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20 Facts About James Cran

1.

James Douglas Cran was a British Conservative Party politician.

2.

James Cran was the Member of Parliament for Beverley and for Beverley and Holderness.

3.

James Cran studied at the University of Aberdeen, gaining an Honours MA.

4.

James Cran was the National Winner of the 1968 Daily Mirror Speaking Trophy.

5.

From 1971 to 1979, James Cran was the Secretary and Chief Executive of the National Association of Pension Funds.

6.

James Cran was the Northern Director for the Confederation of British Industry from 1979 to 1984 and was the CBI's West Midlands Director from 1984 to 1987.

7.

James Cran became MP for Beverley in 1987 taking over from Sir Patrick Wall.

8.

In 1997 this constituency was abolished and James Cran was elected to the successor constituency of Beverley and Holderness.

9.

James Cran was a member of the '92 Group of right-wing Conservative MPs and took an active part in the leadership contests involving John Major, Michael Howard and the latter stages of William Hague's campaign.

10.

James Cran was a consistent opponent of the Maastricht Treaty, and of the single currency and closer European integration.

11.

James Cran was Parliamentary Private Secretary to Secretary of State for Northern Ireland Patrick Mayhew from 1995 to 1996.

12.

James Cran was present with the Secretary of State in Washington DC at the first meeting with Gerry Adams, then President of Sinn Fein.

13.

James Cran was Pairing Whip and then Assistant Chief Whip.

14.

James Cran was appointed Shadow Deputy Leader of the House of Commons by then-Leader of the Opposition Iain Duncan-Smith but resigned shortly thereafter to pursue other activities.

15.

James Cran was a member of a number of Select Committees: Trade and Industry ; Administration ; Selection ; and Defence.

16.

James Cran was a member of the Chairman of Ways and Means Panel and a member of the Council of Europe and the WEU.

17.

James Cran married Penelope Barbara Wilson of South Kensington in 1973 and they had one daughter, Alexandra.

18.

James Cran recounted that he once locked her in a car for "what felt like hours" for accidentally hitting him with a skimming stone, and tied her arms down at a restaurant as a toddler for throwing a salt shaker, among various other incidents.

19.

Walker felt that James Cran consistently belittled her as an adult, and emotionally blackmailed her in the aftermath of her mother's death.

20.

Some personal artefacts associated with James Cran were listed for sale by auction on 13 February 2025 by Eastbourne Auctions.