Tom Myers (politician)
Encyclopedia
Tom Myers was a British
Labour Party
politician.
Born in Mirfield
, Myers left school at the age of 12 and spent several years working in coal mines and factories in the West Riding of Yorkshire
before taking up employment at a glass bottle works. An early supporter of the Labour Party, he was elected to Thornhill
Urban District Council in 1904. In 1910 the urban district was absorbed by the municipal borough
of Dewsbury
, and Myers became a member of Dewsbury Borough Council.
At the 1918 general election
Myers contested the constituency of Spen Valley
for the Labour Party, but failed to unseat the sitting Coalition Liberal member of parliament
, Sir Thomas Whittaker
. Whittaker died in November 1919, and Myers was selected to fight the ensuing by election. The poll came at the same time as a serious split in the Liberal Party
over continuing support for the coalition government: Colonel B C Fairfax was nominated as the Coalition Liberal candidate while Sir John Simon
stood as an Independent Liberal. The poll was held on 20 December 1919, although the votes were not counted until 3 January of the following year. Myers received 11,962 votes and was elected to the Commons, with a majority of 1,718 over Simon, and the coalition candidate trailing in a poor third place. The result was seen as sensational, with The Times
describing it as a "political event of great significance" with voters deserting the government candidate in "a humiliation which cannot be explained away".
The coalition finally fell in 1922, with a general election called for November
. Myers defended his seat against Sir John Simon, now the Liberal candidate, and W O R Holton of the Conservative Party
. Myers was defeated by Simon. He tried unsuccessfully to regain the seat in 1923
and 1924
.
He returned to Dewsbury Borough Council in 1935, and was the town's mayor
in 1940–1941. He died in Dewsbury in 1949, aged 77.
British people
The British are citizens of the United Kingdom, of the Isle of Man, any of the Channel Islands, or of any of the British overseas territories, and their descendants...
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.
Born in Mirfield
Mirfield
Mirfield is a small town and civil parish within the Metropolitan Borough of Kirklees, in West Yorkshire, England. It is located on the A644 road between Brighouse and Dewsbury...
, Myers left school at the age of 12 and spent several years working in coal mines and factories in the West Riding of Yorkshire
West Riding of Yorkshire
The West Riding of Yorkshire is one of the three historic subdivisions of Yorkshire, England. From 1889 to 1974 the administrative county, County of York, West Riding , was based closely on the historic boundaries...
before taking up employment at a glass bottle works. An early supporter of the Labour Party, he was elected to Thornhill
Thornhill, West Yorkshire
Thornhill, is a village in Kirklees, West Yorkshire, England. Thornhill was absorbed into Dewsbury County Borough in 1910. It is located on a hill on the south side of the River Calder, and has extensive views of Dewsbury, Ossett and Wakefield...
Urban District Council in 1904. In 1910 the urban district was absorbed by the municipal borough
Municipal borough
Municipal boroughs were a type of local government district which existed in England and Wales between 1835 and 1974, in Northern Ireland from 1840 to 1973 and in the Republic of Ireland from 1840 to 2002...
of Dewsbury
Dewsbury
Dewsbury is a minster town in the Metropolitan Borough of Kirklees, in West Yorkshire, England. It is to the west of Wakefield, east of Huddersfield and south of Leeds...
, and Myers became a member of Dewsbury Borough Council.
At the 1918 general election
United Kingdom general election, 1918
The United Kingdom general election of 1918 was the first to be held after the Representation of the People Act 1918, which meant it was the first United Kingdom general election in which nearly all adult men and some women could vote. Polling was held on 14 December 1918, although the count did...
Myers contested the constituency of Spen Valley
Spen Valley (UK Parliament constituency)
Spen Valley was a parliamentary constituency in the valley of the River Spen in West Yorkshire. It returned one Member of Parliament to the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom.-History:...
for the Labour Party, but failed to unseat the sitting Coalition Liberal 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,...
, Sir Thomas Whittaker
Thomas Palmer Whittaker
Sir Thomas Palmer Whittaker PC MP was a British businessman and Liberal Party politician. -Early life:...
. Whittaker died in November 1919, and Myers was selected to fight the ensuing by election. The poll came at the same time as a serious split in 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...
over continuing support for the coalition government: Colonel B C Fairfax was nominated as the Coalition Liberal candidate while Sir John Simon
John Simon, 1st Viscount Simon
John Allsebrook Simon, 1st Viscount Simon GCSI GCVO OBE PC was a British politician who held senior Cabinet posts from the beginning of the First World War to the end of the Second. He is one of only three people to have served as Home Secretary, Foreign Secretary and Chancellor of the Exchequer,...
stood as an Independent Liberal. The poll was held on 20 December 1919, although the votes were not counted until 3 January of the following year. Myers received 11,962 votes and was elected to the Commons, with a majority of 1,718 over Simon, and the coalition candidate trailing in a poor third place. The result was seen as sensational, with The Times
The Times
The Times is a British daily national newspaper, first published in London in 1785 under the title The Daily Universal Register . The Times and its sister paper The Sunday Times are published by Times Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary since 1981 of News International...
describing it as a "political event of great significance" with voters deserting the government candidate in "a humiliation which cannot be explained away".
The coalition finally fell in 1922, with a general election called for November
United Kingdom general election, 1922
The United Kingdom general election of 1922 was held on 15 November 1922. It was the first election held after most of the Irish counties left the United Kingdom to form the Irish Free State, and was won by Andrew Bonar Law's Conservatives, who gained an overall majority over Labour, led by John...
. Myers defended his seat against Sir John Simon, now the Liberal candidate, and W O R Holton of the Conservative Party
Conservative Party (UK)
The Conservative Party, formally the Conservative and Unionist Party, is a centre-right political party in the United Kingdom that adheres to the philosophies of conservatism and British unionism. It is the largest political party in the UK, and is currently the largest single party in the House...
. Myers was defeated by Simon. He tried unsuccessfully to regain the seat in 1923
United Kingdom general election, 1923
-Seats summary:-References:*F. W. S. Craig, British Electoral Facts: 1832-1987*-External links:***...
and 1924
United Kingdom general election, 1924
- Seats summary :- References :* F. W. S. Craig, British Electoral Facts: 1832-1987* - External links :* * *...
.
He returned to Dewsbury Borough Council in 1935, and was the town's mayor
Mayor
In many countries, a Mayor is the highest ranking officer in the municipal government of a town or a large urban city....
in 1940–1941. He died in Dewsbury in 1949, aged 77.