David Alton

{{Infobox officeholder

| honorific-prefix = The Right Honourable

| name = The Lord Alton of Liverpool

| honorific-suffix = KCSG KCMCO

| image = File:Lord Alton of Liverpool, 2023.jpg

| imagesize =

| office1 = {{Ubl | Member of the House of Lords | Lord Temporal}}

| term_start1 = {{Ubl | 8 July 1997 | Life Peerage}}

| term_end1 =

| office = Liberal Chief Whip

| term_start = 1985

| term_end = 11 June 1987

| leader = David Steel

| preceded = Alan Beith

| succeeded = Jim Wallace

| office3 = {{Ubl

| Member of Parliament

| for Liverpool Mossley Hill

| Liverpool Edge Hill (1979–1983)

}}

| term_start3 = 29 March 1979

| term_end3 = 8 April 1997

| predecessor3 = Sir Arthur Irvine

| successor3 = Constituency abolished

| birthname = David Patrick Paul Alton

| birth_date = {{birth date and age|df=yes|1951|3|15}}

| birth_place = London, England

| residence = Lancashire, England

| party = None (Crossbench)

| otherparty = {{Ubl

| Liberal (1972–1988)

| Liberal Democrat (1988–1997)

}}

| alma_mater = Liverpool Hope University

| spouse = Elizabeth Bell

| children = 4

| caption = Official portrait, 2023

| nationality = Ireland, United Kingdom

}}

David Patrick Paul Alton, Baron Alton of Liverpool, {{small|KCSG, KCMCO}} (born 15 March 1951) is a British-Irish politician, formerly a Member of Parliament for the Liberal Party and later Liberal Democrat who has sat as a crossbench member of the House of Lords since 1997 when he was made a life peer. Alton is also known for his human rights work including the co-founding of Jubilee Action, the children's charity (which changed its name to Chance for Childhood in 2014), and serves as chair, patron or trustee of several charities and voluntary organisations.{{Cite web | url=http://www.jesuit.org.uk/creative-bridge-between-past-and-present | title=Creative bridge between the past and present | Jesuits in Britain | access-date=14 October 2017 | archive-date=30 January 2019 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190130000245/http://www.jesuit.org.uk/creative-bridge-between-past-and-present | url-status=dead }}

In December 2024 Alton was elected Chair of the UK Parliament Joint Committee on Human Rights.

Alton is a visiting professor of Liverpool Hope University,{{cite web | url=https://www.hope.ac.uk/si/lord-david-alton.html | title=Staff Index Import }} an Ambassador Fellow of Liverpool John Moores University,{{cite web | url=https://www.ljmu.ac.uk/about-us/fellows/honorary-fellows-2016/lord-david-alton | title=The Rt. Hon Professor the Lord Alton of Liverpool }} and a former President of the Catholic Union of Great Britain.{{Cite web |title=Former Presidents |url=https://catholicunion.org.uk/about/former-presidents/ |access-date=2024-04-18 |website=The Catholic Union of Great Britain |language=en-GB}}

Education and entry into politics

Born in London on 15 March 1951,{{cite web|title=In the news: David Alton|url=http://www.timeshighereducation.co.uk/story.asp?storycode=156736|work=Times Higher Education|date=26 January 2001|access-date=14 October 2012}}{{cite web|title=Lord Alton of Liverpool|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/democracylive/hi/representatives/profiles/26959.stm|work=Democracy Live|publisher=BBC News|access-date=14 October 2012}} His father was a Desert Rat who had served in the Eighth Army, and then worked for the Ford Motor Company. His mother was a native Irish speaker from the West of Ireland.{{cite book |title=Brexit and Irish citizens in the UK - How to safeguard the rights of Irish citizens in an uncertain future |date=December 2017 |publisher=The Traveller Movement |location=London |pages=2 |url=https://wp-main.travellermovement.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2021/09/Brexit-and-Irish-Citizens-in-the-UK-2017.pdf |access-date=28 April 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221212173635/https://wp-main.travellermovement.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2021/09/Brexit-and-Irish-Citizens-in-the-UK-2017.pdf |archive-date=12 December 2022 |language=en |chapter=Foreword}} After being rehoused from the East End, Alton was brought up in a council flat on an overspill council estate. He passed a scholarship exam to join the first intake of a new Jesuit grammar school and was educated at The Campion School and Christ's College of Education, Liverpool.{{Cite web | url=https://davidalton.net/about/ |title = About|date = 12 December 2010}} He began his career as a teacher and, in 1972, was elected as a Liberal to Liverpool City Council as Britain's youngest city councillor. Alton was elected for the Low Hill ward, serving from 1972 to 1974, then, after the Local Government Act 1974, he was elected for the Smithdown ward where he served for the next six years. Alton was also a member of Merseyside County Council for the Smithdown division from 1974 to 1977 and chairman of the housing committee. He was deputy leader of Liverpool City Council from 1978 to 1980.

Political career

Alton was elected as Member of Parliament for Liverpool Edge Hill at a by-election in 1979 for the Liberal Party, when he became the "Baby of the House", achieving a record swing of 36.8% and 64% of the vote. He won the seat the day after the Callaghan Government was defeated in a vote of confidence and the 1979 General Election being called. He became the shortest lived MP, a member for less than a week, and made his Maiden Speech within three hours of taking his seat. Five weeks later he was re-elected and went on to serve as a Liverpool MP for 18 years, before standing down. He was the only new member of a Parliamentary Party of 11 MPs. He campaigned on the slogan "Everyone Knows Someone Who Has Been Helped by David Alton." He was notably a very short-serving Baby of the House, as Stephen Dorrell, who was a year younger than Alton, was elected at the 1979 election.

File:DA - Everone knows someone.jpg

When the Edge Hill constituency was abolished for the 1983 general election, he was elected to represent the new Liverpool Mossley Hill constituency.

Alton held a number of spokesman posts for the Liberals: environment and race relations, 1979-1981; Home Affairs, 1981-1982; Northern Ireland, 1987-1988. He also served as Chief Whip from 1985 to 1987. He is known for his anti-abortion position, and in 1987 he resigned as Chief Whip to campaign for his unsuccessful private member's bill which aimed to stop late abortions. He became a Liberal Democrat MP when the Liberal Party merged with the SDP in 1988, but he had difficult relations with parts of the party, especially over attempts to make the party adopt a position in favour of abortion rights. In 1992, he announced that he would not stand again as a Liberal Democrat after the party passed a policy that he believed committed the party to support abortion for the first time. A motion passed in Spring 1993 stating that the party had no position on the substantive issue of abortion spared him delivering on the promise.

He stood down as an MP at the 1997 general election. His constituency seat was also abolished at that election.

=House of Lords=

Inn April 1997, it was announced that he was to be made a life peer, as part of John Major's 1997 Dissolution Honours.{{London Gazette |issue=54743 |date=18 April 1997 |page=4707 |supp=y }} He was created as Baron Alton of Liverpool, of Mossley Hill in the County of Merseyside on 12 June 1997.{{London Gazette |issue=54809 |date=17 June 1997 |page=7011 }} He took his seat in the House of Lords as a crossbencher on 12 June 1997.{{cite web |title=Parliamentary career for Lord Alton of Liverpool - MPs and Lords - UK Parliament |url=https://members.parliament.uk/member/738/career |website=members.parliament.uk |publisher=UK Parliament |access-date=14 December 2024 |language=en}}

Alton is chairman of the British-DPRK All-Party Parliamentary Group, and visited Pyongyang in October 2010[http://175.45.179.68/English/Political/HomeNews%5Cnews10263.htm Home News] {{dead link|date=September 2013}} when he had talks with leaders of the North Korean government including Choe Thae-bok, the chairman of the Supreme People's Assembly.[http://175.45.179.68/English/Political/HomeNews%5Cnews10275.htm Home News] {{dead link|date=September 2013}}

=International Sanctions=

On 26 March 2021, it was announced that Alton was one of two members of the House of Lords to be sanctioned by China for spreading what it called "lies and disinformation" about the country. He was subsequently banned from entering China, Hong Kong and Macau, and Chinese citizens and institutions are prohibited from doing business with him.{{cite news |title=Uighurs: China bans UK MPs after abuse sanctions |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-56532569 |access-date=26 March 2021 |work=BBC News |date=26 March 2021}} The sanctions were condemned by the Prime Minister and led the Foreign Secretary to summon the Chinese ambassador.{{cite news |title=China sanctions: Boris Johnson praises MPs banned by Beijing for 'shining a light on gross human rights violations' |url=https://news.sky.com/story/beijing-strikes-back-after-uk-sanctions-and-adds-senior-british-politicians-to-its-own-list-12256981 |agency=Sky News}}{{cite news |title='Badge of honour' - China sanctions UK politicians for Xinjiang 'lies' |url=https://www.reuters.com/world/china/china-sanctions-uk-entities-individuals-xinjiang-lies-2021-03-25 |work=Reuters}}

On the 12 December 2022, Alton was sanctioned by Iran, along with the Chief of the Defence Staff, a Government Minister, Members of Parliament, as well as other individuals and institutions from the UK. It is understood that this was done because of Alton's criticism of Iran's Human Rights record.{{cite web | title=Statement by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Islamic Republic of Iran| website=en.mfa.ir | url=https://en.mfa.ir/portal/newsview/702814/The-Iranian-Foreign-Ministry%E2%80%99s-statement-about-sanctions-against-some-British-individuals-and-entities | access-date=27 April 2024|date=12 December 2022}}

Alton was formally denounced by the North Korean regime and told he would be listed as an enemy of their State because of his collaboration with the UN Commission of Inquiry into North Korea which found evidence of crimes against humanity and for providing support to escapees.

Alton was included amongst 21 UK Parliamentarians in the Russian Foreign Ministry's personal sanction list issued on 23rd April 2025.https://mid.ru/en/foreign_policy/news/2011018/

Parliamentary Appointments

Alton served on:

House of Lords International Relations and Defence Select Committee from 2019 - 2023.{{Cite web|url=https://publications.parliament.uk/pa/ld5801/ldselect/ldintrel/208/20801.htm|title=House of Lords - The UK and Afghanistan - Select Committee on|accessdate=27 April 2024}}

Joint House of Lords and House of Commons Committee on Human Rights 2023- (and as chair December 2024- ).{{Cite web|url=https://committees.parliament.uk/committee/93/human-rights-joint-committee/membership/|title=Human Rights (Joint Committee) - Membership - Committees - UK Parliament|accessdate=27 April 2024}}

Professor of Citizenship

In 1997, Alton was appointed Professor of Citizenship at Liverpool John Moores University, establishing the Foundation for Citizenship and the Roscoe Lectures.{{cite web|title=The Foundation for Citizenship: Contacts|url=http://www.ljmu.ac.uk/roscoelectures/97598.htm|date=28 September 2012|publisher=Liverpool John Moores University|access-date=14 October 2012}}{{dead link|date=September 2017 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }} The lecture series explores citizenship and lectures have been given by commentators including the 14th Dalai Lama and Prince Charles.{{cite web|title=Previous lectures and audio downloads|url=http://www.ljmu.ac.uk/roscoelectures/101110.htm|date=5 October 2012|publisher=Liverpool John Moores University|access-date=14 October 2012}}{{dead link|date=September 2017 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}

Human rights

File:Freedom of religion or belief (30128108530).jpg in London on 19 October 2016.]]

Alton established the lobby group for human rights, Jubilee Campaign, in 1987, with the support of other members of parliament. He also co-founded Jubilee Action, a children's charity established to fulfil the humanitarian needs highlighted by the work of Jubilee Campaign. In 2014 Jubilee Action changed its name to Chance for Childhood.{{cite web|url=http://chanceforchildhood.org/latest-news/announcing-our-new-name-chance-for-childhood/|title=Announcing our new name – 'Chance for Childhood' – Chance for Childhood – Children's charity|work=Chance for Childhood,.}}

Alton campaigned against the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Act 2008, opposing the creation and use of animal-human hybrid stem cells for medical purposes.{{cite web|url=http://conservativehome.blogs.com/platform/lord_alton/index.html|title=Comment – ConservativeHome|publisher=blogs.com}}

He is a patron of the International Young Leaders Network{{cite web |url=http://www.iyln.com |title=International Young Leaders Network |access-date=7 April 2009 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080828200122/http://www.iyln.com/ |archive-date=28 August 2008 |df=dmy-all }} and Save the Congo!, a small international rights group founded by the Congolese rights activist Vava Tampa to end the political crisis that continues to give rise to wars, conflicts and violence that have killed over 5.4 million people in Congo.{{Citation|title=Save the Congo: Lord Alton of Liverpool On Congo| date=13 December 2011 |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=74gZhJOSvxI |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211212/74gZhJOSvxI| archive-date=2021-12-12 |url-status=live|language=en|access-date=2021-03-15}}{{cbignore}}

=Support for Hong Kong =

Alton has supported the rights and freedoms of those in Hong Kong, during the 2019–20 Hong Kong protests and regarding the National Security Law imposed by Beijing in June 2020, and its associated clampdowns. In reaction to pro-Beijing lawmaker Junius Ho's actions regarding women and the LGBT+ community, as well as Ho's alleged support of the Yuen Long attackers, Alton worked with Luke de Pulford to pressure Anglia Ruskin University into rescinding the honorary doctoral degree it had conferred on Ho.{{Cite news|last=|first=|date=25 November 2019|title=UK rights group rep tells Junius Ho the bad news|work=The Standard|url=https://www.thestandard.com.hk/breaking-news/section/3/137539/UK-rights-group-rep-tells-Junius-Ho-the-bad-news|access-date=29 January 2021}} The degree was withdrawn on 29 October 2019.{{cite news|url=https://thestandnews.com/politics/%E8%A2%AB%E6%96%A5-%E6%93%8D%E5%AE%88%E5%BC%95%E8%B5%B7%E9%97%9C%E6%B3%A8-%E4%BD%95%E5%90%9B%E5%A0%AF%E9%81%AD%E6%AF%8D%E6%A0%A1%E8%A4%AB%E5%A5%AA%E6%A6%AE%E8%AD%BD%E5%8D%9A%E5%A3%AB%E5%AD%B8%E4%BD%8D/|title=被斥「操守引起關注」何君堯遭母校褫奪名譽法學博士學位|date=2019-10-29|access-date=2019-10-29|publisher=立場新聞}}{{cite news|url=https://news.rthk.hk/rthk/ch/component/k2/1488726-20191029.htm|title=英國安格里亞魯斯金大學褫奪何君堯名譽博士學位|date=2019-10-29|publisher=香港電台}}

During the 2019 Hong Kong Polytechnic University conflict, he issued a statement calling for the end to police violence and criticising Chief Executive Carrie Lam.{{Cite web|url=https://thestandnews.com/politics/%E7%BE%8E%E8%8B%B1%E5%9C%8B%E6%9C%83%E8%AD%B0%E5%93%A1%E5%91%BC%E7%B1%B2%E6%9E%97%E9%84%AD%E6%8C%87%E4%BB%A4%E8%AD%A6%E6%96%B9%E5%85%8B%E5%88%B6-%E9%98%BB%E6%AD%A2%E5%B1%A0%E6%AE%BA%E7%99%BC%E7%94%9F/|title=美英國會議員呼籲林鄭指令警方克制阻止屠殺發生|accessdate=27 April 2024}}

=Trade Bill amendment=

In January 2021, Alton influenced the Lords to pass an amendment to the Trade Act 2021 that "would require that the UK does not trade with genocidal regimes. Importantly, with the United Nations having shown itself incapable of making such decisions, the determination of whether genocide has taken place would be made by the High Court of England and Wales."{{cite news |last1=Duncan Smith |first1=Iain |title=The Government must do more to crack down on trade with China |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2021/01/14/government-must-do-crack-trade-china/ |newspaper=Telegraph |date=14 January 2021}}

Personal life

Alton is married to Elizabeth Bell, they have four children and five grandchildren. Alton holds both British and Irish citizenship, as do his children. He resides in Lancashire and is a Roman Catholic.{{cite web|title='Westminster and Brussels politicians to blame for Brexit vote,' says Catholic peer|url=http://catholicherald.co.uk/news/2016/06/28/westminster-and-brussels-politicians-to-blame-for-brexit-vote-says-catholic-peer/|website=Catholic Herald|access-date=19 April 2018|language=en|date=28 June 2016}}{{cite web|last1=Frawley Desmond|first1=Joan|title=Lord Alton: 'Never Forget Who You Are'|url=http://www.ncregister.com/daily-news/lord-altons-passions|website=National Catholic Register|access-date=19 April 2018|language=en|date=9 July 2012}}{{cite web|last1=Benson|first1=Nick|title=Catholic peer urges calm words to heal toxic UK-Russian relations|url=https://www.thecatholicuniverse.com/catholic-peer-urges-calm-words-heal-toxic-uk-russian-relations-16260|website=The Universe|access-date=19 April 2018|date=6 April 2018}}{{dead link|date=December 2024|bot=medic}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}}

Honours

Alton has been appointed a Knight Commander of Merit of the Sacred Military Constantinian Order of Saint George in 2003. He was appointed a Knight Commander of the Order of St. Gregory the Great by Pope Benedict XVI in 2008.{{cite web|title=Alton of Liverpool, Baron|url=http://ukwhoswho.com/view/article/oupww/whoswho/U5392/ALTON_OF_LIVERPOOL|work=Who's Who|publisher=Oxford University Press|date=December 2011|access-date=14 October 2012}}

Alton received the 2023 Notre Dame Prize for Religious Liberty. At the presentation the Dean said "He has dedicated his life to fighting oppression and made this noble cause the cornerstone for his work as a politician and public intellectual.”{{cite web | url=https://religiousliberty.nd.edu/news/latest/uk-house-of-lords-member-david-alton-to-receive-2023-notre-dame-prize-for-religious-liberty/#:~:text=Notre%20Dame%20Law%20School%27s%20Religious,Dame%20Prize%20for%20Religious%20Liberty. | title=UK House of Lords member David Alton to receive 2023 Notre Dame Prize for Religious Liberty | date=24 May 2023 }}

Coat of Arms

Alton was granted arms in 1997.{{cn|date=April 2024}}

{{Infobox COA wide

|image = File:Coronet of a British Baron.svg File:Escutcheon of David Alton, Baron Alton of Liverpool.svg

|escutcheon = Gules a dove descending Argent a bordure engrailed of twelve points terminating alternately in trefoils and Maltese crosses.

|crest = An ankh Gules pendant from the crossbar two bells Or.

|supporters = On either side a Liverbird wings elevated and addorsed Gules legged and in the beak Or a lily Argent slipped and leaved Or.

|motto = Choose Life {{cite book|title=Debrett's Peerage |date=2000}}}}

Books

Lord Alton has published numerous non-fiction titles:

What Kind of Country? Marshall Pickering 1987
Whose choice anyway? Marshal Pickering 1988
Faith in Britain Hodder & Stoughton 1991
Signs of Contradiction Hodder & Stoughton 1996
Life After Death Christian Democrat Press 1997
Citizen Virtues HarperCollins 1999
Citizen 21 HarperCollins 2001
Pilgrim Ways St Pauls Publishing 2001
Passion and Pain (with Michele Lombardo) and accompanying DVD of TV series 2003
Euthanasia: Getting To The Heart of The Matter (with Martin Foley) 2005
Abortion: Getting To The Heart of The Matter (with Martin Foley) 2005
Building Bridges: Is there Hope for North Korea? (with Rob Chidley) Lion 2013
State Responses to Crimes of Genocide: What Went Wrong and How to Change It (with Dr Ewelina Ochab) Palgrave Macmillan 2022.

References

External links

[http://www.davidalton.net/ Lord Alton of Liverpool] official site
[https://www.facebook.com/LordAltonofLiverpool/ David Alton] official Facebook page
{{UK Peer links | parliament = david-alton/26959 | hansard = mr-david-alton | hansardcurr = 3643 | guardian = | publicwhip = Lord_Alton_of_Liverpool | theywork = lord_alton_of_liverpool | record = David-Alton/1429 | bbc = 26959.stm | journalisted = }}
[http://www.jubileecampaign.co.uk/ Jubilee Campaign]
[https://web.archive.org/web/20061205034424/http://jubileeaction.co.uk/ Jubilee Action]

{{s-ttl | title = Member of Parliament for Liverpool Edge Hill

| years = 1979–1983}}

{{s-ttl | title = Member of Parliament for Liverpool Mossley Hill

| years = 1983–1997}}

{{s-ttl | title = Baby of the House

| years = 1979}}

{{s-ttl | title = Liberal Chief Whip

| years = 1985–1987}}