Michael Gove
has revealed he will become Lord Gove of Torry next month in a nod to his late adoptive father.
The former Conservative cabinet member is set to take the title in honour of the maritime area of Aberdeen where his father, Ernest, ran a fish-processing business.
Speaking to the
Aberdeen Evening Express
, Mr Gove said: ‘It’s really in memory of my dad who passed away in 2023. He meant everything to me. He was a wonderful man.
I would cherish having my father remembered exactly as he was: a diligent laborer, an astute entrepreneur, and a person who consistently showed concern for others. He was always eager to provide opportunities to individuals whom nobody else believed had promise.
Mr Gove, now 57, was born Graeme Andrew Logan in Aberdeen on August 26, 1967. He was taken in and then adopted by Ernest Gove and his wife, Christine, arriving with nothing but the clothes on his back.
He said: ‘I felt that I wanted to take the title particularly in honour of my dad but also in recognition of my parents.’
The retired politician, who is now editor of The Spectator magazine, said he had been adopted at four months old and would ‘never have been able to achieve anything in my life it it hadn’t been for [my parents’] love and kindness’.
Mr Gove stood down at the last election after 19 years as an MP, having held Cabinet positions including education secretary and helping to lead the Brexit campaign.
He grew up in Aberdeen and received his education at two public schools—Sunnybank Primary School and Kittybrewster Primary School—before successfully passing the entry examination for the city’s private Robert Gordon’s College.
He initially became part of the Labour party back in 1983 and later secured his first journalistic position with the Press and Journal following his studies at Oxford University.
Asked what residents of Torry, a blue-collar community, would make of his title, he said, ‘I don’t know’.
As a community, Torry has shown remarkable resilience throughout various challenges. During my time there, I observed a downturn in the fishing industry. I am honoring a place that holds great significance for me.
Among those included on Mr Sunak’s resignation honors list along with Mr Gove are former chief whip Simon Hart and ex-Scottish secretary Sir Alistair Jack.
The former party chairman Stephen Massey is expected to be granted a peerage as recognition for his ‘political and public service.’ This tradition enables departing prime ministers to bestow honors upon their close associates and employees.
Last summer, in his individual honors list, Mr. Sunak bestowed a peerage upon Liam Booth-Smith, who was his chief of staff at Number 10 Downing Street, as well as on ex-Prime Minister Theresa May, 1922 Committee head Sir Graham Brady, and climate envoy Sir Alok Sharma. In 2022, Mr. Sunak pledged to abolish the House of Lords and replace it with an elected upper house, though he eventually softened this proposal.
Labour has pledged to introduce a mandatory retirement age of 80 alongside the abolition of hereditary peers, of which there are currently 90 in the House of Lords.
In December, Sir Keir Starmer named 30 additionalLabour peers, among whom was Sue Gray, his previouschief of staff.
Read more
