Mo Mowlam to stand down

Mo Mowlam is widely regarded as Britain's most popular cabinet member

LONDON -- British minister Mo Mowlam, who helped oversee the negotiations that led to Northern Ireland's peace agreement, says she will stand down from parliament at the next general election, due by May 2002.

Widely regarded as Britain's most popular cabinet member, Dr. Mowlam has vowed to leave parliament after failing to find a meaningful role since she was replaced as the minister in charge of Northern Ireland.

"I have decided not to stand (at the next election) because I have several years of my working life left and want to do something different before I finally retire," Mowlam said.

"I have been looking at a number of different options to continue to pursue my many interests, including in international affairs, conflict resolution and poverty," she added.

Prime Minister Tony Blair's press spokesman said the prime minister praised her "massive contribution" in her former job as secretary of state for Northern Ireland.

"In the working years she's got left she wants to do something else. The prime minister said she will be a great loss to this government and to parliament," the spokesman said.

He said Mowlam was expected to remain as a cabinet minister until the next election.

Marjorie “Mo” Mowlam has been a pivotal figure in the quest for a peaceful solution to the hostilities between Catholics and Protestants that have beset Northern Ireland.

She was the first woman to take on the role of secretary of state for Northern Ireland when she was appointed following the Labour Party's victory in UK parliamentary elections in May 1997.

Mowlam, who endured treatment for a benign brain tumour, was credited with breaking new ground by meeting Sinn Fein leader Gerry Adams to bolster proceedings that eventually led to the signing of the Good Friday Agreement in 1998.

She was replaced in a cabinet reshuffle last year after she lost the confidence of the powerful Ulster Unionist Party, which represents the Protestant majority of Northern Ireland.

Effectively sidelined in negotiations over the Northern Ireland peace process, she made little impact in her new cabinet office post.

There was speculation earlier this year that she would stand down when she let it be known that, when no longer in government, she wanted to work to promote integrated schools for Catholic and Protestant children in Northern Ireland.

She was publicly rebuked by Blair's office when she suggested that Queen Elizabeth should move out of her royal palaces and live in a modern building.

Mowlam, known for her "touchy-feely" style, has made no secret of what has been described as an "untidy" private life.

After a relationship with a married man, she wed banker Jon Norton, who is now an artist.

Reuters contributed to this report.

Mowlam replaced in cabinet reshuffle
October 11, 1999
Mowlam asked to adjudicate on ceasfire
October 23, 1999

The Northern Ireland Office
Irish Government
Sinn Fein
Ulster Unionist Party
Social Democratic and Labour Party
British Cabinet Office

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