Although Sir Philip Goodhart, the Tory MP for Beckenham from 1957 until 1992, spent only a short period as a junior minister, he had more impact on public life than many cabinet ministers.
He was known for his opposition to Britain’s entry to the European Economic Community without it being backed in a referendum and made an enemy of his party leader, Ted Heath. His pamphlet, Referendum, was written in 1971, four years before a referendum was called by Harold Wilson, the Labour prime minister, and he also called for referenda on the Anglo-Irish Agreement and the Maastricht Treaty.
Goodhart was ahead of his time in many respects. Apart from the referendum, he campaigned for red routes and speed cameras, called for a sex offenders’