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John Smith (UK politician)
Encyclopedia
John Smith was a British
Labour Party
politician
who served as Leader of the Labour Party from July 1992 until his sudden death from a heart attack
in May 1994. He first entered parliament in 1970 and was the Secretary of State for Trade from 1978–1979 and then the Shadow Chancellor of the Exchequer
under Neil Kinnock
from 1987-1992.
, the son of a Headmaster, and grew up in Ardrishaig
in Argyll and Bute
. He attended Dunoon Grammar School
(Dunoon
, Cowal
), lodging in the town with a landlady and going home only during the holidays, before enrolling at the University of Glasgow
, where he studied History
from the Autumn of 1956 to 1959, and then Law
, from 1959 to 1962. He joined the Labour Party in 1956.
He became involved in debating
with the Glasgow University Dialectic Society
and the Glasgow University Union
. In 1962, he won The Observer
Mace debating competition, speaking with Gordon Hunter. In 1995, after his death, the competition was renamed the John Smith Memorial Mace
in his honour.
After graduating, Smith practised as a solicitor
for a year. He was then elected to the Faculty of Advocates
, and later to the British Parliament as an MP. He took silk, becoming a Queens Counsel in 1983.
in the East Fife constituency, and contested that seat again in the 1964 general election
. At the 1970 general election
he was elected as Member of Parliament
(MP) for North Lanarkshire
succeeding Peggy Herbison. Smith defied the Labour whips in 1971, joining the Labour MPs who, led by Roy Jenkins, voted in favour of entry to the European Economic Community
. These included Roy Hattersley
, Shirley Williams, Bill Rodgers
and David Owen
all of whom he was later to sit with in the Callaghan cabinet.
. Smith turned it down, not wishing his political career to become sidelined as a law officer. He was instead made an Under-Secretary
of State at the Department of Energy. In December 1975 he was made a Minister of State
. When James Callaghan
became Prime Minister, Smith became a Minister of State at the Privy Council Office
, serving with Labour's Deputy leader, Michael Foot, the Lord President of the Council
and Leader of the House of Commons
. In this position Smith piloted the highly controversial devolution
proposals for Scotland and Wales through the House of Commons
. Smith's adroit handling of these proposals impressed Callaghan, and in November 1978, when Edmund Dell
retired, Callaghan appointed Smith Secretary of State for Trade. In this post, Smith was the youngest member of the cabinet, and served there until the 1979 general election
.
in 1983, the same year that the constituency became Monklands East
. Smith acted as Roy Hattersley
's campaign manager for the party leadership election in October 1983
and after serving a year as Shadow Employment Secretary
, was Shadow Secretary of State for Trade and Industry
between late 1984 and 1987.
whilst Shadow Chancellor of the Exchequer
on 9 October 1988 and was forced to spend three months away from Westminster
to recover. On that occasion, he had complained of chest pains the night before, and had to be persuaded to cancel a flight to London so he could go to hospital for a check up. He was examined at the Edinburgh Royal Infirmary
by an ECG
. The doctor who examined him said "Whatever it is, we don't think it is your heart". Then Smith suddenly collapsed and was briefly unconscious before coming around. He spent three days in intensive care before leaving hospital on 20 October 1988, to make a full recovery.
Smith made modifications to his lifestyle by going on a 1,000 calorie diet, cutting down on rich foods and fine wines, giving up smoking and taking up Munro bagging and by the time of his death he had succeeded in climbing 108 of the 277 Scottish Munros (mountains over 3,000 feet above sea level at the summit). His weight dropped from 15 stone
5 pounds (98 kg) at the time of the first heart attack, to 12 stone 10 pounds (81 kg) when he returned to Parliament on 23 January 1989.
Despite a quiet, modest manner, and his politically moderate stance, he was a witty, often scathing speaker. Smith was named as Parliamentarian of the year twice; the first time in November 1986 for his performances during the Westland controversy
, during which Leon Brittan
resigned and the second was in November 1989 for taking Nigel Lawson
to task over the state of the economy and over his difficult relationship with Sir Alan Walters, the Prime Minister's Economic Adviser. Smith made two notably witty attacks on Lawson that year. On 7 June 1989 he sang the theme tune for the soap Neighbours
at the dispatch box, lampooning the differences between Lawson and Sir Alan Walters
, who was critical of Lawson's policies (Thatcher still refused to sack him). Then on 24 October he made another scathing attack on the differences. Two days later, Lawson resigned, followed shortly afterwards by Sir Alan.
, Neil Kinnock resigned as leader and Smith was elected
Labour leader.
Although Labour had now been out of power for 13 years, their performance at that general election had been much better than their performance at the previous three. They had cut the Tory majority from 144 seats to a mere 21, and for most of the three years leading up to the election opinion polls had indicated that Labour were more likely to win the election than the Tories were. However, the resignation of long-serving but at that point hugely unpopular Tory prime minister Margaret Thatcher
and the well-received election of John Major
as her successor had seen the comfortable Labour lead in the opinion polls wiped out and in the 17 months leading up to the election its outcome had become much less predictable. Much of the blame had been placed on Labour's "shadow budget" drawn up by Smith, which included raising the top rate of income tax from 40p in the pound to 50p, and the Tory election campaign was centred on warning voters that they would face higher taxes under a Labour government.
In September 1992, he made his maiden speech as party leader, about the Government's ERM
debacle eight days earlier, saying that John Major was "The devalued Prime Minister of a devalued Government". At the party conference he referred to Major and Norman Lamont as being the Laurel and Hardy
of British politics. This echoed his attacks on Major's government which he had made before the 1992 election while still shadow chancellor, most memorably when he attacked Tory plans for cutting income tax to 20% as "irresponsible" and joked at a Labour Party rally in Sheffield
that the Tories would have a box office disaster with "Honey, I Shrunk the Economy" - in reference to the recent Disney motion picture Honey, I Shrunk the Kids
- mocking the recession which was plaguing the British economy at the time.
In a June 1993 debate, Smith again savaged the Conservative Government, saying that under John Major's
premiership, "The man with the non-midas
touch is in charge. It is no wonder that we live in a country where the Grand National
does not start and hotels fall into the sea
". During the same debate, Smith referred to a recent Government defeat in the Newbury by-election
, a poor showing in the local elections, and a subsequent Cabinet reshuffle by saying that, "If we were to offer that tale of events to the BBC Light Entertainment Department as a script for a programme, I think that the producers of Yes Minister
would have turned it down as hopelessly over the top. It might have even been too much for Some Mothers Do 'Ave 'Em
". He also performed very well in the motion of confidence debate
in the Conservative government in July 1993.
Despite his dispatch box successes (Smith was always more effective in the House of Commons than on platforms or at Prime Minister's Questions
, though he began to improve at the latter during the final months of his life), Tony Blair
and Gordon Brown
were, under Smith's leadership, restless and anxious in private that the party had adopted a "one more heave" approach and had become overly cautious in tackling the legacy of "tax and spend
".
Despite this, during his time as leader of the Labour Party Smith abolished the trade union
block vote at Labour party conferences
, and replaced it with "one member one vote" at the 1993 party conference and committed a future Labour government to establishing a Scottish Parliament
, a policy which was followed through by his successors (most notably his close friend Donald Dewar
) after his death. Also, during his time as leader, the Labour party gained a significant lead in the polls over the Conservatives
and on 5 May 1994 the Conservatives received a severe defeat in the council elections in Britain, their worst for over 30 years, despite the strong economic recovery and fall in unemployment that had followed the declaration of the recession's end in April 1993.Labour's opinion poll lead was shown to be as high as 23% in early May 1994.
, London with around 500 people present, saying famously "The opportunity to serve our country - that is all we ask". The following morning, at 8:05am, whilst in his Barbican
flat, Smith suffered a massive heart attack. His wife phoned an ambulance and he was rushed to Saint Bartholomew's Hospital
where he died at 9:15am on 12 May 1994 having never regained consciousness. Only two weeks before his death, on 28 April, Smith had visited the same accident and emergency department to campaign against its proposed closure. The very doctor who served as his tour guide, Professor Mike Besser, two weeks later tried unsuccessfully to save Smith's life.
In response to his death, John Major made a fitting tribute in the House of Commons to Smith, culminating in the now well-known line, that Smith "would share a drink: sometimes tea, sometimes not tea". It was reported that there was weeping in the chamber.
On the day of his death, the BBC 9 O'Clock News was extended to an hour as opposed to the usual half hour. This replaced the medical drama which was due to follow at 9:30, coincidentally entitled Cardiac Arrest
. That evening Question Time was held, and the panellists paid tribute to Smith, instead of debating. They included George Robertson
and Menzies Campbell
.
On 20 May 1994, after a funeral in Cluny Parish Church, Edinburgh
attended by 900 people and after which 3,000 people lined the streets, Smith was buried in a private family funeral on the island of Iona
, at the sacred burial ground of Reilig Odhráin, which contains the graves of several Scottish kings as well as monarchs of Ireland, Norway and France. On 14 July 1994, his memorial service was attended in Westminster Abbey
by over 2,000 people. The Archbishop of Canterbury
gave an address.
Following Smith's death, the Labour Party renamed its party headquarters in Walworth Road John Smith House in his memory.
debacle and ongoing Conservative divisions over Europe between 1992 and 1997; however, Stuart argues that the lack of a Blair effect would have meant that the Conservative Party would have held slightly over 200 seats in the House of Commons, leaving the Conservatives in a position similar to that of Labour in 1983 than to the actual Conservative result in 1997. The sense that Smith's untimely death cheated him of the premiership may well have contributed to the nostalgia for his leadership by the Labour left, although Smith was always on the Gaitskellite wing of the party. This is borne out by the warm tributes paid to him after his death by figures on the left of the party such as Tony Benn
, Dennis Skinner
and Ken Livingstone
.
in 1995. They had three daughters, one of whom, Sarah Smith, used to be Washington correspondent for Channel 4
news.
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United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
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...
politician
Politician
A politician, political leader, or political figure is an individual who is involved in influencing public policy and decision making...
who served as Leader of the Labour Party from July 1992 until his sudden death from a heart attack
Myocardial infarction
Myocardial infarction or acute myocardial infarction , commonly known as a heart attack, results from the interruption of blood supply to a part of the heart, causing heart cells to die...
in May 1994. He first entered parliament in 1970 and was the Secretary of State for Trade from 1978–1979 and then the Shadow Chancellor of the Exchequer
Shadow Chancellor of the Exchequer
The Shadow Chancellor of the Exchequer in the British Parliamentary system is the member of the Shadow Cabinet who is responsible for shadowing the Chancellor of the Exchequer. The title is in the gift of the Leader of the Opposition but is informal. The Shadow Chancellor has no constitutional...
under Neil Kinnock
Neil Kinnock
Neil Gordon Kinnock, Baron Kinnock is a Welsh politician belonging to the Labour Party. He served as a Member of Parliament from 1970 until 1995 and as Labour Leader and Leader of Her Majesty's Loyal Opposition from 1983 until 1992 - his leadership of the party during nearly nine years making him...
from 1987-1992.
Early life
Smith was born in DalmallyDalmally
Dalmally is a village in Argyll and Bute, Scotland. It is located near the A85 road and is served by Dalmally railway station....
, the son of a Headmaster, and grew up in Ardrishaig
Ardrishaig
Ardrishaig is a lochside village at the southern entrance to the Crinan Canal in west Scotland, in Argyll. Ardrishaig had 1,283 inhabitants in 2001....
in Argyll and Bute
Argyll and Bute
Argyll and Bute is both one of 32 unitary council areas; and a Lieutenancy area in Scotland. The administrative centre for the council area is located in Lochgilphead.Argyll and Bute covers the second largest administrative area of any Scottish council...
. He attended Dunoon Grammar School
Dunoon Grammar School
Dunoon Grammar School is a secondary school in Dunoon, Argyll, Scotland. It was founded in 1641.It is currently a non-denominational comprehensive school which covers all stages from S1 to S6 .-Building:...
(Dunoon
Dunoon
Dunoon is a resort town situated on the Cowal Peninsula in Argyll, Scotland. It sits on the Firth of Clyde to the south of Holy Loch and to the west of Gourock.-Waterfront:...
, Cowal
Cowal
thumb|Cowal shown within ArgyllCowal is a peninsula in Argyll and Bute in the Scottish Highlands.-Description:The northern part of Cowal is mostly the mountainous Argyll Forest Park. Cowal is separated from the Kintyre peninsula to the west by Loch Fyne, and from Inverclyde and North Ayrshire to...
), lodging in the town with a landlady and going home only during the holidays, before enrolling at the University of Glasgow
University of Glasgow
The University of Glasgow is the fourth-oldest university in the English-speaking world and one of Scotland's four ancient universities. Located in Glasgow, the university was founded in 1451 and is presently one of seventeen British higher education institutions ranked amongst the top 100 of the...
, where he studied History
History
History is the discovery, collection, organization, and presentation of information about past events. History can also mean the period of time after writing was invented. Scholars who write about history are called historians...
from the Autumn of 1956 to 1959, and then Law
University of Glasgow School of Law
The School of Law at the University of Glasgow provides undergraduate and postgraduate courses in Law, and awards the degrees of Bachelor of Laws , Master of Laws , Master of Science , Master of Research and Doctor of Philosophy , the degree of Doctor of Laws...
, from 1959 to 1962. He joined the Labour Party in 1956.
He became involved in debating
Debate
Debate or debating is a method of interactive and representational argument. Debate is a broader form of argument than logical argument, which only examines consistency from axiom, and factual argument, which only examines what is or isn't the case or rhetoric which is a technique of persuasion...
with the Glasgow University Dialectic Society
Glasgow University Dialectic Society
The Glasgow University Dialectic Society, re-instituted in 1861, is a student society at the University of Glasgow, Scotland, committed to the promotion of debating, logic, ethics and literary discussion at the University...
and the Glasgow University Union
Glasgow University Union
Glasgow University Union is one of the largest and oldest students' unions in the UK, serving students and alumni of the University of Glasgow since 1885....
. In 1962, he won The Observer
The Observer
The Observer is a British newspaper, published on Sundays. In the same place on the political spectrum as its daily sister paper The Guardian, which acquired it in 1993, it takes a liberal or social democratic line on most issues. It is the world's oldest Sunday newspaper.-Origins:The first issue,...
Mace debating competition, speaking with Gordon Hunter. In 1995, after his death, the competition was renamed the John Smith Memorial Mace
John Smith Memorial Mace
The John Smith Memorial Mace is an annual debating tournament contested by universities in England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales....
in his honour.
After graduating, Smith practised as a solicitor
Solicitor
Solicitors are lawyers who traditionally deal with any legal matter including conducting proceedings in courts. In the United Kingdom, a few Australian states and the Republic of Ireland, the legal profession is split between solicitors and barristers , and a lawyer will usually only hold one title...
for a year. He was then elected to the Faculty of Advocates
Faculty of Advocates
The Faculty of Advocates is an independent body of lawyers who have been admitted to practise as advocates before the courts of Scotland, especially the Court of Session and the High Court of Justiciary...
, and later to the British Parliament as an MP. He took silk, becoming a Queens Counsel in 1983.
Member of Parliament
Smith first stood as a Labour parliamentary candidate at a by-election in 1961East Fife by-election, 1961
The East Fife by-election, 1961 was a by-election held for the British House of Commons constituency of East Fife in Scotland on 9 November 1961. It was won by the Conservative and National Liberal candidate Sir John E...
in the East Fife constituency, and contested that seat again in the 1964 general election
United Kingdom general election, 1964
The United Kingdom general election of 1964 was held on 15 October 1964, more than five years after the preceding election, and thirteen years after the Conservative Party had retaken power...
. At 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 was elected as 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) for North Lanarkshire
North Lanarkshire (UK Parliament constituency)
North Lanarkshire was a county constituency of the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom from 1868 to 1885 and from 1918 to 1983...
succeeding Peggy Herbison. Smith defied the Labour whips in 1971, joining the Labour MPs who, led by Roy Jenkins, voted in favour of entry to the European Economic Community
European Economic Community
The European Economic Community The European Economic Community (EEC) The European Economic Community (EEC) (also known as the Common Market in the English-speaking world, renamed the European Community (EC) in 1993The information in this article primarily covers the EEC's time as an independent...
. These included Roy Hattersley
Roy Hattersley
Roy Sydney George Hattersley, Baron Hattersley is a British Labour politician, author and journalist from Sheffield. He served as Deputy Leader of the Labour Party from 1983 to 1992.-Early life:...
, Shirley Williams, Bill Rodgers
Bill Rodgers
William or Bill Rodgers may refer to:*William Rodgers, Baron Rodgers of Quarry Bank , British politician*Bill Rodgers , American marathon runner*Bill Rodgers , American MLB player...
and David Owen
David Owen
David Anthony Llewellyn Owen, Baron Owen CH PC FRCP is a British politician.Owen served as British Foreign Secretary from 1977 to 1979, the youngest person in over forty years to hold the post; he co-authored the failed Vance-Owen and Owen-Stoltenberg peace plans offered during the Bosnian War...
all of whom he was later to sit with in the Callaghan cabinet.
In Government
In October 1974, Harold Wilson offered Smith the post of Solicitor General for ScotlandSolicitor General for Scotland
Her Majesty's Solicitor General for Scotland is one of the Law Officers of the Crown, and the deputy of the Lord Advocate, whose duty is to advise the Crown and the Scottish Government on Scots Law...
. Smith turned it down, not wishing his political career to become sidelined as a law officer. He was instead made an Under-Secretary
Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State
A Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State is the lowest of three tiers of government minister in the government of the United Kingdom, junior to both a Minister of State and a Secretary of State....
of State at the Department of Energy. In December 1975 he was made a Minister of State
Minister of State
Minister of State is a title borne by politicians or officials in certain countries governed under a parliamentary system. In some countries a "minister of state" is a junior minister, who is assigned to assist a specific cabinet minister...
. When James Callaghan
James Callaghan
Leonard James Callaghan, Baron Callaghan of Cardiff, KG, PC , was a British Labour politician, who was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1976 to 1979 and Leader of the Labour Party from 1976 to 1980...
became Prime Minister, Smith became a Minister of State at the Privy Council Office
Privy Council Office (United Kingdom)
The Privy Council Office provides secretarial and administrative support to the Lord President of the Council in his or her capacity of president of Her Majesty's Most Honourable Privy Council. The head of the Office is the Clerk of the Privy Council...
, serving with Labour's Deputy leader, Michael Foot, the Lord President of the Council
Lord President of the Council
The Lord President of the Council is the fourth of the Great Officers of State of the United Kingdom, ranking beneath the Lord High Treasurer and above the Lord Privy Seal. The Lord President usually attends each meeting of the Privy Council, presenting business for the monarch's approval...
and Leader of the House of Commons
Leader of the House of Commons
The Leader of the House of Commons is a member of the Cabinet of the United Kingdom who is responsible for arranging government business in the House of Commons...
. In this position Smith piloted the highly controversial devolution
Devolution
Devolution is the statutory granting of powers from the central government of a sovereign state to government at a subnational level, such as a regional, local, or state level. Devolution can be mainly financial, e.g. giving areas a budget which was formerly administered by central government...
proposals for Scotland and Wales through the 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...
. Smith's adroit handling of these proposals impressed Callaghan, and in November 1978, when Edmund Dell
Edmund Dell
Edmund Emanuel Dell was a British politician and businessman.Dell was born in London, the son of a Jewish manufacturer. In World War II he served in the Rifle Corps and the Royal Artillery, leaving as a first lieutenant...
retired, Callaghan appointed Smith Secretary of State for Trade. In this post, Smith was the youngest member of the cabinet, and served there until 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...
.
Shadow Cabinet
In the early 1980s Smith was Shadow Energy Secretary. He became a QCQueen's Counsel
Queen's Counsel , known as King's Counsel during the reign of a male sovereign, are lawyers appointed by letters patent to be one of Her [or His] Majesty's Counsel learned in the law...
in 1983, the same year that the constituency became Monklands East
Monklands East (UK Parliament constituency)
Monklands East was a constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom from 1983 until 1997. It elected one Member of Parliament by the first past the post voting system...
. Smith acted as Roy Hattersley
Roy Hattersley
Roy Sydney George Hattersley, Baron Hattersley is a British Labour politician, author and journalist from Sheffield. He served as Deputy Leader of the Labour Party from 1983 to 1992.-Early life:...
's campaign manager for the party leadership election in October 1983
Labour Party (UK) leadership election, 1983
The Labour Party leadership election of 1983 was an election in the United Kingdom for the leadership of the Labour Party. It occurred when former leader Michael Foot resigned after winning only 209 seats at the 1983 general election — a loss of 70 seats compared to their performance at the...
and after serving a year as Shadow Employment Secretary
Secretary of State for Employment
The Secretary of State for Employment was a position in the Cabinet of the United Kingdom. In 1995 it was merged with Secretary of State for Education to make the Secretary of State for Education and Employment...
, was Shadow Secretary of State for Trade and Industry
Secretary of State for Trade and Industry
The Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills is a cabinet position in the United Kingdom government. Its secondary title is the President of the Board of Trade...
between late 1984 and 1987.
Shadow Chancellor of the Exchequer
Smith was appointed Shadow Chancellor by Neil Kinnock in July 1987 after Party's general election defeat. However, he suffered a heart attackMyocardial infarction
Myocardial infarction or acute myocardial infarction , commonly known as a heart attack, results from the interruption of blood supply to a part of the heart, causing heart cells to die...
whilst Shadow Chancellor of the Exchequer
Shadow Chancellor of the Exchequer
The Shadow Chancellor of the Exchequer in the British Parliamentary system is the member of the Shadow Cabinet who is responsible for shadowing the Chancellor of the Exchequer. The title is in the gift of the Leader of the Opposition but is informal. The Shadow Chancellor has no constitutional...
on 9 October 1988 and was forced to spend three months away from Westminster
Parliament of the United Kingdom
The Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the supreme legislative body in the United Kingdom, British Crown dependencies and British overseas territories, located in London...
to recover. On that occasion, he had complained of chest pains the night before, and had to be persuaded to cancel a flight to London so he could go to hospital for a check up. He was examined at the Edinburgh Royal Infirmary
Edinburgh Royal Infirmary
The Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh or RIE, sometimes mistakenly referred to as Edinburgh Royal Infirmary or ERI, was established in 1729 and is the oldest voluntary hospital in Scotland. The new buildings of 1879 were claimed to be the largest voluntary hospital in the United Kingdom, and later on...
by an ECG
Electrocardiogram
Electrocardiography is a transthoracic interpretation of the electrical activity of the heart over a period of time, as detected by electrodes attached to the outer surface of the skin and recorded by a device external to the body...
. The doctor who examined him said "Whatever it is, we don't think it is your heart". Then Smith suddenly collapsed and was briefly unconscious before coming around. He spent three days in intensive care before leaving hospital on 20 October 1988, to make a full recovery.
Smith made modifications to his lifestyle by going on a 1,000 calorie diet, cutting down on rich foods and fine wines, giving up smoking and taking up Munro bagging and by the time of his death he had succeeded in climbing 108 of the 277 Scottish Munros (mountains over 3,000 feet above sea level at the summit). His weight dropped from 15 stone
Stone (weight)
The stone is a units of measurement that was used in many North European countries until the advent of metrication. It value, which ranged from 3 kg to 12 kg, varied from city to city and also often from commodity to commodity...
5 pounds (98 kg) at the time of the first heart attack, to 12 stone 10 pounds (81 kg) when he returned to Parliament on 23 January 1989.
Despite a quiet, modest manner, and his politically moderate stance, he was a witty, often scathing speaker. Smith was named as Parliamentarian of the year twice; the first time in November 1986 for his performances during the Westland controversy
Westland affair
The Westland affair was a political scandal for the British Conservative government of Margaret Thatcher in 1986. The argument was a result of differences of opinion within the government as to the future of the United Kingdom helicopter industry. The struggling Westland company, Britain's last...
, during which Leon Brittan
Leon Brittan, Baron Brittan of Spennithorne
Sir Leon Brittan, Baron Brittan of Spennithorne, QC, PC, DL is a British barrister, politician and former Conservative Member of Parliament, as well as former member of the European Commission and former Home Secretary of the United Kingdom...
resigned and the second was in November 1989 for taking Nigel Lawson
Nigel Lawson
Nigel Lawson, Baron Lawson of Blaby, PC , is a British Conservative politician and journalist. He was a Member of Parliament representing the constituency of Blaby from 1974–92, and served as the Chancellor of the Exchequer in the government of Margaret Thatcher from June 1983 to October 1989...
to task over the state of the economy and over his difficult relationship with Sir Alan Walters, the Prime Minister's Economic Adviser. Smith made two notably witty attacks on Lawson that year. On 7 June 1989 he sang the theme tune for the soap Neighbours
Neighbours
Neighbours is an Australian television soap opera first broadcast on the Seven Network on 18 March 1985. It was created by TV executive Reg Watson, who proposed the idea of making a show that focused on realistic stories and portrayed adults and teenagers who talk openly and solve their problems...
at the dispatch box, lampooning the differences between Lawson and Sir Alan Walters
Alan Walters
Professor Sir Alan Arthur Walters was a British economist, best known as the former Chief Economic Adviser to Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher from 1981 to 1983 and again in 1989 after his return from the USA.- Early life :...
, who was critical of Lawson's policies (Thatcher still refused to sack him). Then on 24 October he made another scathing attack on the differences. Two days later, Lawson resigned, followed shortly afterwards by Sir Alan.
Leader of the Opposition
Following Labour's fourth successive defeat at the general election of April 1992United Kingdom general election, 1992
The United Kingdom general election of 1992 was held on 9 April 1992, and was the fourth consecutive victory for the Conservative Party. This election result was one of the biggest surprises in 20th Century politics, as polling leading up to the day of the election showed Labour under leader Neil...
, Neil Kinnock resigned as leader and Smith was elected
Labour Party (UK) leadership election, 1992
The Labour Party leadership election of 1992 followed the Labour Party's failure to win the 1992 general election and the subsequent resignation of party leader Neil Kinnock....
Labour leader.
Although Labour had now been out of power for 13 years, their performance at that general election had been much better than their performance at the previous three. They had cut the Tory majority from 144 seats to a mere 21, and for most of the three years leading up to the election opinion polls had indicated that Labour were more likely to win the election than the Tories were. However, the resignation of long-serving but at that point hugely unpopular Tory prime minister Margaret Thatcher
Margaret Thatcher
Margaret Hilda Thatcher, Baroness Thatcher, was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1979 to 1990...
and the well-received election of John Major
John Major
Sir John Major, is a British Conservative politician, who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Conservative Party from 1990–1997...
as her successor had seen the comfortable Labour lead in the opinion polls wiped out and in the 17 months leading up to the election its outcome had become much less predictable. Much of the blame had been placed on Labour's "shadow budget" drawn up by Smith, which included raising the top rate of income tax from 40p in the pound to 50p, and the Tory election campaign was centred on warning voters that they would face higher taxes under a Labour government.
In September 1992, he made his maiden speech as party leader, about the Government's ERM
European Exchange Rate Mechanism
The European Exchange Rate Mechanism, ERM, was a system introduced by the European Community in March 1979, as part of the European Monetary System , to reduce exchange rate variability and achieve monetary stability in Europe, in preparation for Economic and Monetary Union and the introduction of...
debacle eight days earlier, saying that John Major was "The devalued Prime Minister of a devalued Government". At the party conference he referred to Major and Norman Lamont as being the Laurel and Hardy
Laurel and Hardy
Laurel and Hardy were one of the most popular and critically acclaimed comedy double acts of the early Classical Hollywood era of American cinema...
of British politics. This echoed his attacks on Major's government which he had made before the 1992 election while still shadow chancellor, most memorably when he attacked Tory plans for cutting income tax to 20% as "irresponsible" and joked at a Labour Party rally in Sheffield
Sheffield
Sheffield is a city and metropolitan borough of South Yorkshire, England. Its name derives from the River Sheaf, which runs through the city. Historically a part of the West Riding of Yorkshire, and with some of its southern suburbs annexed from Derbyshire, the city has grown from its largely...
that the Tories would have a box office disaster with "Honey, I Shrunk the Economy" - in reference to the recent Disney motion picture Honey, I Shrunk the Kids
Honey, I Shrunk the Kids
Honey, I Shrunk the Kids is a 1989 comedy film. The directorial debut of Joe Johnston and released through Walt Disney Pictures and Silver Screen Partners III, the film tells the story of an inventor who accidentally shrinks his and his neighbor's kids to 1/4 of an inch with his electromagnetic...
- mocking the recession which was plaguing the British economy at the time.
In a June 1993 debate, Smith again savaged the Conservative Government, saying that under John Major's
John Major
Sir John Major, is a British Conservative politician, who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Conservative Party from 1990–1997...
premiership, "The man with the non-midas
Midas
For the legend of Gordias, a person who was taken by the people and made King, in obedience to the command of the oracle, see Gordias.Midas or King Midas is popularly remembered in Greek mythology for his ability to turn everything he touched into gold. This was called the Golden touch, or the...
touch is in charge. It is no wonder that we live in a country where the Grand National
Grand National
The Grand National is a world-famous National Hunt horse race which is held annually at Aintree Racecourse, near Liverpool, England. It is a handicap chase run over a distance of four miles and 856 yards , with horses jumping thirty fences over two circuits of Aintree's National Course...
does not start and hotels fall into the sea
Holbeck Hall Hotel
The Holbeck Hall Hotel was a clifftop hotel in Scarborough, North Yorkshire, England, owned by English Rose Hotels. The hotel had scenic views of the sea and surrounding area. It was built in 1879 by George Alderson Smith as a private residence, and was later converted to a hotel. On 3 June 1993, a...
". During the same debate, Smith referred to a recent Government defeat in the Newbury by-election
Newbury by-election, 1993
The Newbury by-election, in West Berkshire, England, was held on 6 May 1993 after Conservative Member of Parliament Judith Chaplin died, after only being elected the previous year. It was won by David Rendel of the Liberal Democrats with an impressive swing of 28.4%...
, a poor showing in the local elections, and a subsequent Cabinet reshuffle by saying that, "If we were to offer that tale of events to the BBC Light Entertainment Department as a script for a programme, I think that the producers of Yes Minister
Yes Minister
Yes Minister is a satirical British sitcom written by Antony Jay and Jonathan Lynn that was first transmitted by BBC Television between 1980–1982 and 1984, split over three seven-episode series. The sequel, Yes, Prime Minister, ran from 1986 to 1988. In total there were 38 episodes—of which all but...
would have turned it down as hopelessly over the top. It might have even been too much for Some Mothers Do 'Ave 'Em
Some Mothers Do 'Ave 'Em
Some Mothers Do 'Ave 'Em was a BBC situation comedy, written by Raymond Allen and starring Michael Crawford and Michele Dotrice.The series followed the accident-prone Frank Spencer and his tolerant wife Betty through Frank's various attempts to hold down a job, which frequently end in...
". He also performed very well in the motion of confidence debate
1993 vote of confidence in the government of John Major
The 1993 confidence motion in John Major's government was an explicit confidence motion in the Conservative government of John Major which was proposed in order to ensure support in Parliament for the passing of the Maastricht Treaty...
in the Conservative government in July 1993.
Despite his dispatch box successes (Smith was always more effective in the House of Commons than on platforms or at Prime Minister's Questions
Prime Minister's Questions
Prime minister's questions is a constitutional convention in the United Kingdom that takes place every Wednesday during which the prime minister spends half an hour answering questions from members of parliament...
, though he began to improve at the latter during the final months of his life), Tony Blair
Tony Blair
Anthony Charles Lynton Blair is a former British Labour Party politician who served as the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 2 May 1997 to 27 June 2007. He was the Member of Parliament for Sedgefield from 1983 to 2007 and Leader of the Labour Party from 1994 to 2007...
and Gordon Brown
Gordon Brown
James Gordon Brown is a British Labour Party politician who was the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Labour Party from 2007 until 2010. He previously served as Chancellor of the Exchequer in the Labour Government from 1997 to 2007...
were, under Smith's leadership, restless and anxious in private that the party had adopted a "one more heave" approach and had become overly cautious in tackling the legacy of "tax and spend
Tax and spend
"Tax and Spend" is an epithet applied to politicians , programs, and opposing political philosophy by the American center-right, conservative, and libertarian movements. It does have another neutral, objective, connotation i.e. with regard to tax policy or fiscal policy but this usage is...
".
Despite this, during his time as leader of the Labour Party Smith abolished the trade union
Trade union
A trade union, trades union or labor union is an organization of workers that have banded together to achieve common goals such as better working conditions. The trade union, through its leadership, bargains with the employer on behalf of union members and negotiates labour contracts with...
block vote at Labour party conferences
Labour Party (UK) Conference
The Labour Party Conference, or annual national conference of the Labour Party, is formally the supreme decision-making body of the Party.-Conference decisions:...
, and replaced it with "one member one vote" at the 1993 party conference and committed a future Labour government to establishing a Scottish Parliament
Scottish Parliament
The Scottish Parliament is the devolved national, unicameral legislature of Scotland, located in the Holyrood area of the capital, Edinburgh. The Parliament, informally referred to as "Holyrood", is a democratically elected body comprising 129 members known as Members of the Scottish Parliament...
, a policy which was followed through by his successors (most notably his close friend Donald Dewar
Donald Dewar
Donald Campbell Dewar was a British politician who served as a Labour Party Member of Parliament in Scotland from 1966-1970, and then again from 1978 until his death in 2000. He served in Tony Blair's cabinet as Secretary of State for Scotland from 1997-1999 and was instrumental in the creation...
) after his death. Also, during his time as leader, the Labour party gained a significant lead in the polls over the Conservatives
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...
and on 5 May 1994 the Conservatives received a severe defeat in the council elections in Britain, their worst for over 30 years, despite the strong economic recovery and fall in unemployment that had followed the declaration of the recession's end in April 1993.Labour's opinion poll lead was shown to be as high as 23% in early May 1994.
Death
On the evening of 11 May 1994, Smith made a speech at a fundraising dinner at Park Lane HotelPark Lane Hotel
The Park Lane Hotel is a 5 Star hotel on Piccadilly, London.The hotel was built in the 1920s in the Grand Art Deco Style by Sir Bracewell Smith. The building is a fine example with a mansard roof and Portland stone facade...
, London with around 500 people present, saying famously "The opportunity to serve our country - that is all we ask". The following morning, at 8:05am, whilst in his Barbican
Barbican Estate
The Barbican Estate is a residential estate built during the 1960s and the 1970s in the City of London, in an area once devastated by World War II bombings and today densely populated by financial institutions...
flat, Smith suffered a massive heart attack. His wife phoned an ambulance and he was rushed to Saint Bartholomew's Hospital
St Bartholomew's Hospital
St Bartholomew's Hospital, also known as Barts, is a hospital in Smithfield in the City of London, England.-Early history:It was founded in 1123 by Raherus or Rahere , a favourite courtier of King Henry I...
where he died at 9:15am on 12 May 1994 having never regained consciousness. Only two weeks before his death, on 28 April, Smith had visited the same accident and emergency department to campaign against its proposed closure. The very doctor who served as his tour guide, Professor Mike Besser, two weeks later tried unsuccessfully to save Smith's life.
In response to his death, John Major made a fitting tribute in the House of Commons to Smith, culminating in the now well-known line, that Smith "would share a drink: sometimes tea, sometimes not tea". It was reported that there was weeping in the chamber.
On the day of his death, the BBC 9 O'Clock News was extended to an hour as opposed to the usual half hour. This replaced the medical drama which was due to follow at 9:30, coincidentally entitled Cardiac Arrest
Cardiac Arrest (TV series)
Cardiac Arrest is a British medical drama series made by World Productions for BBC One and first broadcast between 1994 and 1996. The series was controversial due to its depiction of doctors, nurses, and the National Health Service.-Creation:...
. That evening Question Time was held, and the panellists paid tribute to Smith, instead of debating. They included George Robertson
George Robertson, Baron Robertson of Port Ellen
George Islay MacNeill Robertson, Baron Robertson of Port Ellen, is a British Labour Party politician who was the tenth Secretary General of the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation, between October 1999 and early January 2004; he succeeded Javier Solana in that position...
and Menzies Campbell
Menzies Campbell
Sir Walter Menzies "Ming" Campbell, CBE, QC, MP is a British Liberal Democrat politician and advocate, and a retired sprinter. He is the Member of Parliament for North East Fife, and was the Leader of the Liberal Democrats from 2 March 2006 until 15 October 2007.Campbell held the British record...
.
On 20 May 1994, after a funeral in Cluny Parish Church, Edinburgh
Edinburgh
Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland, the second largest city in Scotland, and the eighth most populous in the United Kingdom. The City of Edinburgh Council governs one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas. The council area includes urban Edinburgh and a rural area...
attended by 900 people and after which 3,000 people lined the streets, Smith was buried in a private family funeral on the island of Iona
Iona
Iona is a small island in the Inner Hebrides off the western coast of Scotland. It was a centre of Irish monasticism for four centuries and is today renowned for its tranquility and natural beauty. It is a popular tourist destination and a place for retreats...
, at the sacred burial ground of Reilig Odhráin, which contains the graves of several Scottish kings as well as monarchs of Ireland, Norway and France. On 14 July 1994, his memorial service was attended in Westminster Abbey
Westminster Abbey
The Collegiate Church of St Peter at Westminster, popularly known as Westminster Abbey, is a large, mainly Gothic church, in the City of Westminster, London, United Kingdom, located just to the west of the Palace of Westminster. It is the traditional place of coronation and burial site for English,...
by over 2,000 people. The Archbishop of Canterbury
Archbishop of Canterbury
The Archbishop of Canterbury is the senior bishop and principal leader of the Church of England, the symbolic head of the worldwide Anglican Communion, and the diocesan bishop of the Diocese of Canterbury. In his role as head of the Anglican Communion, the archbishop leads the third largest group...
gave an address.
Following Smith's death, the Labour Party renamed its party headquarters in Walworth Road John Smith House in his memory.
Aftermath
Smith's biographer, Mark Stuart, claimed that Smith could have won Labour a Parliamentary victory in 1997 on a similar scale to that achieved by Tony Blair because of the combination of the Black WednesdayBlack Wednesday
In politics and economics, Black Wednesday refers to the events of 16 September 1992 when the British Conservative government was forced to withdraw the pound sterling from the European Exchange Rate Mechanism after they were unable to keep it above its agreed lower limit...
debacle and ongoing Conservative divisions over Europe between 1992 and 1997; however, Stuart argues that the lack of a Blair effect would have meant that the Conservative Party would have held slightly over 200 seats in the House of Commons, leaving the Conservatives in a position similar to that of Labour in 1983 than to the actual Conservative result in 1997. The sense that Smith's untimely death cheated him of the premiership may well have contributed to the nostalgia for his leadership by the Labour left, although Smith was always on the Gaitskellite wing of the party. This is borne out by the warm tributes paid to him after his death by figures on the left of the party such as 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...
, Dennis Skinner
Dennis Skinner
Dennis Edward Skinner is a British Labour Party politician who has been the Member of Parliament for Bolsover since 1970, the Chairman of the Labour Party from 1988 to 1989, and has sat on the National Executive Committee numerous times since 1978.Born in Clay Cross, Derbyshire, Skinner is the...
and Ken Livingstone
Ken Livingstone
Kenneth Robert "Ken" Livingstone is an English politician who is currently a member of the centrist to centre-left Labour Party...
.
Personal life
Smith was married to Elizabeth Bennett from 5 July 1967 until his death. Elizabeth Smith was created Baroness Smith of GilmorehillElizabeth Smith, Baroness Smith of Gilmorehill
Elizabeth Smith, Baroness Smith of Gilmorehill DL , is a British peer and patron of the arts. She is the widow of John Smith, the former Labour Party leader....
in 1995. They had three daughters, one of whom, Sarah Smith, used to be Washington correspondent for Channel 4
Channel 4
Channel 4 is a British public-service television broadcaster which began working on 2 November 1982. Although largely commercially self-funded, it is ultimately publicly owned; originally a subsidiary of the Independent Broadcasting Authority , the station is now owned and operated by the Channel...
news.
External links
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