Gazette

Former Attorney General, Nicholas Lyell has died

The BBC has the report:

"Former Attorney General Lord Lyell has died, aged 71, his family has said. As Sir Nicholas Lyell, he was appointed solicitor general in 1987 and was made the government's top law officer by Prime Minister John Major in 1992. The 1996 Scott Report criticised him for trying to obtain a "gagging order" to prevent the disclosure of secret documents during the Matrix Churchill arms-for-Iraq trial...

Lord Lyell was first elected to Parliament in the Conservative landslide of 1979, when he won Hemel Hempstead from Labour. He later represented Mid-Bedfordshire from 1983 and North-East Bedfordshire from 1997 until he retired from the House of Commons in 2001."

Nick Hurd MP marries Lady Clare Kerr

By Jonathan Isaby

I am alerted to a union between two Tory dynasties through the Twitter feed of Nick Hurd.

The son of former Foreign Secretary Lord Hurd and MP for Ruislip, Northwood and Pinner - who is minister for civil society in the Coalition Government - is today marrying Lady Clare Kerr, the elder daughter of the Marquess of Lothian - better known as former Conservative Party chairman, Michael Ancram.

Lady Clare, who is training to be a child psychotherapist, is being given away by her father at the ceremony which is taking place at the ancestral Ancram home in Monteviot near Jedburgh, in the Scottish Borders.

Mr Hurd told his local paper in June:

"There was already a connection between our two families as our fathers both entered Parliament as Conservative MPs in the same year - 1974. I popped the question on a beach in Cornwall about a month ago - she didn't have much time to think about her answer, as the tide was coming in very fast!"

Many congratulations to them both.

Florence Rose Endellion Cameron

By Paul Goodman

Yes, that's the full name of David and Samantha Cameron's new daughter.  I don't think that any of our readers suggested Endellion here.

It is, of course, the Cornish name that the Prime Minister promised after the child was born.  It's apparently that of a village near where the family was holidaying when Mrs Cameron was dashed to hospital, which itself is named after a Cornish saint called Endelienta.

And here she is on the right - one of the daughters of King Brychan of Brycheiniog in Wales, who evangelised North Cornwall.

Many congratulations again to the Camerons.

"Magnificent" James McGrath credited with big role in Australian election result

By Tim Montgomerie

James McGrath will be known to many UK conservatives as a former aide to the party chairman and also as a key campaign adviser to Boris Johnson. An Australian by birth and upbringing James has been co-ordinating the successful campaign in Queensland. Clipped below is an article from The Australian newspaper paying tribute to his work. It includes a quote from Francis Maude. Click to enlarge.

> ConservativeHome's analysis of the election result.

Charles Barwell gets married

By Paul Goodman

Congratulations to Charles Barwell, the President of the National Conservative Convention, and to Juliet Allen, who were married last Saturday.

Rowan Penning in the Daily Telegraph reports today the accompaniment of the wedding by a violent downpour and the presence at it of a plague of wasps.

Also there, I gather, were MPs Nicola Blackwood, Chris Kelly, Jonathan Lord, Chris White and Ed Vaizey, as well as Vicky Ford MEP and Baroness Knight.

Penning also reports a message from the Prime Minister.  You can read more here.  (The story is the final diary item.)

Wealden Conservatives announce death of former MP, Sir Geoffrey Johnson Smith

This statement appears on the website of Wealden Conservatives:

"It is with sadness that we report the death of the Association’s Patron and previous Conservative Member of Parliament, the Rt. Hon. Sir Geoffrey Johnson Smith who passed away yesterday. Sir Geoffrey was Member of Parliament for the East Grinstead constituency from 1965 until the Parliamentary boundary changes effective in 1983 when he took the new seat of Wealden. This inherited the bulk of his old constituency, with the exception of the town which had given it its name. Sir Geoffrey remained Wealden’s Member until 2001. One of nature’s “gentlemen”, he was held in great affection and regard by all in the constituency. In recent years he had not enjoyed good health and had withdrawn from public life."

The Telegraph's obituary appears here.

Two of the 2010 intake appointed TRG Vice-Presidents

By Jonathan Isaby

The Tory Reform Group, this year marking its 35th anniversary, has just appointed two of the 2010 intake of Conservative MPs to its National Officer team.

Both Robert Buckland (Swindon South) and Jane Ellison (Battersea) have been appointed Vice-Presidents.

Meanwhile, there are three new members of the TRG National Board, namely Fiona Melville, Paul Barton and Neil Lindsay.

An updated full list of officers is on the TRG website.