Peter Tapsell (UK politician)
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The Right Honourable Sir Peter Tapsell |
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| Father of the House of Commons | |
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In office 6 May 2010 – 7 May 2015 |
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| Preceded by | Alan Williams |
| Succeeded by | Sir Gerald Kaufman |
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Member of Parliament for Louth and Horncastle Horncastle (1966–1983), East Lindsey (1983–1997) |
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In office 31 March 1966 – 30 March 2015 |
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| Preceded by | John Maitland |
| Succeeded by | Victoria Atkins |
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Member of Parliament for Nottingham West |
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In office 8 October 1959 – 15 October 1964 |
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| Preceded by | Tom O'Brien |
| Succeeded by | Michael English |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
1 February 1930 Hove, England |
| Political party | Conservative |
| Spouse(s) | Cecilia Hawke (1963–1971) Gabrielle Mahieu (1974–present) |
| Alma mater | Merton College, Oxford |
| Military service | |
| Allegiance |
 United Kingdom
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| Service/branch |
 British Army
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| Years of service | 1948–1950 |
| Rank | Second lieutenant |
| Unit | Royal Sussex Regiment |
Sir Peter Hannay Bailey Tapsell (born 1 February 1930) is a British Conservative Party politician and former Member of Parliament (MP) for Louth and Horncastle. He served in the House of Commons continuously from 1966 until 2015 and was also previously an MP from 1959 to 1964. He was Father of the House between 2010 and 2015.
Tapsell was born in Hove. He was educated at Tonbridge School, served in the Royal Sussex Regiment from 1948 to 1950, and continued his education at Merton College, Oxford, gaining a BA in Modern History in 1954, during which time he was also elected Librarian of the Oxford Union (a senior office). Tapsell was a member of the Oxford University Labour Club during his time at Oxford, alongside Gerald Kaufman.
Tapsell worked as a personal assistant to Sir Anthony Eden during the 1955 general election. He contested the Wednesbury by-election in 1957, losing to the Labour Party candidate John Stonehouse. Tapsell was chairman of the Coningsby Club from 1957 until 1958.
He first entered Parliament in the 1959 general election, representing Nottingham West, and was the Conservatives' longest-serving MP albeit with a gap in service (1964–66). From 2005 onwards, he was the only MP from any party who was first elected in the 1950s, but the two-year gap in his parliamentary service prevented him from becoming Father of the House until Alan Williams retired in 2010. He is one of a few MPs in parliamentary history to have served over fifty years in the House of Commons.
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