Lucius Cary, 15th Viscount Falkland
Lucius Edward William Plantagenet Cary, 15th Viscount Falkland (born 8 May 1935) is a British nobleman and politician.
Background and education
Falkland is the eldest of four children, and the only son of Lucius Cary, 14th Viscount Falkland and Constance Mary Berry, daughter of Captain Edward Berry. He was educated at Wellington College in Berkshire, and was formerly an officer in the Hussars.[1]
Political career
Cary succeeded his father in the viscountcy in 1984 and sat in the House of Lords with the Social Democratic Party, later joining the Liberal Democrats. Following the removal of the majority of hereditary peers under the House of Lords Act 1999, he was one of the ninety-two elected to remain. In 2011 Falkland left the Liberal Democrats and now sits as a Crossbencher.[2] He is a supporter of the British Humanist Association, and has been the vice-president of the Royal Stuart Society since 2015 (his ancestors were ardent Jacobites, and he holds the title tenth Earl of Falkland in the Jacobite Peerage).
Lord Falkland lives in a townhouse in Clapham, a few miles from the Palace of Westminster; however he became embroiled in the parliamentary expenses scandal in 2009, when it was brought to light that he had registered his main residence as a house in Kent belonging to his aunt-in-law, entitling him to substantial payments from the Government for travel expenses. Defending his actions, Falkland said: "I didn't do it to make £125,000, I claimed the expenses in order to be able to meet the expenses of my life. I haven't got another income. You might say I'm an impoverished peer: my family over many hundreds of years have been noted for their poverty."[1]
Family
The Viscount married Caroline Anne Butler, daughter of Lieut-Cmdr George Butler, in 1962; they were divorced in 1990. They have four children:[3]
- The Hon. Lucius Alexander Plantagenet Cary, Master of Falkland (born 1963)
- Hon. Camilla Anne Cary (1965–1972)
- Hon. Samantha Camilla Cary (born 1973)
- Hon. Lucinda Mary Cary (born 1974)
He was married again in 1990 to Nicole Mackey, with whom he has one child:[3]
- Hon. Charles Byron Milburn Cary (born 1992)
Arms
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References
- 1 2 "Peer used house he didn't own to pocket £200,000 expenses". Neil Sears for The Daily Mail. 6 November 2009.
- ↑ House of Lords, Official Website - Viscount Falkland
- 1 2 Falkland, Viscount of. Cracroft's Peerage. 10 May 2008.
External links
- Hansard 1803–2005: contributions in Parliament by the Viscount of Falkland
| Peerage of Scotland | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Lucius Henry Charles Plantagenet Cary |
Viscount of Falkland 1984–present |
Incumbent |