List of National Labour MPs

This is a list of National Labour MPs. It includes all members of Parliament who sat in the British House of Commons who were sponsored by the National Labour Organisation.

Member | Constituency | Start | End | Notes

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Craigie Mason Aitchison | Kilmarnock | 3 September 1931 | 2 October 1933 | Originally elected as a Labour MP; appointed Lord Advocate in the National Government. Re-elected in the 1931 general election and served until he was appointed Lord Justice Clerk.
Sir Ernest Nathaniel Bennett | Cardiff Central | 1 September 1931 | 14 June 1945 | Originally elected as a Labour MP. Announced his support for the National Government on 1 September 1931.[1] Re-elected in the 1931 and 1935 general elections and served until the organisation was dissolved; defeated standing as a National candidate in the 1945 general election.
Archibald George Church | Wandsworth Central | 8 September 1931 | 7 October 1931 | Originally elected as a Labour MP. Initially sceptical,[2] Church supported the Government once Parliament resumed.[3] He was defeated in the 1931 general election, standing as a National candidate in London University.
Richard Douglas Denman | Leeds Central | 10 September 1931 | 14 June 1945 | Originally elected as a Labour MP. Abstained in the first vote after the National Government was set up but announced his support shortly afterwards.[4] Re-elected in the 1931 and 1935 general elections and served until the organisation was dissolved; retired at the end of the Parliament.
Abraham John Flint | Ilkeston | 27 October 1931 | 25 October 1935 | Gained his seat from Labour in the 1931 general election. Retired at the end of the Parliament.
Sir George Masterman Gillett | Finsbury | 31 August 1931 | 25 October 1935 | Originally elected as a Labour MP; was a junior Minister in the Labour Government. Announced his support of the Government[5] and was appointed to the National Government. Re-elected in the 1931 general election; defeated standing for re-election in 1935.
Derwent Hall Caine | Liverpool Everton | 23 September 1931 | 7 October 1931 | Originally elected as a Labour MP. Away from Parliament after the death of his father, announced support for the National Government on his return.[6] Not endorsed by the Conservatives, he was defeated for re-election in the 1931 general election.
George Wilfrid Holford Knight | Nottingham South | 2 September 1931 | 25 October 1935 | Originally elected as a Labour MP. Announced his support for the Government before Parliament resumed.[7] Re-elected in the 1931 general election and retired at the end of the Parliament.
Sir William Allen Jowitt | Preston | 28 August 1931 | 7 October 1931 | Originally elected as a Liberal MP; after he was appointed to the Labour Government was re-elected as a Labour MP. Retained office in the National Government. Defeated standing for re-election in Combined English Universities at the 1931 general election. Subsequently rejoined the Labour Party and served again as a Labour MP from 1939 until given a Peerage in 1945.
William Stephen Richard King-Hall | Ormskirk | 27 October 1939 | 23 February 1942 | Elected in a by-election in a National Labour seat. Left the Parliamentary group to sit as an Independent.[8] Defeated for re-election at the 1945 general election standing as a National Independent, opposed by the Conservatives.
Kenneth Martin Lindsay | Kilmarnock | 2 November 1933 | 28 May 1943 | Elected in a by-election in a National Labour seat. Re-elected in the 1935 general election. Left the Parliamentary group to sit as an Independent,[9] and re-elected as an Independent in Combined English Universities in the 1945 general election. Retired at the end of the Parliament.
James Alexander Lovat-Fraser | Lichfield | 2 September 1931 | 18 March 1938 | Originally elected as a Labour MP. Announced his support for the Government before Parliament resumed.[7] Re-elected in the 1931 and 1935 general elections and served until his death.
Malcolm James MacDonald | Bassetlaw | 24 August 1931 | 25 October 1935 | Originally elected as a Labour MP. As the son of Ramsay MacDonald, he was always bound to support his father.[10] Re-elected in the 1931 election; defeated for re-election in the 1935 general election.
Ross and Cromarty | 10 February 1936 | 14 June 1945 | Elected in a byelection in a Liberal National seat. Served until the organisation was dissolved. Retired at the end of the Parliament.
James Ramsay MacDonald | Seaham | 24 August 1931 | 25 October 1935 | Originally elected as a Labour MP. Formed the National Government. Re-elected in the 1931 election; defeated for re-election in the 1935 general election.
Combined Scottish Universities | 31 January 1936 | 9 November 1937 | Elected in a byelection in a Conservative seat. Served until his death.
Sydney Frank Markham | Chatham | 16 September 1931 | 7 October 1931 | Originally elected as a Labour MP. Absent from the first votes after the National Government was set up but began supporting the Government later that month. Not endorsed by the Conservatives, he withdrew his bid for re-election in the 1931 general election.
Nottingham South | 14 November 1935 | 14 June 1945 | Elected in the 1935 general election, retaining a National Labour seat. Served until the organisation was dissolved. Defeated for re-election at the 1945 general election standing as a National candidate. Subsequently joined the Conservative Party and served as a Conservative MP for Buckingham from 1951 to 1964.
Hon Harold George Nicolson | Leicester West | 14 November 1935 | 14 June 1945 | Elected in the 1935 general election, gaining a seat from the Liberal Party. Served until the organisation was dissolved. Defeated for re-election at the 1945 general election standing as a National candidate.
Francis Noel Palmer | Tottenham South | 27 October 1931 | 25 October 1935 | Gained his seat from Labour in the 1931 general election. Defeated for re-election at the 1935 general election.
Sir Samuel Thomas Rosbotham | Ormskirk | 5 September 1931 | 11 October 1939 | Originally elected as a Labour MP. Announced his support for the Government before Parliament returned.[11] Re-elected in the 1931 and 1935 general elections and served until he resigned in order to retire.[12]
Philip Snowden | Colne Valley | 25 August 1931 | 7 October 1931 | Originally elected as a Labour MP, was Chancellor of the Exchequer in the Labour Government. Re-appointed to office in the National Government but had already decided not to seek re-election.[13]
James Henry Thomas | Derby | 25 August 1931 | 11 June 1936 | Originally elected as a Labour MP, was Secretary of State for Dominion Affairs in the Labour Government. Re-appointed to office in the National Government. Re-elected in the 1931 and 1935 general elections and served until he resigned over a financial scandal.
Sir John Vigers Worthington | Forest of Dean | 27 October 1931 | 25 October 1935 | Gained his seat from Labour in the 1931 general election. Defeated for re-election at the 1935 general election.

## Abstainers

[edit]

Five Labour MPs are known to have deliberately abstained from voting on 8 September 1931 in the first House of Commons division (vote) called after the formation of the National Government.[14] Of the five, only one (Richard Denman) subsequently became a National Labour MP. The identities of the other four who had indicated a degree of alienation from the Labour Party and of support for the National Government, even if not committing themselves to it absolutely.

* Sir Ralph Norman Angell (Bradford North) voted against the Government in a division the following day, but announced his decision not to seek re-election on 24 September 1931 while stressing that he was not leaving the Labour Party.[15]
* Edith Picton-Turbervill (The Wrekin) also voted against the Government in a division the following day. She was re-adopted as the Labour candidate for her constituency at the 1931 general election but was defeated for re-election.
* George Russell Strauss (Lambeth North) also voted against the Government in a division the following day. Although defeated for re-election in 1931, he returned in a 1934 by-election at which he defeated a National Labour candidate, and then served until he retired in 1979.
* Josiah Clement Wedgwood (Newcastle-under-Lyme) first voted against the Government on 14 September 1931. As a member of the Independent Labour Party he refused to sign a pledge to abide by the standing orders of the Parliamentary Labour Party and so fought for re-election without official endorsement at the 1931 general election, but was re-elected unopposed. He was readmitted to the PLP and served until elevated to the Peerage in 1942.

## Graphical representation

[edit]

Constituency  | 1931 | 1931 | 1933 | 1935  | 36 | 37 | 38 | 39 | 42 | 43

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Cardiff Central | Bennett
Leeds Central | Denman
Nottingham South | Knight | Markham
Kilmarnock | Aitchison | Lindsay |
Ormskirk | Rosbotham | King-Hall |
Lichfield | Lovat-Fraser |
Derby | Thomas |
Finsbury | Gillett |
Bassetlaw | M. MacDonald |
Seaham | R. MacDonald |
Wandsworth Central | Church |
Liverpool Everton | Caine |
Preston | Jowitt |
Chatham | Markham |
Colne Valley | Snowden |
Ilkeston |  | Flint |
Tottenham South |  | Palmer |
Forest of Dean |  | Worthington |
Leicester West |  | Nicolson
Ross and Cromarty |  | M. MacDonald
Combined Scottish Universities |  | R. MacDonald |
No. of National Labour MPs  | 15  | 13  | 13  | 8  | 9  | 8  | 7  | 7  | 6  | 5

## References

[edit]

1. ^ "Labour M.P.s' Support Of Mr. Macdonald", The Times, 2 September 1931, p. 14.
2. ^ See his letter in The Times, 31 August 1931, p. 6, which casts doubt on the long-term future of the National Government and prophecies a Labour majority in the event of a snap election.
3. ^ "Lobby Opinion", The Times, 9 September 1931, p. 12.
4. ^ "Political Notes", The Times, 11 September 1931, p. 12.
5. ^ "The Way Of Economy" (letter), The Times, 3 September 1931, p. 11.
6. ^ "Labour Recruit For The Government", The Times, 24 September 1931, p. 9.
7. ^ a b "Economy And New Taxes", The Times, 3 September 1931, p. 10.
8. ^ "Cdr. King-Hall to sit as Independent M.P.", The Times, 24 February 1942, p. 2.
9. ^ "Mr. K. Lindsay as Independent", The Times, 29 May 1943, p. 2.
10. ^ "New Cabinet At Work", The Times, 27 August 1931, p. 10.
11. ^ "Parliament To-Morrow", The Times, 7 September 1931, p. 10.
12. ^ "Sir Thomas Rosbotham To Retire", The Times, 12 October 1939, p. 5.
13. ^ "Mr. Snowden's Future", The Times, 29 August 1931, p. 10.
14. ^ Andrew Thorpe, "The British General Election of 1931", Clarendon Press, 1991, p. 95.
15. ^ The Times, 25 September 1931, p. 6.

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