More Catholics on Commons' benches

by Angus Macdonald JOHN Patten's elevation to the cabinet in the wake of the Conservatives general election victory means that there is a Catholic as Secretary of State for Education for the first time since Shirley Williams held the post in the late 1970s. Mr Patten's success came at the same time as his Catholic namesake but no relation Chris celebrated masterminding the Tory victory but lost his seat at Bath to the Liberal Democrats.
The appointment of a Catholic to the vital education office will be seen as a boost to the bishops who in recent years have been at loggerheads with Conservative ministers over a series of reforms and their effects in the Catholic schools which make up an estimated 30 per cent of the state sector.
The election result left an increased number of Catholics on the Commons' benches. but also claimed some notable scalps. New recruits include Labour's Greg Pope, victor at Hyndburn over fellow Catholic and sitting Tory MP, Ken Hargreaves, a a founder member of the Movement for Christian Democracy and an outspoken champion of the unborn child.
Labour's Mike O'Brien, a Catholic, overturned junior treasury minister Francis maude in his Warwickshire North constituency. Mr O'Brien this week said that as an MP he hoped to be promoting traditional Catholic social teaching.
particularly on such issues as alleviating homelessness and helping the third world. He also pledged to defend the right of parents to send their children to a Catholic school.
Fellow Catholic Andrew MacKinlay regained Thurrock in Essex for Labour who took the seat in 1987.
Mr MacKinlay who said he was "proud to be brought up in the Catholic tradition" applauded what he called the wise counsel" of the Catholic bishops. Early in the election campaign, the hierarchy of England and Wales issued election guidelines which highlighted a range of key "rightto-life" issues for Catholic voters. "I thought they were absolutely correct, and it was a first class initiative." said Mr MacKinlay.
He went on to recall the sermon on the mount, which he described as."the first great socialist manifesto", and pledged that it would form one of the guiding themes of his parliamentary record in the months to come.
Two Catholic former Conservative MPs regained a place in the House of Commons. In the Tory stronghold of Winchester, Gerry Malone
secured a majority of over 7,000.
The former Sunday Times journalist told the Catholic Herald this week that he was absolutely overwhelmed" to be back in Parliament after an absence of nearly five years. Mr Malone. a Scot. was MP for
Aberdeen South from 1983 to 1987.
Michael Ancram, a former Scottish Office minister, who lost his seat at the last election, also returns to the House to bolster Catholic numbers. He won the safe seat of Devizes.
Catholics lost to the Conservative benches included Welsh Office minister Nicholas Bennett who was defeated in his Pembroke seat, where high unemployment and the run-down of the local RAF Brawdy are thought to have eroded his vote.
Mike Carr. the catholic victor for the Liberal Democrats at the Ribble Valley by-election, failed to hold on to the seat in the general election. but fears for prominent Catholic MP and prolife campaigner David Alton. who was defending a wafer-thin majority in his Liverpool Mossley Hill constituency,proved groundless. Also returned was fellow Catholic Liberal Democrat Charles Kennedy.
Returnees among the Conservatives included David Amess. who success in retaining his highly marginal Basildon seat early on election night gave a clue as to the eventual outcome, David Atkinson, Sir Tom Arnold, Julian Brazier, Bill Cash, and James Pawsey.
The largest group of catholic MPs continue to sit on the Labour benches, however. Among them are our columnist John Battle and his predecessor Keith Vas, lknis Canavan. Tom Cox. Kevin McNamara and Bob Parry.