Birmingham Ladywood by-election, 1969
Encyclopedia
The Birmingham Ladywood by-election
, in Birmingham
, on 26 June 1969 was held after Labour
Member of Parliament
(MP) Victor Yates
died on 19 January the same year. Although the seat had been Labour-held since 1945 it was captured by the Liberals
in a defeat for Harold Wilson
's government.
, Dr. Louis Glass and Wallace Lawler
the three major parties all picked candidates who were members of the local council. Lawler, however had a strong reputation for campaigning in the impoverished area, having previously used issues raised by the seminal drama ‘Cathy Come Home
’ to highlight poverty in the area, organised a petition to protest against increases in electricity prices and arranged a protest demonstration of mainly Birmingham pensioners to travel to London to hand in letters and petitions at 10 Downing Street
. As a consequence the popular local activist ensured the first Liberal Party
MP for a Birmingham
constituency in 80 years.
Colin Jordan
ran as a candidate for the far right
British Movement
and, with Ray Hill
as his election, their campaign, in which their literature attacked Jews and immigrants and proclaimed loyalty to Nazism
, led to some violent scuffles with opponents. Although finishing a distant fourth the result was treated as something of a triumph and was cited frequently by those who advocated Nazi orthodoxy on the far right rather than moderation as the British Movement still managed to win 3% of the vote, despite openly wearing swastika
insignia and featuring Adolf Hitler
's image on their literature.
A candidate for the anti-nuclear energy
Fellowship Party
also contested the by-election.
By-election
A by-election is an election held to fill a political office that has become vacant between regularly scheduled elections....
, in Birmingham
Birmingham
Birmingham is a city and metropolitan borough in the West Midlands of England. It is the most populous British city outside the capital London, with a population of 1,036,900 , and lies at the heart of the West Midlands conurbation, the second most populous urban area in the United Kingdom with a...
, on 26 June 1969 was held after Labour
Labour Party (UK)
The Labour Party is a centre-left democratic socialist party in the United Kingdom. It surpassed the Liberal Party in general elections during the early 1920s, forming minority governments under Ramsay MacDonald in 1924 and 1929-1931. The party was in a wartime coalition from 1940 to 1945, after...
Member of Parliament
Member of Parliament
A Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...
(MP) Victor Yates
Victor Yates
Victor Francis Yates was a British pacifist Labour politician.He was Member of Parliament for Birmingham, Ladywood from 1945 until his death in 1969. In the subsequent by-election the seat was gained by the Liberal candidate Wallace Lawler.-External links:...
died on 19 January the same year. Although the seat had been Labour-held since 1945 it was captured by the Liberals
Liberal Party (UK)
The Liberal Party was one of the two major political parties of the United Kingdom during the 19th and early 20th centuries. It was a third party of negligible importance throughout the latter half of the 20th Century, before merging with the Social Democratic Party in 1988 to form the present day...
in a defeat for Harold Wilson
Harold Wilson
James Harold Wilson, Baron Wilson of Rievaulx, KG, OBE, FRS, FSS, PC was a British Labour Member of Parliament, Leader of the Labour Party. He was twice Prime Minister of the United Kingdom during the 1960s and 1970s, winning four general elections, including a minority government after the...
's government.
Campaign
In Doris FisherDoris Fisher, Baroness Fisher of Rednal
Doris Mary Gertrude Fisher, Baroness Fisher of Rednal, née Satchwell, JP was a British politician.-Early life and education:Born in Birmingham, she was the daughter of Frederick James Satchwell...
, Dr. Louis Glass and Wallace Lawler
Wallace Lawler
Wallace Leslie Lawler was a British Liberal politician. He was elected a Member of Parliament by gaining Birmingham, Ladywood from Labour at a by-election on 26 June 1969. However, Lawler only served for one year, as Labour's Doris Fisher regained the seat from him at the 1970 general election...
the three major parties all picked candidates who were members of the local council. Lawler, however had a strong reputation for campaigning in the impoverished area, having previously used issues raised by the seminal drama ‘Cathy Come Home
Cathy Come Home
Cathy Come Home is a 1966 BBC television play by Jeremy Sandford, produced by Tony Garnett and directed by Ken Loach, about homelessness. An industry poll rated it as the best British television drama ever made. Filmed in a gritty, realistic drama documentary style, it was first broadcast on 16...
’ to highlight poverty in the area, organised a petition to protest against increases in electricity prices and arranged a protest demonstration of mainly Birmingham pensioners to travel to London to hand in letters and petitions at 10 Downing Street
10 Downing Street
10 Downing Street, colloquially known in the United Kingdom as "Number 10", is the headquarters of Her Majesty's Government and the official residence and office of the First Lord of the Treasury, who is now always the Prime Minister....
. As a consequence the popular local activist ensured the first Liberal Party
Liberal Party (UK)
The Liberal Party was one of the two major political parties of the United Kingdom during the 19th and early 20th centuries. It was a third party of negligible importance throughout the latter half of the 20th Century, before merging with the Social Democratic Party in 1988 to form the present day...
MP for a Birmingham
Birmingham
Birmingham is a city and metropolitan borough in the West Midlands of England. It is the most populous British city outside the capital London, with a population of 1,036,900 , and lies at the heart of the West Midlands conurbation, the second most populous urban area in the United Kingdom with a...
constituency in 80 years.
Colin Jordan
Colin Jordan
John Colin Campbell Jordan was a leading figure in postwar Neo-Nazism in Britain. In the far-right nationalist circles of the 1960s, Jordan represented the most explicitly 'Nazi' inclination in his open use of the styles and symbols of the Third Reich.Through organisations such as the National...
ran as a candidate for the far right
Far right
Far-right, extreme right, hard right, radical right, and ultra-right are terms used to discuss the qualitative or quantitative position a group or person occupies within right-wing politics. Far-right politics may involve anti-immigration and anti-integration stances towards groups that are...
British Movement
British Movement
The British Movement , later called the British National Socialist Movement , is a British neo-Nazi organisation founded by Colin Jordan in 1968. It grew out of the National Socialist Movement , which was founded in 1962...
and, with Ray Hill
Ray Hill
Ray Hill was a leading figure in the British far right who went on to become a well-known informant.Born in Lancashire, he spent three years in the army before making his first steps in the far right with the Racial Preservation Society in Leicester in the late 1960s...
as his election, their campaign, in which their literature attacked Jews and immigrants and proclaimed loyalty to Nazism
Nazism
Nazism, the common short form name of National Socialism was the ideology and practice of the Nazi Party and of Nazi Germany...
, led to some violent scuffles with opponents. Although finishing a distant fourth the result was treated as something of a triumph and was cited frequently by those who advocated Nazi orthodoxy on the far right rather than moderation as the British Movement still managed to win 3% of the vote, despite openly wearing swastika
Swastika
The swastika is an equilateral cross with its arms bent at right angles, in either right-facing form in counter clock motion or its mirrored left-facing form in clock motion. Earliest archaeological evidence of swastika-shaped ornaments dates back to the Indus Valley Civilization of Ancient...
insignia and featuring Adolf Hitler
Adolf Hitler
Adolf Hitler was an Austrian-born German politician and the leader of the National Socialist German Workers Party , commonly referred to as the Nazi Party). He was Chancellor of Germany from 1933 to 1945, and head of state from 1934 to 1945...
's image on their literature.
A candidate for the anti-nuclear energy
Nuclear power
Nuclear power is the use of sustained nuclear fission to generate heat and electricity. Nuclear power plants provide about 6% of the world's energy and 13–14% of the world's electricity, with the U.S., France, and Japan together accounting for about 50% of nuclear generated electricity...
Fellowship Party
Fellowship Party
The Fellowship Party was the oldest environmentalist political party in England. It opposed nuclear power and all weapons. Its national petition against nuclear weapons tests led to the forming of the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament....
also contested the by-election.