Stephen Cole

The Hon. Stephen Cole, MP (b. 1930) is a Georgeland politician who currently serves as Father of the Georgeland House of Commons. Born in London, Cole emigrated to Georgeland at the age of five, though he returned to England in 1954 to study at Cambridge University. In 1949 he enlisted in the Georgeland Army and served in the Korean War. Following his war service he went to Cambridge to study law. In 1960 he set up a law practice in his local town and was elected to the town council in 1965. In 1967 he was elected as a Conservative to the Georgeland House of Commons. Cole served briefly as a minister in the government of Robert Fisch, where he was Minister for Railways 1982-1983. Considered at one point a potential leader, Cole was Shadow Minister for Transport 1983-1987 and Shadow Minister for Local Government 1987-1992. Cole resigned from the front bench in conflict with then-Tory leader Eric Edge and was not a minister in Edge's short-lived government. In 1997 he became Shadow Minister for Sport but resigned in 1998. In 1999 he became Father of the House. He remains a somewhat stern and dour figure but a keen debater with a stentorian style, and a popular figure among members from both sides of the House. Cole is expected to retire at the next election in 2008. At that time, he will have spent 41 years as an MP - only two people, Jack Barr and Norman Hale have served longer, at 50 years and 42 years respectively.