Tim Rathbone

John Rankin "Tim" Rathbone (17 March 1933 – 12 July 2002) was a British businessman and Conservative politician who was the Member of Parliament (MP) for the seat of Lewes between 1974 and 1997.

After a spell as merchant banker, he emigrated in 1958 to the United States where he attended Harvard Business School and worked for the New York advertising firm Ogilvy and Mather, before returning to the UK in 1966.

[1] Upon his return to Britain, Rathbone was recruited by party chairman Edward du Cann to work for the Conservatives as Chief Publicity Officer.

[1] Rathbone was also a staunch critic of apartheid: On a visit to Rhodesia, he proposed ousting Ian Smith and holding transitional elections for a majority black government.

[3] When the Conservatives entered government in 1979, Rathbone was appointed as Parliamentary Private Secretary to Gerald Vaughan, the Minister for Health, a position he held until 1982.