Joseph Philip Sebastian Yorke, 10th Earl of Hardwicke (born 3 February 1971) is a British peer.

Background [ edit ]

Yorke succeeded to the title at the age of three, on the death of his grandfather, Philip Yorke, 9th Earl of Hardwicke , on 31 December 1974; his father, Philip Yorke, Viscount Royston, had died 1 January 1973. He took his seat in the Lords at age 22, making him the youngest member then sitting; ^[1] he was a member from 1993 to 1999, since he was not elected as a representative Peer under the House of Lords Act 1999 .

Drugs case [ edit ]

In 1999, Lord Hardwicke received a suspended two-year prison sentence for supplying cocaine following a sting operation by the News of the World newspaper at the House of Lords . Journalists had posed as Arab sheiks, with the jury noting the "extreme provocation" used in the incident. Hardwicke was suspended by the Conservative Party following the revelations. ^[2]

Personal life [ edit ]

Lord Hardwicke married, in 2008, Siobhan Loftus (born 1961). They have one child, Philip Alexander Joseph Yorke, Viscount Royston, who is the heir apparent to the title. ^[3]

Hardwicke's cousin, Louis Waymouth, a writer for the TV comedy series Armstrong and Miller , is married to Lady Eloise Anson, daughter of the 5th Earl of Lichfield . ^[4]

References [ edit ]

External links [ edit ]

• Hansard 1803?2005: contributions in Parliament by the Earl of Hardwicke