceded by | Tom Clarke |
| Succeeded by | Jacqui Lait(2001) |
| Member of the House of Lords Lord Temporal | |
| Assumed office 3 February 2000 Life peerage | |
| Member of Parliament forHamilton South Hamilton (1978–1997) | |
| In office 31 May 1978 – 24 August 1999 | |
| Preceded by | Alexander Wilson |
| Succeeded by | William Tynan |
| Personal details | |
| Born | George Islay MacNeill Robertson (1946-04-12)12 April 1946 (age 79) Port Ellen,Argyll, Scotland |
| Political party | Labour |
| Spouse | |
| Children | 3 |
| Alma mater | University of Dundee |
George Islay MacNeill Robertson, Baron Robertson of Port Ellen (born 12 April 1946) is a British politician who served as the 10thSecretary General of NATO from 1999 to 2003. A member of theLabour Party, he previously served asSecretary of State for Defence from 1997 to 1999 andShadow Secretary of State for Scotland from 1993 to 1997. He wasMember of Parliament (MP) forHamilton South (formerlyHamilton) from 1978 to 1999 and was appointed to theHouse of Lords as alife peer in 2000.
Born inPort Ellen,Isle of Islay, Scotland, the son of George Philip Robertson (1916–2002), a policeman, and Marion Isabella Robertsonnée MacNeill (1913–1996). His mother taught French and German.[1] His maternal grandfather Malcolm McNeill was the police sergeant atBowmore during World War One, and wrote about the kindness of local people in shipwreck tragedies ofSS Tuscania andHMS Otranto.[2] Robertson was educated atDunoon Grammar School and studied economics atQueen's College, Dundee. When he was 15 years of age, he was involved with protests against US nuclear submarines docking in Scotland.[3]
During Robertson's time at Queen's College it broke away from theUniversity of St Andrews to become theUniversity of Dundee, of which Robertson was one of the first graduates (MA, 1968), and one of a minority of graduates that year who opted to take a Dundee, rather than a St Andrews, degree.[4][5] During his time at University he played a full part in student life. He wrote a column for the student newspaperAnnasach, launched in 1967, and took an active role in student protests.[4][6][7] Robertson used his newspaper column to back the new University and encouraged his fellow students to take a University of Dundee degree (students who had started before 1967 could opt to take a degree from either the University of Dundee or the University of St Andrews).[7] Robertson is now the Chancellor of the University of Dundee.
In 1968, Robertson was one of a number of Dundee students to invade the pitch during a rugby match atSt Andrews involving a team from theOrange Free State to protest againstapartheid.[8] The same year he organised a 24-hour work-in by students in the university library in opposition to proposed cuts by the government in student grants.[8]
Robertson married Sandra Wallace on 1 June 1970. They have two sons and a daughter.[9] Robertson supportsHamilton Academical football club.[10]
Robertson survived a serious car crash on 19 January 1976[11][12] when a NavyLand Rover, which was carrying 100 lb (45 kg) ofgelignite and a box of detonators, hit his car head-on in theDrumochter Pass, one mile south ofDalwhinnie leaving him with two injured knees and a broken jaw. In May 1976 the driver of the Land Rover was found guilty of careless driving.[11] Robertson was wearing aseat belt at the time and attributed his survival to this.[13]
Robertson entered theHouse of Commons as aLabourMP in 1978, having won theHamilton by-election in May of that year, caused by the death of the incumbent Labour MPAlex Wilson that March.Margo MacDonald of the SNP came second. Robertson retained the constituency with an increased majority and obtained 51% of the overall vote. He was re-elected to Parliament at five subsequent general elections, was Chairman of theLabour Party in Scotland, and was appointed to thePrivy Council.[14]
After Labour won the1997 general election, Robertson was appointedSecretary of State for Defence. He initiated theStrategic Defence Review,[15] which was completed in 1998, presenting a coherent political and strategic narrative themed as 'a force for good'. The review created theJoint Rapid Reaction Force and inaugurated the ambitious project to build two new large aircraft carriers forforce projection, theQueen Elizabeth-class, and its new warplanes, symbolising the new government's commitment to defence. However thenew Labour government had come to power promising to follow the previous Conservative government's spending plans for its first two years, and this required a defence budget cut of £2 billion. Though the defence budget was subsequently expanded, it was not sufficient for the increased ambitions of the review.Tom Bower, in his book on that government, argued that "Robertson had created an unaffordable dream in 1998."[16][17]
In 1999, Robertson was appointedSecretary General of NATO after theGerman defence ministerRudolf Scharping declined to the position, and doubts were raised about the suitability of the British politician and former Royal MarinePaddy Ashdown (at that time the outgoing leader of theLiberal Democrats) due to his never having held a position in government.[18][19][20]
Robertson was the Secretary General of NATO at the time of theUnited States invasion of Afghanistan.[21] In October 2001, NATO invokedArticle V of the North Atlantic Treaty for the first time in its history.[22]
In December 2002, before the US-ledinvasion of Iraq, Robertson declared that NATO had a "moral obligation" to support the United States if it attackedIraq.[23]
In September 2022, during the 7th month of theRussian invasion of Ukraine, interviewed by Channel 4 about his nine meetings withVladimir Putin, Robertson said, "At the first meeting (in Moscow, Oct 2001) Vladimir Putin clearly said, 'I WANT RUSSIA TO BE PART OF WESTERN EUROPE...at the 2nd meeting (in Brussels) he said..'WHEN ARE YOU GOING TO INVITE RUSSIA TO JOIN NATO?'...I started to sort of reach out and engage them in so many activities that they basically couldn't fight with us.. but after I left NATO (in Dec 2003), the American administration, the Bush administration (during their own illegalwar on Iraq opposed by Putin), lost any interest basically in doing business with Russia, they saw it as a threat..they didn't really want to make it part of the overall partnership. I think we missed an opportunity at that time because I think it's what he (Putin) wanted, and we could have grabbed hold of him!"[24][25][26]
In 1995, Robertson, while he wasShadowSecretary of State for Scotland said, "Devolution will killNationalism stone dead".[27] This quote was designed to assuage hopes that devolution would provide a greater platform for theScottish National Party (SNP). Robertson's quote is frequently recalled, usually in a mocking fashion, since the SNP wonScottish Parliament elections in2007,[27][28]2011,[29][30]2016 and2021.
Robertson's three children are former pupils of the school inDunblane where gunmanThomas Hamilton murdered 16 children and their teacher in 1996. After the massacre, Robertson, a long-time resident of the town, acted as a spokesman for the victims' families. He was also a key figure in the subsequent campaign that led to the ban onhandguns in Great Britain.[31]
In 2003, theSunday Herald newspaper ran an article entitled "Should the Dunblane dossier be kept secret?", a reference to documents relating to theCullen Inquiry into the massacre which are to remainclassified for 100 years. In a discussion board on the newspaper'swebsite, anonymous contributors claimed that Robertson had signed a recommendation for a gun licence forThomas Hamilton in his capacity as Hamilton'sMP. However, Robertson had never been the gunman's MP, and the claims were unfounded. Robertson sued theSunday Herald and the paper settled by paying him a five-figure sum plus costs. A subsequent action by Robertson, related to the terms of the newspaper's apology, was unsuccessful. The first case became an importanttest case as to whether publishers can be held responsible for comments posted on their websites.[32][33]
Robertson opposed Scottish independence in the2014 referendum. In an article inThe Washington Post, he wrote: "The residual United Kingdom would still be a major player in the world, but upon losing a third of its land mass, 5 million of its population and a huge amount of credibility, its global standing would inevitably diminish."[34]
He said in a speech to theBrookings Institution on 8 April 2014: "The loudest cheers for the break-up of Britain would be from our adversaries and from our enemies. For the second military power in the west to shatter this year would be cataclysmic in geo-political terms."[35] Robertson also likened the efforts of Unionists to keep Scotland tied to the UK with those ofAbraham Lincoln's fight against slavery when he stated, "they might look more relevantly at the Civil War where hundreds of thousands of Americans perished in a war to keep the new Union together. To Lincoln and his compatriots the Union was so precious, so important, and its integrity so valuable that rivers of blood would be spilt to keep it together."[36]
Robertson has received numerous honours (including a total of 12 Honorary doctorates from various universities).
In addition, he is a Senior Counsellor at The Cohen Group, a consulting firm in Washington D.C. that provides advice and assistance in marketing and regulatory affairs.
In August 2021, he criticised thewithdrawal of NATO troops fromAfghanistan, saying that "We never really took Afghanistan and the conflict there with the seriousness that it demanded."[21]
On 16 July 2024, the newly elected Labour government of Keir Starmer announced the commencement of a defence review, to be led by Robertson.[37]
2003Knight Grand Cross of the Order of St Michael and St George (GCMG)
30 November 2004Knight of the Order of the Thistle (KT)
1991Grand Cross of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany
2000Grand Cross of the Order of the Star of Romania
8 September 2003Knight Grand Cross of the Order of Orange-Nassau
19 November 2003Grand Cross of the Order of Christ
12 November 2003Presidential Medal of Freedom
1 December 2003 –Grand Order of King Petar Krešimir IV
2004Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the Cross of Terra Mariana[40]
1 July 2016Order of St. George
1993 joint Parliamentarian of the Year for his role in theMaastricht Treaty ratification2000 Golden Plate Award of theAmerican Academy of Achievement presented byGeneral Joseph Ralston, USAF, Supreme Allied Commander Europe.[41]
2003Atlantic Solidarity Award bestowed by theManfred Wörner Foundation
4th recipient of theHanno R. Ellenbogen Citizenship Award jointly presented by thePrague Society andGlobal Panel Foundation Elder Brother ofTrinity House24 August 1999life peer asBaron Robertson of Port Ellen Member of thePrivy Council of the United Kingdom (PC) Fellow of theRoyal Society of Arts (FRSA) Fellow of theRoyal Society of Edinburgh (FRSE)5 July 2006Honorary Degree ofDoctor of the University (DUniv) from theUniversity of Paisley.[42] Honorary Doctorate from theUniversity of Dundee
Honorary Doctorate from theUniversity of Bradford Honorary Doctorate fromCranfield University (Royal Military College of Science)
Honorary Doctorate from theBaku State University
Honorary Regimental Colonel of theLondon Scottish (Volunteers)  |
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{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link){{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)The 2011 result has blown out of the water the claim once made by Labour veteran Lord Robertson that devolution would "kill nationalism stone dead" – ironically, Labour, the party which set up devolution – has never managed to gain the overall majority achieved by the SNP.
| Parliament of the United Kingdom | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Member of Parliament forHamilton 1978–1997 | Constituency abolished |
| New constituency | Member of Parliament forHamilton South 1997–1999 | Succeeded by |
| Political offices | ||
| Preceded by | Shadow Secretary of State for Scotland 1993–1997 | Vacant Title next held by Jacqui Lait |
| Preceded by | Secretary of State for Defence 1997–1999 | Succeeded by |
| Diplomatic posts | ||
| Preceded by | Secretary General of NATO 1999–2004 | Succeeded by |
| Academic offices | ||
| Preceded by | Chancellor of the University of Dundee 2023–present | Succeeded by Incumbent |
| Orders of precedence in the United Kingdom | ||
| Preceded by | Gentlemen Baron Robertson of Port Ellen | Followed by |
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
| People | |
| Other | |
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