Editing Denis Healey (section)

===Retirement===
Healey's views on [[nuclear weapons]] conflicted with the [[unilateral nuclear disarmament]] policy of the Labour Party. After the [[1987 United Kingdom general election|1987 general election]], he retired from the Shadow Cabinet, and in 1992 stood down after 40 years as a Leeds MP. In that year he received a [[life peerage]] as '''''Baron Healey''', of [[Riddlesden]] in the [[West Yorkshire|County of West Yorkshire]]''.<ref>{{London Gazette |issue=52979 |date=2 July 1992 |page=11141 }}</ref> Healey was regarded by some – especially in the Labour Party – as "the best Prime Minister we never had".<ref>{{citation|url=http://education.independent.co.uk/careers_advice/article361683.ece|title=Passed/failed: An education in the life of Denis Healey, Labour peer|newspaper=[[The Independent]]|date=4 May 2006|first=Jonathan|last=Sale|access-date=28 April 2009|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070815215511/http://education.independent.co.uk/careers_advice/article361683.ece|archive-date=15 August 2007|df=dmy-all}}</ref> He was a founding member of the [[Bilderberg Group]].<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/Archive/Article/0,4273,4149485,00.html|title=Who pulls the strings? (part 3)|last=Ronson|first=Jon|author-link=Jon Ronson|date=10 March 2001|work=[[The Guardian]]|access-date=4 July 2009 | location=London}}</ref> He was interviewed on his role as a co-founder of the Bilderberg Group by [[Jon Ronson]] for the book ''[[Them: Adventures with Extremists]].''<ref>{{Cite book|title=Them : adventures with extremists|last=Ronson |first=Jon|date=2002|publisher=Simon & Schuster|isbn=978-0-7432-2707-0|location=New York|oclc=47831472}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/books/2001/mar/10/extract1|title=Who pulls the strings? (part 3)|author=Guardian Staff|date=2001-03-10|work=The Guardian|access-date=2019-12-16|language=en-GB|issn=0261-3077}}</ref>

During an interview with [[Nick Clarke]] on [[BBC Radio 4]], Healey was the first Labour politician to publicly declare his wish for the Labour leadership to pass to [[Tony Blair]] in 1994, following the death of [[John Smith (Labour Party leader)|John Smith]]. Healey later became critical of Blair. He publicly opposed Blair's decision to use military force in [[Kosovo War|Kosovo]], [[War in Afghanistan (2001–2021)|Afghanistan]], and [[Iraq War|Iraq]].<ref name="davidmckie"/> In the spring of 2004, and again in 2005, he publicly called on Blair to stand down in favour of [[Gordon Brown]]. In July 2006 he argued, "Nuclear weapons are infinitely less important in our [[Foreign policy of the United Kingdom|foreign policy]] than they were in the days of the [[Cold War]]", and, "I don't think we need [[Nuclear weapons of the United Kingdom|nuclear weapons]] any longer".<ref>{{cite news | title=UK needs no nuclear arms – Healey|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/5158618.stm | date=7 July 2006 | access-date=13 January 2007 | work=BBC News}}</ref>

In March 2013 during an interview with the ''[[New Statesman]]'', Healey said that if there was a [[2016 United Kingdom European Union membership referendum|referendum on British membership of the EU]], he would vote to leave.<ref>Rafael Behr, '[http://www.newstatesman.com/politics/uk-politics/2013/03/thatcher-was-good-looking-and-brilliant Denis Healey: "Thatcher was good-looking and brilliant"]', ''New Statesman'' (26 March 2013).</ref> In May, he further said: "I wouldn't object strongly to leaving the [[EU]]. The advantages of being members of the union are not obvious. The disadvantages are very obvious. I can see the case for leaving – the case for leaving is stronger than for staying in".<ref>Michael Crick, '[http://blogs.channel4.com/michael-crick-on-politics/healey-case-for-leaving-europe-stronger-than-staying/2494 Healey: case for leaving Europe stronger than staying]', ''Channel 4'' (9 May 2013).</ref>

Following the death of [[Alan Campbell, Baron Campbell of Alloway]], in June 2013, Healey became the oldest sitting member of the [[House of Lords]].<ref>{{cite web | url = http://www.parliament.uk/about/faqs/house-of-lords-faqs/lords-members| title = House of Lords, Official Website – Who is the oldest sitting Member of the House of Lords?| access-date = 5 July 2013}}</ref> Following the death of [[John Freeman (British politician)|John Freeman]] on 20 December 2014, Healey became the surviving former MP with the earliest date of first election, and the second-oldest surviving former MP, after [[Ronald Atkins]].