David Penhaligon
Encyclopedia
David Charles Penhaligon (6 June 1944 – 22 December 1986) was a British politician
from Cornwall
who was a Liberal
Member of Parliament
from October 1974 until his death. He was a popular figure in all parties and had potential to be a front-runner for the party leadership had he not been killed in a car accident
.
and brought up in Truro where he attended Truro School
and then Cornwall Technical College where he studied mechanical engineering. Penhaligon worked for Holman Brothers
in Camborne
as a research and development engineer working on rock drill
ing. By 1973 he had qualified as a Chartered Mechanical Engineer; he also took over from his father a sub-post office
in Chacewater
from 1967 (after his marriage in 1968 to Annette Lidgey
, she ran the business). His Liberal activities led to some work in local broadcasting.
Penhaligon's decision to join the Liberal Party
was inspired in 1963 when he was an important witness to a murder case. His evidence, which supported the case of the defendants, was not enough to prevent them from being convicted and hanged. Penhaligon was appalled by the practice of capital punishment
. He led the Truro Young Liberals and built up the local party (which had been the weakest in Cornwall) into one of the strongest; he was the chair of the Cornish Young Liberals from 1966 to 1968. However he was not selected as Liberal candidate for Truro in the 1966 general election
(nor for any other seat), and he was also rejected for Falmouth and Camborne in 1968 apparently because his strong Cornish accent was thought unattractive.
In the 1970 general election
he fought the Devon
constituency of Totnes
when the previous candidate Paul Tyler transferred to Bodmin. He polled poorly in the context of an election in which the party as a whole suffered. However, Penhaligon had acquired useful experience of fighting election campaigns and picked up additional tips from Wallace Lawler
's practices in inner-city Birmingham
.
he won nearly 21,000 votes and cut the majority of the sitting Conservative
MP to 2,561. Truro became the fourth 'target' constituency for the Liberals for the next election — which would take place within months because of the inconclusive outcome in February.
voters in the seat to back him. In the October 1974 election
he was elected with a majority of 464 votes – the only Liberal gain of that election. Due to House of Commons
rules on 'offices of profit under the crown' he transferred his sub-postmastership to his wife
. In Parliament he swiftly won a reputation for humorous speeches, urging a national minimum wage
and increased state pensions. He voted for fellow Cornish MP John Pardoe
over David Steel
in the Liberal leadership election of 1976. He was hard to place in conventional political terms: he changed his mind over capital punishment
, initially voting against in December 1974, but supporting it in December 1975.
Although frequently speaking on national issues, it was clear that Penhaligon's main concern was local. He became known in particular for defending the Cornish tin
mining
industry and the local Fishing
fleets. He spoke with conviction and knowledge about the problems of rural areas in Cornwall with road fuel costs and inadequate infrastructure.
in support of the miners he famously said...
was first mooted in March 1977, Penhaligon was initially opposed and spoke against it. He later came round and told the Liberal Assembly in September 1977 that it had achieved an 'economic revolution'. At a special Assembly in January 1978 he was a star speaker in persuading the delegates representing Liberal members to continue the pact. The pact allowed the Liberals to influence government legislation and Penhaligon objected to proposals from Tony Benn
for an Electricity Industry Bill which would centralise control, which single-handedly prevented any progress.
Part of Penhaligon's support for the Lib-Lab pact was his fear that an early general election would result in a poor performance for the Liberals, and his own seat may be vulnerable. In October 1978 after the pact had lapsed, he explained that "Turkeys don't volunteer for Christmas!". The scandal over former party leader Jeremy Thorpe
, who was charged with conspiracy to murder in August 1978, was a matter of particular concern and Penhaligon urged Thorpe to stand down and the Liberal Party not to endorse him. When Thorpe did seek re-election, Penhaligon refused to help his campaign.
Despite his narrow majority and the belief that he was the most vulnerable of the Liberal MPs, Penhaligon kept his seat with a much larger majority (8,708) in the 1979 general election
. Against the Conservative government, he strongly opposed nuclear power
. Against the majority of Liberal Party members he strongly supported NATO and nuclear weapons, describing a separate European non-nuclear defence as 'akin to a behaving like a virgin in a brothel', although he supported demands for 'dual key control' of United States
cruise missile
s based in Britain.
from the start, although he resented SDP attempts to take control of the Liberal Party's target seats. He was named in January 1982 as one of the 'firemen' who would sort out any disagreements between the parties (John Horam
was his SDP counterpart). He was particularly prominent and impressive in the 1983 election campaign
in which he spoke for the Liberal Party on Transport, Industry and Energy; Hugo Young
described him as having "a closer grasp of national electoral politics ... than any other Liberal MP". After the election he became an early proponent of a merger between the SDP
and the Liberals under a single leader, largely to avoid disputes over allocations of Parliamentary seats.
He was appointed as Chief spokesman on the economy from 1985; though admitting he had no financial experience, he challenged the Conservative policy on privatisation and monetarism
. He was a central figure in planning the Alliance general election campaign when he was killed in a car crash in his constituency. At 6:45am on 22 December 1986, he was travelling to a constituency engagement when a van skidded on an icy road and hit his Rover SD1
car near Truck Fork, Probus, Cornwall. Penhaligon died instantly. The van driver was not prosecuted for the accident.
From July 1986, Penhaligon had employed Matthew Taylor, a University of Oxford
graduate, as his research assistant on the economy; Taylor was selected to follow him as Liberal candidate for Truro and was duly returned in the Truro by-election, 1987
. Penhaligon's widow wrote his biography
in 1989; his son Matthew is an active member of the Liberal Democrats
who was the party's candidate for the Mayoralty of Hackney
in May 2006.
Politics of the United Kingdom
The politics of the United Kingdom takes place within the framework of a constitutional monarchy, in which the Monarch is the head of state and the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom is the head of government...
from Cornwall
Cornwall
Cornwall is a unitary authority and ceremonial county of England, within the United Kingdom. It is bordered to the north and west by the Celtic Sea, to the south by the English Channel, and to the east by the county of Devon, over the River Tamar. Cornwall has a population of , and covers an area of...
who was a Liberal
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...
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,...
from October 1974 until his death. He was a popular figure in all parties and had potential to be a front-runner for the party leadership had he not been killed in a car accident
Car accident
A traffic collision, also known as a traffic accident, motor vehicle collision, motor vehicle accident, car accident, automobile accident, Road Traffic Collision or car crash, occurs when a vehicle collides with another vehicle, pedestrian, animal, road debris, or other stationary obstruction,...
.
Background
Penhaligon was born on D-DayD-Day
D-Day is a term often used in military parlance to denote the day on which a combat attack or operation is to be initiated. "D-Day" often represents a variable, designating the day upon which some significant event will occur or has occurred; see Military designation of days and hours for similar...
and brought up in Truro where he attended Truro School
Truro School
Truro School is a mixed independent school located in the city of Truro, Cornwall, UK. The current Headmaster is Paul Smith. Deputy Headteachers are Nick Fisher and Anita Firth . Phil Brewer is Assistant Head and Head of Sixth Form...
and then Cornwall Technical College where he studied mechanical engineering. Penhaligon worked for Holman Brothers
Holman Bros Ltd
Holman Brothers Ltd. was a mining equipment manufacturer founded in 1801 based in Camborne, Cornwall, UK.Holman was Camborne's, and indeed Cornwall's largest manufacturer of industrial equipment. Holman played a part in World War II making the Polish designed 20mm Polsten gun, similar to the...
in Camborne
Camborne
Camborne is a town and civil parish in west Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. It is at the western edge of a conurbation comprising Camborne, Pool and Redruth....
as a research and development engineer working on rock drill
Drill
A drill or drill motor is a tool fitted with a cutting tool attachment or driving tool attachment, usually a drill bit or driver bit, used for drilling holes in various materials or fastening various materials together with the use of fasteners. The attachment is gripped by a chuck at one end of...
ing. By 1973 he had qualified as a Chartered Mechanical Engineer; he also took over from his father a sub-post office
Post office
A post office is a facility forming part of a postal system for the posting, receipt, sorting, handling, transmission or delivery of mail.Post offices offer mail-related services such as post office boxes, postage and packaging supplies...
in Chacewater
Chacewater
Chacewater is a village and civil parish in Cornwall, United Kingdom. It is situated approximately three miles east of Redruth.-Village:...
from 1967 (after his marriage in 1968 to Annette Lidgey
Annette Penhaligon
Dame Annette Lidgey Egerton , DBE is a British politician.She was born to Owen Bennett Lidgey and Mabel Richards Lidgey, and was educated at Truro Girls' School, Truro. In 1968, she married the Liberal politician David Penhaligon...
, she ran the business). His Liberal activities led to some work in local broadcasting.
Penhaligon's decision to join 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...
was inspired in 1963 when he was an important witness to a murder case. His evidence, which supported the case of the defendants, was not enough to prevent them from being convicted and hanged. Penhaligon was appalled by the practice of capital punishment
Capital punishment
Capital punishment, the death penalty, or execution is the sentence of death upon a person by the state as a punishment for an offence. Crimes that can result in a death penalty are known as capital crimes or capital offences. The term capital originates from the Latin capitalis, literally...
. He led the Truro Young Liberals and built up the local party (which had been the weakest in Cornwall) into one of the strongest; he was the chair of the Cornish Young Liberals from 1966 to 1968. However he was not selected as Liberal candidate for Truro in the 1966 general election
United Kingdom general election, 1966
The 1966 United Kingdom general election on 31 March 1966 was called by sitting Labour Prime Minister Harold Wilson. Wilson's decision to call an election turned on the fact that his government, elected a mere 17 months previously in 1964 had an unworkably small majority of only 4 MPs...
(nor for any other seat), and he was also rejected for Falmouth and Camborne in 1968 apparently because his strong Cornish accent was thought unattractive.
In the 1970 general election
United Kingdom general election, 1970
The United Kingdom general election of 1970 was held on 18 June 1970, and resulted in a surprise victory for the Conservative Party under leader Edward Heath, who defeated the Labour Party under Harold Wilson. The election also saw the Liberal Party and its new leader Jeremy Thorpe lose half their...
he fought the Devon
Devon
Devon is a large county in southwestern England. The county is sometimes referred to as Devonshire, although the term is rarely used inside the county itself as the county has never been officially "shired", it often indicates a traditional or historical context.The county shares borders with...
constituency of Totnes
Totnes (UK Parliament constituency)
Totnes is a county constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It elects one Member of Parliament , using the first-past-the-post voting system....
when the previous candidate Paul Tyler transferred to Bodmin. He polled poorly in the context of an election in which the party as a whole suffered. However, Penhaligon had acquired useful experience of fighting election campaigns and picked up additional tips from 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...
's practices in inner-city 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...
.
Campaigning in Truro
In 1971 Penhaligon was easily selected as candidate for Truro, a seat which did not look an easier prospect than Totnes. This gave him three years in which to get his name known and meet his prospective constituents (a practice known as 'nursing' a constituency) and when the election came in February 1974United Kingdom general election, February 1974
The United Kingdom's general election of February 1974 was held on the 28th of that month. It was the first of two United Kingdom general elections held that year, and the first election since the Second World War not to produce an overall majority in the House of Commons for the winning party,...
he won nearly 21,000 votes and cut the majority of the sitting Conservative
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...
MP to 2,561. Truro became the fourth 'target' constituency for the Liberals for the next election — which would take place within months because of the inconclusive outcome in February.
Parliamentary activity
Penhaligon was readopted and worked on trying to persuade the remaining LabourLabour 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...
voters in the seat to back him. In the October 1974 election
United Kingdom general election, October 1974
The United Kingdom general election of October 1974 took place on 10 October 1974 to elect 635 members to the British House of Commons. It was the second general election of that year and resulted in the Labour Party led by Harold Wilson, winning by a tiny majority of 3 seats.The election of...
he was elected with a majority of 464 votes – the only Liberal gain of that election. Due to 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...
rules on 'offices of profit under the crown' he transferred his sub-postmastership to his wife
Annette Penhaligon
Dame Annette Lidgey Egerton , DBE is a British politician.She was born to Owen Bennett Lidgey and Mabel Richards Lidgey, and was educated at Truro Girls' School, Truro. In 1968, she married the Liberal politician David Penhaligon...
. In Parliament he swiftly won a reputation for humorous speeches, urging a national minimum wage
Minimum wage
A minimum wage is the lowest hourly, daily or monthly remuneration that employers may legally pay to workers. Equivalently, it is the lowest wage at which workers may sell their labour. Although minimum wage laws are in effect in a great many jurisdictions, there are differences of opinion about...
and increased state pensions. He voted for fellow Cornish MP John Pardoe
John Pardoe
John Wentworth Pardoe is a retired British businessman and Liberal Party politician.-Education:Educated at Corpus Christi College, Cambridge, he was active in the famous Footlights Society; one critic of their 1955 revue panned future comedian Jonathan Miller whilst predicting a bold comedic...
over David Steel
David Steel
David Martin Scott Steel, Baron Steel of Aikwood, KT, KBE, PC is a British Liberal Democrat politician who served as the Leader of the Liberal Party from 1976 until its merger with the Social Democratic Party in 1988 to form the Liberal Democrats...
in the Liberal leadership election of 1976. He was hard to place in conventional political terms: he changed his mind over capital punishment
Capital punishment
Capital punishment, the death penalty, or execution is the sentence of death upon a person by the state as a punishment for an offence. Crimes that can result in a death penalty are known as capital crimes or capital offences. The term capital originates from the Latin capitalis, literally...
, initially voting against in December 1974, but supporting it in December 1975.
Although frequently speaking on national issues, it was clear that Penhaligon's main concern was local. He became known in particular for defending the Cornish tin
Tin
Tin is a chemical element with the symbol Sn and atomic number 50. It is a main group metal in group 14 of the periodic table. Tin shows chemical similarity to both neighboring group 14 elements, germanium and lead and has two possible oxidation states, +2 and the slightly more stable +4...
mining
Mining
Mining is the extraction of valuable minerals or other geological materials from the earth, from an ore body, vein or seam. The term also includes the removal of soil. Materials recovered by mining include base metals, precious metals, iron, uranium, coal, diamonds, limestone, oil shale, rock...
industry and the local Fishing
Fishery
Generally, a fishery is an entity engaged in raising or harvesting fish which is determined by some authority to be a fishery. According to the FAO, a fishery is typically defined in terms of the "people involved, species or type of fish, area of water or seabed, method of fishing, class of boats,...
fleets. He spoke with conviction and knowledge about the problems of rural areas in Cornwall with road fuel costs and inadequate infrastructure.
Tourism, ice cream and deckchairs
In a speech made at CamborneCamborne
Camborne is a town and civil parish in west Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. It is at the western edge of a conurbation comprising Camborne, Pool and Redruth....
in support of the miners he famously said...
Lib-Lab pact
When the Lib-Lab pactLib-Lab pact
In British politics, a Lib-Lab pact is a working arrangement between the Liberal Democrats and the Labour Party.There have been four such arrangements, and one alleged proposal, at the national level...
was first mooted in March 1977, Penhaligon was initially opposed and spoke against it. He later came round and told the Liberal Assembly in September 1977 that it had achieved an 'economic revolution'. At a special Assembly in January 1978 he was a star speaker in persuading the delegates representing Liberal members to continue the pact. The pact allowed the Liberals to influence government legislation and Penhaligon objected to proposals from Tony Benn
Tony Benn
Anthony Neil Wedgwood "Tony" Benn, PC is a British Labour Party politician and a former MP and Cabinet Minister.His successful campaign to renounce his hereditary peerage was instrumental in the creation of the Peerage Act 1963...
for an Electricity Industry Bill which would centralise control, which single-handedly prevented any progress.
Part of Penhaligon's support for the Lib-Lab pact was his fear that an early general election would result in a poor performance for the Liberals, and his own seat may be vulnerable. In October 1978 after the pact had lapsed, he explained that "Turkeys don't volunteer for Christmas!". The scandal over former party leader Jeremy Thorpe
Jeremy Thorpe
John Jeremy Thorpe is a British former politician who was leader of the Liberal Party from 1967 to 1976 and was the Member of Parliament for North Devon from 1959 to 1979. His political career was damaged when an acquaintance, Norman Scott, claimed to have had a love affair with Thorpe at a time...
, who was charged with conspiracy to murder in August 1978, was a matter of particular concern and Penhaligon urged Thorpe to stand down and the Liberal Party not to endorse him. When Thorpe did seek re-election, Penhaligon refused to help his campaign.
Despite his narrow majority and the belief that he was the most vulnerable of the Liberal MPs, Penhaligon kept his seat with a much larger majority (8,708) in 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...
. Against the Conservative government, he strongly opposed nuclear power
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...
. Against the majority of Liberal Party members he strongly supported NATO and nuclear weapons, describing a separate European non-nuclear defence as 'akin to a behaving like a virgin in a brothel', although he supported demands for 'dual key control' of United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
cruise missile
Cruise missile
A cruise missile is a guided missile that carries an explosive payload and is propelled, usually by a jet engine, towards a land-based or sea-based target. Cruise missiles are designed to deliver a large warhead over long distances with high accuracy...
s based in Britain.
In the Alliance
Penhaligon supported the SDP-Liberal AllianceSDP-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...
from the start, although he resented SDP attempts to take control of the Liberal Party's target seats. He was named in January 1982 as one of the 'firemen' who would sort out any disagreements between the parties (John Horam
John Horam
John Rhodes Horam is a politician in the United Kingdom. He sat in the House of Commons for two separate periods between 1970 and 2010, as a member of three different political parties, latterly as the Conservative Party Member of Parliament for Orpington until 2010.-Early life:Horam was born in...
was his SDP counterpart). He was particularly prominent and impressive in the 1983 election campaign
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...
in which he spoke for the Liberal Party on Transport, Industry and Energy; Hugo Young
Hugo Young
Hugo John Smelter Young was a British journalist and columnist and senior political commentator at The Guardian.-Early life and education:...
described him as having "a closer grasp of national electoral politics ... than any other Liberal MP". After the election he became an early proponent of a merger between the SDP
Social Democratic Party (UK)
The Social Democratic Party was a political party in the United Kingdom that was created on 26 March 1981 and existed until 1988. It was founded by four senior Labour Party 'moderates', dubbed the 'Gang of Four': Roy Jenkins, David Owen, Bill Rodgers and Shirley Williams...
and the Liberals under a single leader, largely to avoid disputes over allocations of Parliamentary seats.
Career cut short
From 1983 Penhaligon headed the Liberal by-election unit which planned the campaigns in individual seats. At the Liberal Assembly in September 1984 he was chosen as President-elect of the Liberal Party (the first sitting MP to be elected to the post), and served as Party President from 1985 to 1986. This carried with it the job of presiding over the Liberal Assembly at the end of his term, which saw a party split over defence policy and whether to support nuclear weapons; Penhaligon did not intervene, something he regretted afterwards.He was appointed as Chief spokesman on the economy from 1985; though admitting he had no financial experience, he challenged the Conservative policy on privatisation and monetarism
Monetarism
Monetarism is a tendency in economic thought that emphasizes the role of governments in controlling the amount of money in circulation. It is the view within monetary economics that variation in the money supply has major influences on national output in the short run and the price level over...
. He was a central figure in planning the Alliance general election campaign when he was killed in a car crash in his constituency. At 6:45am on 22 December 1986, he was travelling to a constituency engagement when a van skidded on an icy road and hit his Rover SD1
Rover SD1
Rover SD1 is both the code name and eventual production name given to a series of large executive cars made by British Leyland or BL through its Specialist, Rover Triumph and Austin Rover divisions from 1976 until 1986....
car near Truck Fork, Probus, Cornwall. Penhaligon died instantly. The van driver was not prosecuted for the accident.
From July 1986, Penhaligon had employed Matthew Taylor, a University of Oxford
University of Oxford
The University of Oxford is a university located in Oxford, United Kingdom. It is the second-oldest surviving university in the world and the oldest in the English-speaking world. Although its exact date of foundation is unclear, there is evidence of teaching as far back as 1096...
graduate, as his research assistant on the economy; Taylor was selected to follow him as Liberal candidate for Truro and was duly returned in the Truro by-election, 1987
Truro by-election, 1987
The Truro by-election, 1987, was caused by the death of David Penhaligon, the Liberal Member of Parliament for Truro on 22 December 1986 in a car crash near the city. The election was held on 12 March 1987...
. Penhaligon's widow wrote his biography
Biography
A biography is a detailed description or account of someone's life. More than a list of basic facts , biography also portrays the subject's experience of those events...
in 1989; his son Matthew is an active member of the Liberal Democrats
Liberal Democrats
The Liberal Democrats are a social liberal political party in the United Kingdom which supports constitutional and electoral reform, progressive taxation, wealth taxation, human rights laws, cultural liberalism, banking reform and civil liberties .The party was formed in 1988 by a merger of the...
who was the party's candidate for the Mayoralty of Hackney
London Borough of Hackney
The London Borough of Hackney is a London borough of North/North East London, and forms part of inner London. The local authority is Hackney London Borough Council....
in May 2006.