Brecon and Radnor by-election, 1985
Encyclopedia
The Brecon and Radnor by-election, 1985 was a parliamentary by-election
held on 4 July 1985 for the British House of Commons
constituency
of Brecon and Radnor (in a later redistribution of Parliamentary seats renamed Brecon and Radnorshire, which is its name in 2007).
Member of Parliament
(MP), Tom Ellis Hooson
, had died at the age of 52. He was a cousin of Emlyn Hooson
, the former Liberal Party
MP for Montgomery
.
Tom Hooson had been Brecon and Radnor's MP since the 1979 general election
, when he gained the seat from the Labour Party
.
1. Richard Arthur Lloyd Livsey
was the candidate of the Liberal Party
and represented the SDP-Liberal Alliance
. He was a former senior lecturer in farm management, born in 1935, who had become a smallholder. He had contested the seat in the 1983 general election
.
2. (Frederick) Richard Willey, born 1945, was the Labour
candidate. He was the son of veteran Labour MP Fred Willey
and a member of Radnor District Council. He was a freelance educational researcher and writer.
3. Christopher John Butler, born 1950, represented the Conservative Party
. He was a special adviser to the Secretary of State for Wales
and had previously worked at the Conservative Research Department in Wales and the Political Office in 10 Downing Street.
4. Mrs Janet Mary Davies was nominated by Plaid Cymru
. She was born in 1938 and was a member of Taff Ely Borough Council.
5. Frequent election candidate and pop singer Screaming Lord Sutch
(otherwise known as David Edward Sutch) represented the Monster Raving Loony Party.
6. Roger Joseph Everest was an Independent candidate who sought election as a One Nation Conservative.
7. Andre Charles Leopold Genillard was an Independent who campaigned as a Free the World from Multiple Sclerosis candidate
By-election
A by-election is an election held to fill a political office that has become vacant between regularly scheduled elections....
held on 4 July 1985 for the British House of Commons
British House of Commons
The House of Commons is the lower house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, which also comprises the Sovereign and the House of Lords . Both Commons and Lords meet in the Palace of Westminster. The Commons is a democratically elected body, consisting of 650 members , who are known as Members...
constituency
United Kingdom constituencies
In the United Kingdom , each of the electoral areas or divisions called constituencies elects one or more members to a parliament or assembly.Within the United Kingdom there are now five bodies with members elected by constituencies:...
of Brecon and Radnor (in a later redistribution of Parliamentary seats renamed Brecon and Radnorshire, which is its name in 2007).
Previous MP
The seat had become vacant on 9 May 1985, when the constituency's ConservativeConservative Party (UK)
The Conservative Party, formally the Conservative and Unionist Party, is a centre-right political party in the United Kingdom that adheres to the philosophies of conservatism and British unionism. It is the largest political party in the UK, and is currently the largest single party in the House...
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), Tom Ellis Hooson
Tom Hooson
Tom Ellis Hooson was a British Conservative Party politician. Hooson was Member of Parliament in the United Kingdom for Brecon and Radnor. He gained the seat from Labour in 1979, and held it until he died in office in 1985 at the age of 52...
, had died at the age of 52. He was a cousin of Emlyn Hooson
Emlyn Hooson, Baron Hooson
Hugh Emlyn Hooson, Baron Hooson QC is a Liberal Democrat politician in the United Kingdom. He was the Member of Parliament for Montgomeryshire from 1962 until 1979....
, the former 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 Montgomery
Montgomery (UK Parliament constituency)
Montgomery was a constituency represented until 1707 in the House of Commons of England and later in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom...
.
Tom Hooson had been Brecon and Radnor's MP since the 1979 general election
United Kingdom general election, 1979
The United Kingdom general election of 1979 was held on 3 May 1979 to elect 635 members to the British House of Commons. The Conservative Party, led by Margaret Thatcher ousted the incumbent Labour government of James Callaghan with a parliamentary majority of 43 seats...
, when he gained the seat from the Labour Party
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...
.
Candidates
Seven candidates were nominated.1. Richard Arthur Lloyd Livsey
Richard Livsey, Baron Livsey of Talgarth
Richard Arthur Lloyd Livsey, Baron Livsey of Talgarth CBE was the son of Arthur Norman Livsey and Lilian Maisie . His father was a seacaptain who died in Iraq when Richard was just three years old. He was therefore brought up in a single parent household by his mother, Lilian, who was a local...
was the candidate of the 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...
and represented the SDP-Liberal Alliance
SDP-Liberal Alliance
The SDP–Liberal Alliance was an electoral pact formed by the Social Democratic Party and the Liberal Party in the United Kingdom which was in existence from 1981 to 1988, when the bulk of the two parties merged to form the Social and Liberal Democrats, later referred to as simply the Liberal...
. He was a former senior lecturer in farm management, born in 1935, who had become a smallholder. He had contested the seat in the 1983 general election
United Kingdom general election, 1983
The 1983 United Kingdom general election was held on 9 June 1983. It gave the Conservative Party under Margaret Thatcher the most decisive election victory since that of Labour in 1945...
.
2. (Frederick) Richard Willey, born 1945, was the 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...
candidate. He was the son of veteran Labour MP Fred Willey
Frederick Willey
Frederick Thomas Willey was a British Labour politician.Willey was educated at Johnston School and St. John's College, Cambridge, and was called to the Bar in 1936...
and a member of Radnor District Council. He was a freelance educational researcher and writer.
3. Christopher John Butler, born 1950, represented the Conservative Party
Conservative Party (UK)
The Conservative Party, formally the Conservative and Unionist Party, is a centre-right political party in the United Kingdom that adheres to the philosophies of conservatism and British unionism. It is the largest political party in the UK, and is currently the largest single party in the House...
. He was a special adviser to the Secretary of State for Wales
Secretary of State for Wales
The Secretary of State for Wales is the head of the Wales Office within the British cabinet. He or she is responsible for ensuring Welsh interests are taken into account by the government, representing the government within Wales and overseeing the passing of legislation which is only for Wales...
and had previously worked at the Conservative Research Department in Wales and the Political Office in 10 Downing Street.
4. Mrs Janet Mary Davies was nominated by Plaid Cymru
Plaid Cymru
' is a political party in Wales. It advocates the establishment of an independent Welsh state within the European Union. was formed in 1925 and won its first seat in 1966...
. She was born in 1938 and was a member of Taff Ely Borough Council.
5. Frequent election candidate and pop singer Screaming Lord Sutch
Screaming Lord Sutch
David Edward Sutch , also known as "Screaming Lord Sutch, 3rd Earl of Harrow", or simply "Screaming Lord Sutch", was a musician from the United Kingdom...
(otherwise known as David Edward Sutch) represented the Monster Raving Loony Party.
6. Roger Joseph Everest was an Independent candidate who sought election as a One Nation Conservative.
7. Andre Charles Leopold Genillard was an Independent who campaigned as a Free the World from Multiple Sclerosis candidate
Votes
See also
- Brecon and Radnorshire constituencyBrecon and Radnorshire (UK Parliament constituency)Brecon and Radnorshire is a county constituency of the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Created in 1918, it elects one Member of Parliament by the first past the post system of election; until 1997 its name was simply Brecon and Radnor.The Brecon and Radnorshire Welsh...
- List of United Kingdom by-elections
- United Kingdom by-election recordsUnited Kingdom by-election recordsUK by-election records is an annotated list of notable records from UK Parliamentary by-elections. A by-election occurs when a Member of Parliament resigns, dies, or is disqualified or expelled, and an election is held to fill the vacant seat...
Source
- Britain Votes/Europe Votes By-Election Supplement 1983-, compiled and edited by F.W.S. Craig (Parliamentary Research Services 1985)