Robert Carr


Leonard Robert Carr, Baron Carr of Hadley, was a British Conservative politician who served as Home Secretary from 1972 to 1974.

Early life

Robert Carr was educated at Westminster School and Gonville and Caius College, Cambridge, where he read Natural Sciences, graduating in 1938. After graduation he applied his knowledge of metallurgy at John Dale & Co, the family metal engineering firm. A collapsed lung kept him from war service but his firm specialised in the construction of airframes for Lancaster bombers.

Political career

He was elected Member of Parliament for Mitcham in 1950 and served there until 1974 when the seat was merged and he moved to Carshalton.
In Edward Heath's government he served as Secretary of State for Employment and was responsible for the modernising Industrial Relations Act 1971, which balanced the introduction of compensation for unfair dismissal with curbs on the freedom to strike and the virtual abolition of closed shop agreements. The Industrial Relations Act 1971 was deeply disliked by the trade unions whose industrial action lead to the three day week and ultimately to the defeat of the government. The victorious Labour Party promptly repealed the Industrial Relations Act, replacing it with their own Trade Union and Labour Relations Act 1974 which, while scrapping the "offensive" provisions, effectively re-enacted the remainder of Carr's 1971 Act.
In 1971, Carr escaped injury when The Angry Brigade anarchist group exploded two bombs outside his house. More than thirty years later, a member of the group issued a public apology to Carr, and sent him a Christmas card.
In 1972, Carr served a brief period as Lord President of the Council and was then appointed Home Secretary after the resignation of Reginald Maudling. After his defeat in the first ballot of the 1975 Conservative leadership contest, Edward Heath asked Carr to "take over the functions of leader" until a new leader was elected.

Later life

Carr was created a life peer as Baron Carr of Hadley, of Monken Hadley, North London, in 1976.

Death

Carr died 17 February 2012 at the age of 95 years. His body was buried in the graveyard of St. Peters Church, in the Gloucestershire village of Farmington. He was survived by his wife, Joan, and two daughters.