27 Facts About Robin Squire

Robin Clifford Squire was born on 12 July 1944 and is a British Conservative politician.

Robin Squire was Member of Parliament for Hornchurch from 1979 until 1997 when he lost the seat to John Cryer.

Robin Squire became a member of Sutton Borough Council in 1968, and the Member of Parliament for Hornchurch in 1979.

Robin Squire joined the accounting department of Lombard Banking in 1968 and was promoted to the position of Deputy Chief Accountant at Lombard North Central in 1972.

Robin Squire held this post until he was elected to Parliament in 1979.

Robin Squire was elected a member of Sutton Borough Council in 1968.

Robin Squire was the Conservative candidate for Hornchurch in the October 1974 general election although he lost the election by a 7,000 vote margin.

At the Conservative Local Government Conference in 1977, Robin Squire was one of five council leaders who spoke against plans advanced by Keith Speed to abolish the domestic rating system.

Robin Squire warned that abolition of the rating system without a widely accepted alternative to put in its place might be highly damaging.

Robin Squire was elected to Parliament as the member for Hornchurch on 3 May 1979.

Labour-held Hornchurch had not been a marginal seat and Robin Squire had not expected to win it.

Robin Squire married Susan Fey, a Labour Party activist, in 1981.

For example, in 1981 Robin Squire was one of 18 Conservative rebels who opposed referendum provisions for local council rate increases.

In 1988 Robin Squire was the only Conservative MP to vote against Section 28, legislation which sought to prevent local authorities from promoting awareness of gay issues.

Robin Squire became particularly well known for his regular contributions to Capital Radio's "Party Pieces" programme and he was described in The Times diary as being "pleasingly unsycophantic".

Robin Squire appeared to be comfortable as a member of the 'Parliamentary club'.

Robin Squire was rated as a highly capable member of the House of Commons bridge team and acquitted himself well in tournaments.

On 14 April 1992, in the immediate aftermath of the 1992 United Kingdom general election, Robin Squire was appointed Under Secretary of State for the Environment.

Robin Squire held this post until the Conservative government fell in May 1997.

The official reason given for the move was that one of the other education ministers sat in the House of Lords and it was felt that an experienced House of Commons operator like Robin Squire was needed to front government policy on schools.

Robin Squire is reported to have "barked down" some of the more extreme proposals to deal with the threat of school shootings after the Dunblane massacre in 1996, in which a crazed individual with a gun entered a primary school, shooting a number of pupils and teachers.

Robin Squire initially considered a return to accountancy but he had difficulty in this regard because he had not updated his skills since leaving the profession in 1979.

Robin Squire applied for the position of bursar at several independent schools but was rejected by all of them.

Robin Squire was given counselling and directed to courses on interview technique, assertiveness and IT skills.

Robin Squire acted, until March 2000, as a Parliamentary lobbyist.

Robin Squire stood against John Cryer at Hornchurch in the 2001 general election, but lost again by a significant majority.

Robin Squire has not been politically active since that time.