Newly-released files from the National Archives reveal that Margaret Thatcher personally paid nearly £2,000 to cover the cost of the search for her missing son, Mark, in order to avoid a public backlash over the use of taxpayers' money. Mark Thatcher went missing in the Sahara desert for six days in January 1982 during the Paris-Dakar rally, before being rescued by the Algerian military.
The documents show that the former prime minister insisted on paying £1,784.80 towards the search, despite the Algerian government covering most of the bill. A Foreign Office statement detailed the total cost, including air fares, subsistence, telegrams, and phone calls. The final bill for Mr Thatcher was £583.14, with £1,190.95 remaining to be paid with public money.
In a handwritten note on a prime ministerial memo dated 12 February 1982, Mrs Thatcher wrote: 'I must pay the £1,191. We can therefore say that no extra cost has fallen on the British taxpayer. To who do I make out the cheque? MT.' She later paid a slightly amended total of £1,784.80, and in September 1982, she also paid an additional £15.16 for landing charges of an aircraft used by her husband, Denis.
The files also reveal the concern of the 'Iron Lady' for her missing son. In a telegram dated 12 January, Foreign Secretary Lord Carrington wrote: 'The prime minister is now most concerned, since there has been no reliable information for three days.' Mrs Thatcher spoke to US President Ronald Reagan on 14 January, within minutes of a sighting of her son, with Mr Reagan offering his and Nancy's thoughts and prayers.
