Paul Williams (politician)
Encyclopedia
Paul Glyn Williams was a British
Conservative Party
politician who served as Member of Parliament
for Sunderland South
from 1953 to 1964. He was also a prominent businessman. He was one of 8 Conservative "Suez rebels" who resigned the Conservative Party whip to protest against the government's decision to withdraw from Suez
.
and Trinity Hall
, Cambridge University
(MA 1942), where he won a half blue in athletics and was secretary of the Cambridge University Conservative Association
. After graduating in 1942, he served as a flight lieutenant
in the RAF during the Second World War, flying transport aircraft.
His first marriage, in 1947, was to former model, Barbara Joan Hardy. They had two daughters, but were divorced in 1964. He later married Gillian Foote, and they had one daughter. He lived near Devizes
in Wiltshire
. He was survived by his second wife, and his three daughters.
He was chairman and managing director of Mount Charlotte Investments from 1966 to 1977, a hotel company that later merged with Thistle Hotels
.
's safe Labour seats of Newcastle upon Tyne East
in February 1950, and then the marginal constituency of Sunderland South
in October 1951
, losing narrowly to Labour candidate Richard Ewart
by 306 votes. After Ewart's early death, Williams won the seat by 1,175 votes at a by-election
in 1953, the first time that the government party had won an opposition seat in a by-election since 1924.
He became a "Suez rebel" in December 1953, urging the government to suspend negotiations with Egypt to evacuate the canal zone, and voted against the Conservative government's Suez policy in July 1954. He increased his majority in the May 1955 general election
, but, after further disagreement with government policy to withdraw from Suez, he and seven other backbench Conservative MPs resigned their party's whip in May 1957. He sat as an Independent Conservative until he and four other rebels were persuaded to resume the whip in July 1958. He was re-elected with a reduced majority in 1959
. He lost his seat in the October 1964 general election
, with Labour candidate Gordon Bagier
winning by 1,566 votes.
He held right-wing views, being pro-British Empire
, anti-Europe and anti-American, and supported white governments in Africa. He supported white rule in Southern Rhodesia
and South Africa
. His views were almost polar opposites of those held by the new Conservative leader in 1964, Edward Heath
, who remarked of Williams in 1966: "I thoroughly disagree with his views. I always have and I suspect I always will. They are not the view of the modern Tory party, nor the views of the great majority of people in this country." After that rebuke, there was little chance that Williams's parliamentary career would revive.
An early member (1962) of the Conservative Monday Club
, Williams was National Club Chairman from 1964 to 1969, standing down in the latter year because of business pressures. In November 1965, Peterborough in the Daily Telegraph stated that "the Club owed a good deal of its standing to its Chairman, Paul Williams", and commended his "political acumen". In 1966 he issued a press statement on behalf of the Club criticising the Conservative Opposition: "Mr Angus Maude
is right in saying that 'to the electorate at large the opposition has become a meaningless irrelevance.' To some of us outside Parliament it appears to be neither Conservative nor an opposition ... we must oppose socialism, not condone it." In his outgoing Chairman's address at the Club's AGM in April 1969 Williams called for a more aggressive opposition, appealing for "patriotism and moral rejuvenation, and a return for self-respect in the individual and the nation". (Copping, (ii) pp. 13, 16). He remained on the Club's Executive Council until 1973 and was still listed as a Vice-President in 1991.
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...
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...
politician who served 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,...
for Sunderland South
Sunderland South (UK Parliament constituency)
Sunderland South was, from 1950 until 2010, a constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It elected one Member of Parliament by the first past the post system of election.-History:...
from 1953 to 1964. He was also a prominent businessman. He was one of 8 Conservative "Suez rebels" who resigned the Conservative Party whip to protest against the government's decision to withdraw from Suez
Suez
Suez is a seaport city in north-eastern Egypt, located on the north coast of the Gulf of Suez , near the southern terminus of the Suez Canal, having the same boundaries as Suez governorate. It has three harbors, Adabya, Ain Sokhna and Port Tawfiq, and extensive port facilities...
.
Personal life
Williams was the son of businessman Samuel O. Williams and his wife Esmée (née Cail). He was educated at Marlborough CollegeMarlborough College
Marlborough College is a British co-educational independent school for day and boarding pupils, located in Marlborough, Wiltshire.Founded in 1843 for the education of the sons of Church of England clergy, the school now accepts both boys and girls of all beliefs. Currently there are just over 800...
and Trinity Hall
Trinity Hall, Cambridge
Trinity Hall is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge, England. It is the fifth-oldest college of the university, having been founded in 1350 by William Bateman, Bishop of Norwich.- Foundation :...
, Cambridge University
University of Cambridge
The University of Cambridge is a public research university located in Cambridge, United Kingdom. It is the second-oldest university in both the United Kingdom and the English-speaking world , and the seventh-oldest globally...
(MA 1942), where he won a half blue in athletics and was secretary of the Cambridge University Conservative Association
Cambridge University Conservative Association
The Cambridge University Conservative Association is a long-established political society going back to 1921, with roots in the late nineteenth century, as a Conservative branch for students at Cambridge University in England...
. After graduating in 1942, he served as a flight lieutenant
Flight Lieutenant
Flight lieutenant is a junior commissioned rank in the Royal Air Force and the air forces of many Commonwealth countries. It ranks above flying officer and immediately below squadron leader. The name of the rank is the complete phrase; it is never shortened to "lieutenant"...
in the RAF during the Second World War, flying transport aircraft.
His first marriage, in 1947, was to former model, Barbara Joan Hardy. They had two daughters, but were divorced in 1964. He later married Gillian Foote, and they had one daughter. He lived near Devizes
Devizes
Devizes is a market town and civil parish in Wiltshire, England. The town is about southeast of Chippenham and about east of Trowbridge.Devizes serves as a centre for banks, solicitors and shops, with a large open market place where a market is held once a week...
in Wiltshire
Wiltshire
Wiltshire is a ceremonial county in South West England. It is landlocked and borders the counties of Dorset, Somerset, Hampshire, Gloucestershire, Oxfordshire and Berkshire. It contains the unitary authority of Swindon and covers...
. He was survived by his second wife, and his three daughters.
Business activities
Williams became a businessman after his war service. He was a director of: First South African Cordage, 1947-1954; Transair, 1953-1962; Hodgkinson Partners Ltd., PR consultants, 1956-1964; Minster Executive, 1977-1983; and Chairman of the Backer Electric Company Limited, 1978-1987, and of Henry Sykes, 1980-1983. He was a consultant to P-E International plc, 1983-1991, and to Hogg Robinson Career Services, 1991-1995.He was chairman and managing director of Mount Charlotte Investments from 1966 to 1977, a hotel company that later merged with Thistle Hotels
Thistle Hotels
Thistle Hotels is a UK-based hotel company with a portfolio of 33 hotels, operating in the three and four star sector. It is the sixth largest hotel chain in the UK by bedroom numbers , but the largest hotel chain in London.-History:...
.
Politics
Williams also became politically active as a Conservative after the war. He contested Arthur BlenkinsopArthur Blenkinsop
Arthur Blenkinsop was a British Labour Party politician.Blenkinsop was educated at the Royal Grammar School, Newcastle and the College of Commerce, Newcastle-upon-Tyne and became a chartered secretary....
's safe Labour seats of Newcastle upon Tyne East
Newcastle upon Tyne East (UK Parliament constituency)
Newcastle upon Tyne East is a borough constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It elects one Member of Parliament by the first past the post system of election....
in February 1950, and then the marginal constituency of Sunderland South
Sunderland South (UK Parliament constituency)
Sunderland South was, from 1950 until 2010, a constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It elected one Member of Parliament by the first past the post system of election.-History:...
in October 1951
United Kingdom general election, 1951
The 1951 United Kingdom general election was held eighteen months after the 1950 general election, which the Labour Party had won with a slim majority of just five seats...
, losing narrowly to Labour candidate Richard Ewart
Richard Ewart
Richard Ewart was a Labour Party politician in England. He was elected at the 1945 general election as Member of Parliament for Sunderland. When that 2-seat constituency was divided for the 1950 general election, he was returned for the new Sunderland South constituency, which re-elected him in...
by 306 votes. After Ewart's early death, Williams won the seat by 1,175 votes at a 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 1953, the first time that the government party had won an opposition seat in a by-election since 1924.
He became a "Suez rebel" in December 1953, urging the government to suspend negotiations with Egypt to evacuate the canal zone, and voted against the Conservative government's Suez policy in July 1954. He increased his majority in the May 1955 general election
United Kingdom general election, 1955
The 1955 United Kingdom general election was held on 26 May 1955, four years after the previous general election. It resulted in a substantially increased majority of 60 for the Conservative government under new leader and prime minister Sir Anthony Eden against Labour Party, now in their 20th year...
, but, after further disagreement with government policy to withdraw from Suez, he and seven other backbench Conservative MPs resigned their party's whip in May 1957. He sat as an Independent Conservative until he and four other rebels were persuaded to resume the whip in July 1958. He was re-elected with a reduced majority in 1959
United Kingdom general election, 1959
This United Kingdom general election was held on 8 October 1959. It marked a third successive victory for the ruling Conservative Party, led by Harold Macmillan...
. He lost his seat in the October 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...
, with Labour candidate Gordon Bagier
Gordon Bagier
Gordon Alexander Thomas Bagier is a retired British Labour Party politician.-Early life:Bagier was educated at Pendower Secondary Technical School on Fox and Hounds Lane in Benwell, Newcastle upon Tyne...
winning by 1,566 votes.
He held right-wing views, being pro-British Empire
British Empire
The British Empire comprised the dominions, colonies, protectorates, mandates and other territories ruled or administered by the United Kingdom. It originated with the overseas colonies and trading posts established by England in the late 16th and early 17th centuries. At its height, it was the...
, anti-Europe and anti-American, and supported white governments in Africa. He supported white rule in Southern Rhodesia
Southern Rhodesia
Southern Rhodesia was the name of the British colony situated north of the Limpopo River and the Union of South Africa. From its independence in 1965 until its extinction in 1980, it was known as Rhodesia...
and South Africa
South Africa
The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...
. His views were almost polar opposites of those held by the new Conservative leader in 1964, Edward Heath
Edward Heath
Sir Edward Richard George "Ted" Heath, KG, MBE, PC was a British Conservative politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and as Leader of the Conservative Party ....
, who remarked of Williams in 1966: "I thoroughly disagree with his views. I always have and I suspect I always will. They are not the view of the modern Tory party, nor the views of the great majority of people in this country." After that rebuke, there was little chance that Williams's parliamentary career would revive.
An early member (1962) of the Conservative Monday Club
Conservative Monday Club
The Conservative Monday Club is a British pressure group "on the right-wing" of the Conservative Party.-Overview:...
, Williams was National Club Chairman from 1964 to 1969, standing down in the latter year because of business pressures. In November 1965, Peterborough in the Daily Telegraph stated that "the Club owed a good deal of its standing to its Chairman, Paul Williams", and commended his "political acumen". In 1966 he issued a press statement on behalf of the Club criticising the Conservative Opposition: "Mr Angus Maude
Angus Maude
Angus Edmund Upton Maude, Baron Maude of Stratford-upon-Avon PC , was a Conservative Party politician and British cabinet member from 1979 until 1981. He was the father of Conservative MP Francis Maude....
is right in saying that 'to the electorate at large the opposition has become a meaningless irrelevance.' To some of us outside Parliament it appears to be neither Conservative nor an opposition ... we must oppose socialism, not condone it." In his outgoing Chairman's address at the Club's AGM in April 1969 Williams called for a more aggressive opposition, appealing for "patriotism and moral rejuvenation, and a return for self-respect in the individual and the nation". (Copping, (ii) pp. 13, 16). He remained on the Club's Executive Council until 1973 and was still listed as a Vice-President in 1991.