Mark Carlisle

The Right Honourable The Lord Carlisle of Bucklow QC DL PC
Secretary of State for Education and Science
In office 4 May 1979 – 11 September 1981
Prime Minister	Margaret Thatcher
Preceded by	Shirley Williams
Succeeded by	Keith Joseph
Member of Parliament for Warrington South
In office 9 June 1983 – 11 June 1987
Preceded by	Constituency established
Succeeded by	Chris Butler
Member of Parliament for Runcorn
In office 15 October 1964 – 9 June 1983
Preceded by	Dennis Vosper
Succeeded by	Constituency abolished
Personal details
Born	7 July 1929(1929-07-07)
Died	14 July 2005(2005-07-14) (aged 76)
Political party	Conservative
Alma mater	University of Manchester

Mark Carlisle, Baron Carlisle of Bucklow QC DL PC (7 July 1929 - 14 July 2005) was a Conservative British politician and was Member of Parliament (MP) for Runcorn 1964-1983 and Warrington South 1983-1987. Created a life peer in November 1987, he served as Secretary of State for Education and Science from 1979 until 1981.

Life and career

He was educated at Radley College in Abingdon, Oxfordshire and the University of Manchester before becoming an MP in 1964 for the Cheshire constituency of Runcorn. He was Under-Secretary of State for Home Affairs from 1970-1972 when he became a Minister of State for Home Affairs leaving the job when the Conservatives went out of office in 1974. He was appointed Shadow Secretary of State for Education and Science in 1978 before being appointed to the department itself when Margaret Thatcher was elected in May 1979. Former Labour Cabinet Minister Clare Short has said that it was her low opinion of Carlisle, who she worked under as a civil servant persuaded her to enter elected politics herself because she believed she "could do better" than many of the MPs she dealt with.

Thatcher writes in her memoirs that Carlisle "had not proved a particularly effective Education Secretary" and to this effect he was dismissed in the September 1981 Cabinet reshuffle. However, Thatcher did write that he left with ‘courteousness and good humour', which was in contrast to Sir Ian Gilmour who having left the cabinet in the same reshuffle, stormed out of Downing Street, announcing that government policy was "heading for the rocks". Boundary changes meant that Carlisle appeared to change seats at the 1983 general election but in fact areas to the south of Warrington had previously been part of the Runcorn seat. He remained an MP until June 1987. Later the same year he was elevated to the House of Lords as Baron Carlisle of Bucklow, of Mobberley in the County of Cheshire where he sat as a Conservative life peer.

Parliament of the United Kingdom
Preceded by Dennis Vosper	Member of Parliament for Runcorn 1964–1983	Constituency abolished
New constituency	Member of Parliament for Warrington South 1983–1987	Succeeded by Chris Butler
Political offices
Preceded by Shirley Williams	Secretary of State for Education and Science 1979–1981	Succeeded by Keith Joseph