Shirley Porter, English politician, Lord Mayor of Westminster
Shirley, Lady Porter (née Cohen; born 29 November 1930), styled between 1991 and 2003 as Dame Shirley Porter, is a British politician who led Westminster City Council in London, representing the Conservative Party. She is the daughter and heiress of Sir Jack Cohen, the founder of Tesco supermarkets. She was appointed Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire in 1991 by John Major after delivering victory in Westminster for the Conservatives in the 1990 elections, but was stripped of this title in 2003.
While leader of Westminster City Council, Porter oversaw the "Building Stable Communities" policy — later described as the "homes for votes scandal" — and was consequently accused of gerrymandering. The policy was judged illegal by the district auditor, and a surcharge of £27m levied on her in 1996. This was later raised to £42 million with interest and costs. She eventually settled in 2004, paying a final settlement of £12.3 million.Porter moved to Herzliya Pituah, Israel in 1994 during the inquiry, and returned to London in 2006. She helped establish the Porter Centre for Environmental Studies at Tel Aviv University, which opened in 2014.
1930Nov, 29
Shirley Porter
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Events on 1930
- 12Mar
Salt March
Mahatma Gandhi begins the Salt March, a 200-mile march to the sea to protest the British monopoly on salt in India - 6Apr
Salt Satyagraha
Gandhi raises a lump of mud and salt and declares, "With this, I am shaking the foundations of the British Empire," beginning the Salt Satyagraha. - 7Jul
Hoover Dam
Industrialist Henry J. Kaiser begins construction of Boulder Dam (now known as Hoover Dam). - 6Sep
Hipólito Yrigoyen
Democratically elected Argentine president Hipólito Yrigoyen is deposed in a military coup. - 24Oct
Getúlio Vargas
A bloodless coup d'état in Brazil ousts Washington Luís Pereira de Sousa, the last President of the First Republic. Getúlio Vargas is then installed as "provisional president".