Richard Andrew Arthur (born 24 March 1944) is a former Labour politician in

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

. He was the Leader of

Camden London Borough Council Camden London Borough Council, also known as Camden Council, legally The Mayor and Burgesses of the London Borough of Camden, is the local authority for the London Borough of Camden in Greater London, England. It is a London borough council, one o ...

from 1993 to 2000 and a councillor for

Bloomsbury Bloomsbury is a district in the West End of London, part of the London Borough of Camden in England. It is considered a fashionable residential area, and is the location of numerous cultural institution, cultural, intellectual, and educational ...

(1971–1974), Belsize (1974–1976) and

Highgate Highgate is a suburban area of N postcode area, north London in the London Borough of Camden, London Boroughs of Camden, London Borough of Islington, Islington and London Borough of Haringey, Haringey. The area is at the north-eastern corner ...

(1990–2002).

Personal life

Arthur was born on 24 March 1944 to Cicely Gertrude Arthur (née Blackman, 11 May 1905 – July 1996) and Cyril Stuart Arthur (15 January 1907 – 31 March 1986). He has an MA in economics from

Cambridge Cambridge ( ) is a List of cities in the United Kingdom, city and non-metropolitan district in the county of Cambridgeshire, England. It is the county town of Cambridgeshire and is located on the River Cam, north of London. As of the 2021 Unit ...

and an MSc in business from the

London Business School London Business School (LBS) is a business school and a constituent college of the federal University of London. LBS was founded in 1964 and awards post-graduate degrees (Master's degree, Master's degrees in management and finance, Master of B ...

. Arthur married Diana Thompson in 1968 and the couple had one son and one daughter before being divorced. In 1986 he married again to Akiko Shindo. Arthur lives in Highgate, London. He lists his recreations as swimming, gardening, reading, travel and tai ji.

Political career

Arthur was first elected to Camden Council in 1971 representing the Bloomsbury ward. At the next election, in 1974, he moved to be elected in the Belsize ward, before resigning from the council in 1974. He moved to

Singapore Singapore, officially the Republic of Singapore, is an island country and city-state in Southeast Asia. The country's territory comprises one main island, 63 satellite islands and islets, and one outlying islet. It is about one degree ...

for ten years. Arthur was elected to Camden Council for a second time in 1990, representing Highgate ward. He became the Leader of the council in 1993, replacing Julie Fitzgerald, beating Phil Turner by just three votes. Arthur was the longest serving Leader of the Council in Camden's history before being replaced by

Jane Roberts Dorothy Jane Roberts (May 8, 1929 – September 5, 1984) was an American author and poet, who claimed to be psychic and a spirit medium channeling a personality who called himself "Seth." Her publication of the Seth texts, known as the '' Set ...

in 2000. He then unsuccessfully stood to be the Labour candidate for Barnet and Camden on the newly created

Greater London Authority The Greater London Authority (GLA), colloquially known by the Metonymy, metonym City Hall, is the Devolution in the United Kingdom, devolved Regions of England, regional governance body of Greater London, England. It consists of two political ...

. Arthur stood down as a councillor in 2002. Arthur was the Chairman of the

Camden and Islington NHS Foundation Trust Camden and Islington NHS Foundation Trust provided mental health, substance misuse services and care for people with learning disabilities in part of London, England. It operated over twenty sites in Camden and Islington, but by far the largest ...

from 2009 to 2013.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Arthur, Richard Leaders of local authorities of England Councillors in the London Borough of Camden Labour Party (UK) councillors Living people 1944 births