Lord Broxbourne was a compelling advocate, whether appearing in planning enquiries, the Courts, the Commons or Conservative party conferences. A brief ministerial career culminated in his appoitment as Minister of Health, where he proved himself an effective departmental minister, not least in reforming pay and conditions in the National Health Service without arousing any hostility. He also put the Mental Health Act, embodying the recommendations made by the Royal Commission chaired by Lord Percy, on to the statute book. But he is best remembered for his passionate opposition to British membership of the EEC which culminated in his decision to defy the whips when entry was put to the vote in 1973. Paradoxically, but typical of the way in which he respected Britain’s legal obligations, he later served in the European parliament and chaired its legal committee.
Derek Colclough Walker-Smith was born on 13 April 1910, the son of Sir Jonah Walker-Smith (1874–1964) and his wife Maud, daughter of Coulton Walker Hunter. His father had served as the Brough Engineer for Barrow-in-Furness, City Engineer at Edinburgh and Director of housing at the Ministry of Health before entering the Commons as the MP for Barrow. Both his fascination with politics and his interest in housing had a marked influence on his son. Derek Walker-Smith was educated at Rossall School and Christ Church, Oxford, where he became secretary of the Union and took a first in Modern History. He was called to the bar by Middle Temple in 1934. In the years before the war he combined a burgeoning legal practice with the authorship of a number of books and the editorship of the English Review. He had written his first novel while still an undergraduate and his later works included biographies of three famous lawyers, Lord Reading, Lord darling and Sir Edward Clarke and the part authorship of a play. He also contributed regular articles to the Sunday Dispatch and sought unsuccessfully to become a member of the London County Council. He served as vice-chairman of the Inns of Court Conservative and Unionist Society.
He was married in 1938 to Dorothy Etherton of Rowlands Castle. They had two daughters and a son, Jonah, who succeeded to the Baronetcy.
Although a strong supporter of Neville Chamberlain’s foreign policy – he wrote Neville Chamberlain: Man of Peace, published by Robert Hale in May 1940 - he realized that war was inevitable and after a period of service in the Inns of Court OTC, he gained a territorial commission as a gunner. He pursued his part-time military career with his customary enthusiasm, learning to ride under the somewhat brutal tuition od an NCO in the Life Guards, and growing a luxuriant handle-bars moustache. He always claimed the former as excellent training for his political life. By the end of the war he had become a Lieutenant Colonel and had found himself a safe Parliamentary seat.
He was elected as the MP for Hertford at the 1945 General Election; unhappily the same election brought his father’s parliamentary career to an end. His legal experience was valued, but it was his ability as a parliamentary gadfly, stinging the Labour government, that earned him a parliamentary reputation and election to the executive of the 1922 Committee. He held Hertford in the General Elections of 1950 and 1951, before moving in 1955 to take the newly-created East Hertfordshire seat. He was elected to chair the 1922 Committee in 1951 until 1955, and became Parliamentary Secretary to the Board of Trade 1955-6. He became Economic Secretary to the Treasury 1956-7, but was moved back to become Minister of State at the Board of Trade by Harold Macmillan in January 1957. Later that year he was made Minister of Health, It was his own decision to stand down after the 1959 General Election. He had taken silk in 1955 and had given up a lucrative practice at the bar when he accepted office, but his decision was largely the result of the realization that Macmillan was unlikely to offer him a place in the Cabinet and that there was a good chance that he would seek to take Britain into the EEC. The Prime Minister made no effort to keep him, appointing Enoch Powell in his place and elevating the post into the Cabinet. However, he offered Walker-Smith a baronetcy, which the latter accepted in 1960.
Within months of his return to the backbenches and as the Government moved towards an application to join the EEC, Walker-Smith emerged as a major critic. When the two day debate on the entry application took place in the summer of 1961 he made what many regarded as the outstanding speech in the debate. However he had only limited support in the House and surprisingly little in the wider party. At the party conference at that autumn his appeal attracted widespread applause but that was not reflected in the vote which followed. It was the same story a year later at Llandudno. He and Robin Turton moved an amendement to the platform’s resolution and Walker-Smith made a well-reasoned but highly emotional speech in its support. But, as Macmillan noted in his diary, “the Conference has rejected the Turton-Walker-Smith amendment on the Common market by an overwhelming majority - only fifty or so out of 4,000 voting for it.” However, Walker-Smith pinned his hopes on the French President and de Gaulle delivered by vetoing the British application in January 1963.
It was to be almost a decade before Walker-Smith was compelled to join battle again, but he must have known that it was inevitable once Edward Heath had been elected leader of the Conservative Party. The Labour Government, although not it turned out the party, had also considered joining, only to provoke a second veto from de Gaulle. But when Heath won the 1970 election de Gaulle was no longer in office and President Pompidou was well disposed to British entry. Walked Smith found himself voting againsty his own party on the second reading of the European Communities Bill. The loyalty of his constituency party was severely taxed and its executive party condemned his action. Briefly deselection was considered, but eventually rejected. Walker-Smith was thought an excellent constituency MP.
There was surprise when he was invited to serve as a member of the European Parliament (then a matter of nomination) and even greater surprise when he accepted. Those he thought he might act as a wrecker did not know their man. Although he continued to believe that entry into the EEC had severely damaged Britain’s sovereignty, she had now assumed treaty obligations and Walker-Smith did not think she could honourably withdraw from her commitments. Not only did he behave as a responsible MEP, but he chaired the European parliament’s Legal Committee from 1975 until he stood down as an MEP in 1979. He chose not to contest the 1983 General Election and was made a life peer on 21 September 1983. He was an active peer, speaking in debates, writing to the press and showing great interest in the provision of houses, an issue that had always fascinated him. From 1973 until 1978 he had served as chairman of the National Housebuilding Council. In addition he made a major, but unsuccessful effort to incorporate the European declaration of Human Rights into British law through his Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms Bill. Inevitably with the years, his speeches became less fierce, but they remained well -reasoned and effective.
He died on 22 January 1992.