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The Right Honourable
The Lord Cocks of Hartcliffe
The Right Honourable The Lord Cocks of Hartcliffe
Shadow Chief Whip of the House of Commons
	In office; 4 May 1979 – 23 October 1985
Leader	James Callaghan; Michael Foot; Neil Kinnock
Preceded by	Humphrey Atkins
Succeeded by	Derek Foster
Chief Whip of the House of Commons; Parliamentary Secretary to the Treasury
	In office; 8 April 1976 – 4 May 1979
Prime Minister	James Callaghan
Preceded by	Bob Mellish
Succeeded by	Michael Jopling
Member of Parliament ; for Bristol South
	In office; 18 June 1970 – 18 May 1987
Preceded by	William Wilkins
Succeeded by	Dawn Primarolo
Personal details
Born	Michael Francis Lovell Cocks; 19 August 1929; Leeds, England
Died	26 March 2001 (aged 71); Bristol, England
Political party	Labour
Spouses	Janet Macfarlane (m. 1954; div. 1977); Valerie Davis (m. 1979);
Children	4
Alma mater	University of Bristol

Michael Francis Lovell Cocks, Baron Cocks of Hartcliffe, PC (19 August 1929 – 26 March 2001) was a British Labour Party politician. He was the member of parliament for Bristol South from 1970 to 1987, and was the Labour Party's chief whip from 1976 to 1985.

Early life

Cocks was born in Leeds, and was educated at George Watson's College, Edinburgh, and Silcoates School, Wakefield. After obtaining a BSc at Bristol University he became a geography teacher and later lectured at Bristol Polytechnic.^[1]

Political career

Cocks contested Bristol West in 1959 and South Gloucestershire in 1964 and 1966.^[1] He was Member of Parliament for Bristol South from 1970 until 1987, after being deselected as a candidate in 1986 and replaced by Dawn Primarolo, in a challenge from the left.^[1]

During his time in the House of Commons, Cocks served as a Labour whip in government and in opposition, being Chief Whip from 1976 to 1985.^[1]

Cocks was created a life peer on 6 October 1987, becoming Baron Cocks of Hartcliffe, of Chinnor in the County of Oxfordshire^[2] and served as vice-chairman of the BBC 1993–98.^[3]

He also served as Deputy Chairman of the London Docklands Development Corporation.^[1] As Government Chief Whip from 1976 to 1979 he had the task of ensuring Government majorities for a minority government.^[4]

Personal life and legacy

Cocks married Janet Macfarlane, a nurse, in 1954.^[3] The couple had four children, Andrew, Helen, Sarah and David, before separating in 1976 and divorcing the following year.^[3]^[5] He was married to Valerie Davis from 1979 until his death from a heart attack at Southmead Hospital in Bristol on 26 March 2001, at the age of 71.^[1]^[3]^[6]

Cocks is a major character in the play This House by James Graham. The play was first staged at the National Theatre in 2011, with Cocks played by Vincent Franklin.

References

^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f Roth, Andrew (27 March 2001). "Lord Cocks of Hartcliffe". The Guardian. Retrieved 31 May 2020.
^ "No. 51084". The London Gazette. 9 October 1987. p. 12540.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d Harrison, Walter (2005). "Cocks, Michael Francis Lovell, Baron Cocks of Hartcliffe (1929–2001), politician". Oxford Dictionary of National Biography (online ed.). Oxford University Press. doi:10.1093/ref:odnb/75686. (Subscription or UK public library membership required.)
^ Who's Left?: An Index of Labour MPs & Left-Wing Causes, 1985–1992. Conservative & Unionist Central Office. 1 January 1992. ISBN 9780850710359. Retrieved 7 January 2019 – via Google Books.
^ Anne King (22 April 2021). "Janet Cocks obituary". The Guardian. Retrieved 18 August 2021.
^ "Former chief whip dies". BBC News. 26 March 2001. Retrieved 3 July 2022.

Sources

The Times Guide to the House of Commons, Times Newspapers Ltd, 1966, 1983 & 1987
Leigh Rayment's Historical List of MPs
"Obituary: Lord Cocks of Hartcliffe", The Guardian, 27 March 2001

External links

Hansard 1803–2005: contributions in Parliament by Michael Cocks

Parliament of the United Kingdom
Preceded by William Wilkins	Member of Parliament for Bristol South 1970–1987	Succeeded by Dawn Primarolo
Political offices
Preceded by Bob Mellish	Chief Whip of the Labour Party 1976–1985	Succeeded by Derek Foster
Preceded by Bob Mellish	Parliamentary Secretary to the Treasury 1976–1979	Succeeded by Michael Jopling