Keeping the British Liberal Party flag flying high

[pipisme]

There was very little difference in foreign policy between the three main parties. Following the Coolidge administration's establishment of diplomatic relations with Turkey, the Acland government also established diplomatic relations with that country in December 1927. This was opposed by Armenians and their British supporters, but the cause of an independent Armenia was generally regarded by then as a lost cause.

There was some support for Mussolini and Italian fascism on the right-wing of the Conservative Party. In fact Winston Churchill had praised Mussolini in a speech in Rome in 1927 as being a bulwark against the cancerous growth of Bolshevism. (1) Members of the British Fascists (BF) stewarded Conservative Party meetings, and a few Conservative MPs were sympathetic to the BF, which also had links with the British Empire Union.

One of the most hotly fought contests was that in Oxford. Winston Churchill, standing as an Independent Anti-Socialist with Conservative support, had gained the seat from the Liberals in a by-election in June 1924 by a majority of 86 votes. Since then Churchill had joined the Conservative Party and Baldwin had made him shadow First Lord of the Admiralty. The Liberal candidate was Dr. Robert Oswald Moon. He had served as an army doctor, written books on medicine and was at one time Honorary Secretary of the Garden City Association. The Labour Party had no chance of even coming second place in that constituency. Oxford was visited many times by leading politicians from the Conservative and Liberal Parties. However it was generally thought that Churchill would have a tough fight to keep his seat; newly enfranchised women between the ages of 21 and 30 were considered more likely to vote Liberal than Conservative.

The result of the general election held on April 25, 1928 was that the Liberals became the largest single party in the House of Commons, though without an overall majority. The Labour Party more or less held its own. The figures for the number of seats won and percentage votes are as follows, with comparisons with the election of December 1923:

Liberal 256 seats (+49) 37.6% (+5.0%)
Conservative 184 seats (-45) 33.3% (-3.8%)
Labour 170 seats (-2) 28.0% (-0.5%)
Others 5 seats (-2) 1.1% (-0.7%).

The Conservative total includes 12 Ulster Unionists and one Independent Conservative. The others include Sir Oswald Mosley (Independent- Harrow) and one Irish Nationalist.

The turnout rose from 71.1% in 1923 to 75.8%.

The Liberals had a net gain of 28 seats from the Conservatives, 20 from Labour and a gain of one seat from an independent. The Conservatives had a net loss of 28 seats to the Liberals, 18 to Labour and to Independent. But their Ulster Unionist allies gained two seats from Irish Nationalists. Labour's net loss of 20 seats to the Liberals was almost counter-balanced by a net gain of 18 seats from the Conservatives.

Because the rise in turnout and the increase in the size of the electorate meant an increase in the total vote, the number of votes cast for the three main parties increased.

Churchill was defeated in Oxford by Dr. Moon for the Liberals. Churchill was not the only high profile Conservative who lost his seat. Neville Chamberlain, the former Minister of Health and Chancellor of the Exchequer, and the shadow President of the Board of Trade, was defeated by Labour in Birmingham, Ladywood. In fact Labour gained six seats from the Conservatives in Birmingham. In the 1923 election there was an above average swing from Conservative to Labour in that city. The Liberals had been weak there since the Liberal Unionist split of 1886, and Labour picked up most of the anti-Conservative vote.

The youngest newly elected member of Parliament was the 23 year old Jennie Lee (born November 3, 1904) who took Glasgow Partick for Labour from the Conservatives. Newly elected women Liberals included the 26 year old Megan Lloyd George ( born April 22 1902 and the daughter of David) who was elected in the safe seat of Anglesey, Lucy Masterman who took Cambridge from the Conservatives, and Alexandra Schillizi (born April 28 1904) who gained Northampton from Labour.

Megan Lloyd George joined her brother Gwilym, elected as Liberal MP for Pembroke in 1923, with their father David in the House of Commons.

(1) In this TL Churchill makes a similar speech praising Mussolini as quoted here in OTL: http://majorityrights.com/index.php/weblog/comments/864 .

 

[pipisme]

Two of the new members of Parliament are Brendan Bracken (Conservative, Paddington, North), and Eleanor Rathbone (Independent, Combined English Universities).

Bracken was born in Ireland in 1901 and had a colourful past. He was a friend and political associate of Winston Churchill. Rathbone was a campaigner for women's rights and family allowances.

Sir Herbert Samuel returned to the Commons as Liberal MP for Middlesbrough, West.

Because Thomas MacNamara, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, said that he wanted to retire from the government now that he was 67 years old, a government reshuffle was necessary. The new cabinet announced on April 30, 1928 was as follows:

Prime Minister and First Lord of the Treasury and Leader of the House of Commons: Sir Francis Acland

Chancellor of the Exchequer: Walter Layton

Foreign Secretary: David Lloyd George

Home Secretary: Norman Birkett

Lord Chancellor: Viscount Simon

Lord President of the Council and Leader of the House of Lords: Lord Parmoor

Lord Privy Seal: Earl of Beauchamp

First Lord of the Admiralty: Sir Godfrey Collins

Minister of Agriculture and Fisheries: Sir Richard Winfrey

Secretary of state for Air: Lord Forres

Secretary of state for the Colonies: William Wedgwood Benn

Secretary of state for Dominion Affairs: Sir Robert Hamilton

President of the Board of Education: Mrs Margaret Wintringham

Minister of Health: Ramsay Muir

Secretary of state for India: Sir John Hope Simpson

Minister of Labour: Henry Vivian

Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster: Sir Donald Maclean

President of the Board of Trade: Richard Durning Holt

Minister of Transport: John Gilbert

Secretary of state for War: Sir Archibald Sinclair

First Commissioner of Works: Arthur Hobhouse.

 

[stevep]

pipisme

Good result by a couple of typos, see the enbolden. Obviously you mean 1918 rather than 1924 and think you mean Liberals rather than Conservatives.

Sets the party in a good position but what are Labour views on maintaining the coalition? Without it, unless you have a Tory-Labour agreement, their the largest party but a minority government which will be difficult. Also, with the advantage of hindsight we know of the storm cloud gathering. Will be a very rough period ahead.

Steve

There was very little difference in foreign policy between the three main parties. Following the Coolidge administration's establishment of diplomatic relations with Turkey, the Acland government also established diplomatic relations with that country in December 1927. This was opposed by Armenians and their British supporters, but the cause of an independent Armenia was generally regarded by then as a lost cause.

There was some support for Mussolini and Italian fascism on the right-wing of the Conservative Party. In fact Winston Churchill had praised Mussolini in a speech in Rome in 1927 as being a bulwark against the cancerous growth of Bolshevism. (1) Members of the British Fascists (BF) stewarded Conservative Party meetings, and a few Conservative MPs were sympathetic to the BF, which also had links with the British Empire Union.

One of the most hotly fought contests was that in Oxford. Winston Churchill, standing as an Independent Anti-Socialist with Conservative support, had gained the seat from the Liberals in a by-election in June 1924 by a majority of 86 votes. Since then Churchill had joined the Conservative Party and Baldwin had made him shadow First Lord of the Admiralty. The Liberal candidate was Dr. Robert Oswald Moon. He had served as an army doctor, written books on medicine and was at one time Honorary Secretary of the Garden City Association. The Labour Party had no chance of even coming second place in that constituency. Oxford was visited many times by leading politicians from the Conservative and Liberal Parties. However it was generally thought that Churchill would have a tough fight to keep his seat; newly enfranchised women between the ages of 21 and 30 were considered more likely to vote Liberal than Conservative.

The result of the general election held on April 25, 1924 was that the Liberals became the largest single party in the House of Commons, though without an overall majority. The Labour Party more or less held its own. The figures for the number of seats won and percentage votes are as follows, with comparisons with the election of December 1923:

Liberal 256 seats (+49) 37.6% (+5.0%)
Conservative 184 seats (-45) 33.3% (-3.8%)
Labour 170 seats (-2) 28.0% (-0.5%)
Others 5 seats (-2) 1.1% (-0.7%).

The Conservative total includes 12 Ulster Unionists and one Independent Conservative. The others include Sir Oswald Mosley (Independent- Harrow) and one Irish Nationalist.

The turnout rose from 71.1% in 1923 to 75.8%.

The Liberals had a net gain of 28 seats from the Conservatives, 20 from Labour and a gain of one seat from an independent. The Conservatives had a net loss of 28 seats to the Conservatives, 18 to Labour and to Independent. But their Ulster Unionist allies gained two seats from Irish Nationalists. Labour's net loss of 20 seats to the Liberals was almost counter-balanced by a net gain of 18 seats from the Conservatives.

Because the rise in turnout and the increase in the size of the electorate meant an increase in the total vote, the number of votes cast for the three main parties increased.

Churchill was defeated in Oxford by Dr. Moon for the Liberals. Churchill was not the only high profile Conservative who lost his seat. Neville Chamberlain, the former Minister of Health and Chancellor of the Exchequer, and the shadow President of the Board of Trade, was defeated by Labour in Birmingham, Ladywood. In fact Labour gained six seats from the Conservatives in Birmingham. In the 1923 election there was an above average swing from Conservative to Labour in that city. The Liberals had been weak there since the Liberal Unionist split of 1886, and Labour picked up most of the anti-Conservative vote.

The youngest newly elected member of Parliament was the 23 year old Jennie Lee (born November 3, 1904) who took Lanark for Labour from the Conservatives. Newly elected women Liberals included the 26 year old Megan Lloyd George ( born April 22 1902 and the daughter of David) who was elected in the safe seat of Anglesey, Lucy Masterman who took Cambridge from the Conservatives, and Alexandra Schillizi (born April 28 1904) who gained Northampton from Labour.

Megan Lloyd George joined her brother Gwilym, elected as Liberal MP for Pembroke in 1923, with their father David in the House of Commons.

(1) In this TL Churchill makes a similar speech praising Mussolini as quoted here in OTL: http://majorityrights.com/index.php/weblog/comments/864 .

 

[pipisme]

Originally posted by stevep
Obviously you mean 1918 rather than 1924 and think you mean Liberals rather than Conservatives.

what are Labour views on maintaining the coalition?

Thanks for pointing out the typos which I have corrected. I mean 1928 rather than 1924 and that the Conservatives lost seats to the Liberals rather than the Conservatives.

The majority of the parliamentary Labour Party voted to continue with the agreement with the Liberals, although a little over a quarter voted against. These were left-wingers who wanted the party to pursue an independent socialist course.

The main political interest following the April 1928 general election was the Conservative Party leadership. Two days after, on April 27, the headline on the front page of the Daily Express was BALDWIN GO NOW. The story below the headline said that having lost two consecutive general elections Baldwin had failed as leader of the Conservative Party. He had failed to make the Tories sufficiently different from the Liberals. The party needs a man of vision and principle who would give leadership on the vitally important issue of Empire Free Trade. Leo Amery is that man.

Over the next few days editorials in the Daily Mail, Daily Telegraph and the Times all call upon Baldwin to resign, though they don't suggest any one for leader. The Daily Telegraph paid tribute to Baldwin's positive qualities and recognised his achievements, but argued that on balance there a should be a change of leadership.

After consulting with his collegues in the shadow cabinet, with Conservative MPs and Peers, and with Conservatives outside Westminster, Baldwin announced on Friday May 4 that he would resign as leader when the Conservative Party had chosen a new leader. He declared that the party would not be ruled by the opinions of newspaper proprieters, who exercise "power without responsibility, the prerogative of the harlot throughout the ages".

The three contenders to suceed Baldwin are as follows (in alphabetical order):

Austen Chamberlain, currently shadow Foreign Secretary. He had held senior cabinet posts and was Tory leader from 1921 to 1922.

Leo Amery, currently shadow Secretary of State for War. He was a junior minister in the Lloyd George coalition government and First Lord of the Admiralty in the Bonar Law and Baldwin governments from October 1922 to January 1924.

Edward Wood, currently shadow Secretary of State for the Colonies. He was a junior minister in the Lloyd George coalition and President of the Board of Education from October 1922 to January 1924.

In spite of his seniority and political experience Chamberlain found that he had comparatively little support for his leadership bid. He was distrusted by large swathes of the Tory Party because he had wanted to continue with the coalition with Lloyd George in 1922. Within a few days he withdrew from the leadership contest.

 

[perfectgeneral]

Leo Rising

Amery? This is getting controversial. He will take the tory party into a clearly different set of policies from the Liberals. A thoughtful ATL. Keep up the good work.

 

[stevep]

pipisme

Interesting developments. I did wonder when you mentioned Neville Chamberlain losing his seat that he wouldn't be available for a leadership race. Coupled with Austen being discarded it sounds like the Chamberlain dynasty is ending early in TTL.

From what you say about Austin being unpopular because he had wanted to continue the war-time alliance it sounds like the Tories are deciding to head rightward rather than toward the centre. Good for the Liberals I suspect in that case as the Tories could isolate themselves, although a radical change in policy could seem attractive to many if the 30's turn out as OT.

Steve

 

[pipisme]

In the Tory leadership contest both Amery and Wood said they would not no longer be bound by Baldwin's pledge on keeping trade if they became leader. While Wood was largely indifferent to the free trade/tariff reform controversy, Amery was a passionate advocate of Imperial Preference or Empire Free Trade as a means of binding the Empire closer together.

At that time, both in this TL and in OTL, Tory leaders were not elected, but "emerged" by a process of consultation to determine who had the most support in the party.

In the watering holes and country houses where the movers and shakers in the Tory Party met, the merits of the two candidates were intensely discussed.

Leo Amery was born in India, the son of an English father and a Hungarian Jewish mother. He was a classmate of Winston Churchill at Harrow School, though the two men were not politically close. While intellectually brilliant he was perceived to be pugnacious, drab, dour and fanatical regarding the British Empire. He was sceptical towards the League of Nations. (1)

Edward Wood was the surviving son, and therefore the heir, of the 2nd Viscount Halifax. His aristocratic pedigree made him attractive to the landed gentry wing of the party, who wanted someone like them after Bonar Law and Baldwin. Viscount Halifax was born on June 7, 1839 so his son would probably succeed to his title within a few years. If this were to happen when Wood was leader of the opposition or Prime Minister, as a member of the House of Lords his deputy in the House of Commons would be of great importance. Wood was respected rather than admired; an idealist but without illusions.

On Thursday May 17, 1928, the Chairman of the Conservative Party announced that Edward Wood would be the next leader. The new leader said that he would unite the party and provide constructive opposition to the government. He made few changes to his shadow cabinet, though he appointed Leo Amery as Shadow Colonial Secretary and Sir Samuel Hoare as Shadow India Secretary.

(1) Extracts from the Time Magazine profile of Amery in its issue dated January 3, 1927 are quoted in the wikipedia article on him: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leo_Amery . Though this profile was not published in this TL, it gives an idea of his personality and political views.

 

[stevep]

In the Tory leadership contest both Amery and Wood said they would not no longer be bound by Baldwin's pledge on keeping trade if they became leader. While Wood was largely indifferent to the free trade/tariff reform controversy, Amery was a passionate advocate of Imperial Preference or Empire Free Trade as a means of binding the Empire closer together.

At that time, both in this TL and in OTL, Tory leaders were not elected, but "emerged" by a process of consultation to determine who had the most support in the party.

In the watering holes and country houses where the movers and shakers in the Tory Party met, the merits of the two candidates were intensely discussed.

Leo Amery was born in India, the son of an English father and a Hungarian Jewish mother. He was a classmate of Winston Churchill at Harrow School, though the two men were not politically close. While intellectually brilliant he was perceived to be pugnacious, drab, dour and fanatical regarding the British Empire. He was sceptical towards the League of Nations. (1)

Edward Wood was the surviving son, and therefore the heir, of the 2nd Viscount Halifax. His aristocratic pedigree made him attractive to the landed gentry wing of the party, who wanted someone like them after Bonar Law and Baldwin. Viscount Halifax was born on June 7, 1839 so his son would probably succeed to his title within a few years. If this were to happen when Wood was leader of the opposition or Prime Minister, as a member of the House of Lords his deputy in the House of Commons would be of great importance. Wood was respected rather than admired; an idealist but without illusions.

On Thursday May 17, 1928, the Chairman of the Conservative Party announced that Edward Wood would be the next leader. The new leader said that he would unite the party and provide constructive opposition to the government. He made few changes to his shadow cabinet, though he appointed Leo Amery as Shadow Colonial Secretary and Sir Samuel Hoare as Shadow India Secretary.

(1) Extracts from the Time Magazine profile of Amery in its issue dated January 3, 1927 are quoted in the wikipedia article on him: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leo_Amery . Though this profile was not published in this TL, it gives an idea of his personality and political views.

pipisme

Interesting set up. Hadn't twigged that Wood was the later Lord Halifax. So we have a major arch appeaser - albeit possibly not in TTL - who may effectively be deposed, or at least weakened, by his fathers death and probably his key rival and hence possible replacement is Amery who is just about his polar opposite. Given what I've read from the Wiki entry I think I would prefer Amery if the Tories get into power during the 30's.

Steve

 

[pipisme]

Wood's accession to the Tory leadership was well received by most of the press. The Liberal supporting Manchester Guardian welcomed him as a liberal Conservative who would keep the party away from espousing unelectable right-wing policies. In contrast the Daily Express did not hide its disappointment that Amery had become leader. It wished Wood well, but denounced him as being part of the mushy centre of British politics, a pale blue version of Liberalism. Other Tory supporting papers were more supportive of him.

When Parliament returned in May after the general election, the House of Commons needed to choose a new Speaker, because the previous Speaker, John Whiteley (Liberal), had retired. The House chose Robert Young (Labour), the Chairman of the Ways and Means Committee, in effect the Deputy Speaker, as its new Speaker. Young was the first Labour Speaker.

In by-elections on June 14, Neville Chamberlain and Winston Churchill returned to the House of Commons as members for the gold-plated Conservative seats of Birmingham, Edgbaston and Westminster, St. George's respectively. The sitting Conservative MPs agreed to resign and were compensated by being given peerages.

In June, the Speaker's Conference on the voting system was convened. It comprised 9 Liberals, 7 Conservatives and 7 Labour members. Liberal enthusiasm for a change in the voting system had cooled after the general election, which had given them a little more than 2/5ths of the seats in the House of Commons in return for 37.6% of the vote. The Conservatives had about 30% of the seats in return for a third of the vote, while Labour's representation was roughly proportionate to its vote.

Another change to the Conservative shadow cabinet was that Lord Robert Cecil became the leader of the party in the House of Lords.

 

[pipisme]

The Well of Loneliness by Radclyffe Hall was published by Jonathan Cape on July 27, 1928. It is a lesbian novel about two women who meet and fall in love. Its only hint of a sex scene is the line, "and that night, they were not divided."

It received mixed reviews in the press. However in an editorial in the Sunday Express on August 19, 1928, James Douglas, the editor, wrote that the publication of the novel brought home the need for society to "cleans[e] itself from the leprosy of those lepers", and "I would rather give a healthy boy or a healthy girl a phial of prussic acid rather than this poison." Because physical poison kills the body, but moral poison kills the soul. He called on the publishers to withdraw the book and the Home Secretary to take action if they did not.

Jonathan Cape sent a copy of The Well of Loneliness to Norman Birkett, the Home Secretary, for his opinion, offering to withdraw the book if it would be in the public interest to do so. After reading the book, Birkett said that he would take no action against it. It was a story of platonic love between two women, and was not a danger to public morals.

The Home Secretary's decision was condemned by Sir William Joynson-Hicks, the shadow Home Secretary. The novel was obscene because it encouraged unnatural vice.

In OTL, Joynson-Hicks, who was the Home Secretary, ordered shipments of The Well of Loneliness to be seized. The publisher and a London bookseller were ordered to appear before Bow Street Magistrates Court in London to show cause why the book should not be destroyed. The magistrate found that the book was obscene and must be destroyed. (1)

The fact that the book was not banned in Britain in this TL probably made little difference in the history of what are now called gay rights, although it helped to spread a more tolerant, or at least less intolerant attitude.

Birkett was not permissive in regard to what he thought was obscene literature. He banned Lady Chatterley's Lover by D.H. Lawrence.

(1) Here is the wikipedia entry on the book: http://www.en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Well_of_Loneliness .

 

[pipisme]

Two corrections: In the penultimate paragraph of post #49, which is now too old to edit, I wrote

In January 1926 Prime Minister Richard Acland appointed a Royal Commission on Constitutional Reform in India under the chairmanship of Viscount Peel etc.

Firstly, Acland's first name was Francis not Richard. Secondly, one of the provisions of the Government of India Act 1919 was that after ten years a commission would be appointed to investigate the working of the system of government, and if necessary recommend changes. It received the Royal Assent on December 28, 1919. As this was before the POD of December 1923, that provision of the Government of India Act still stands. I don't see any reason why Acland would have appointed the required commission in January 1926. So he does not then appoint any commission on India, but whether he waits until the end of December 1929 remains to be seen.

The government White Paper on British Industry was published in October 1929. Its principal author was John Maynard Keynes. This offered a detailed investigation and analysis of the state of British industry and recommended proposals for legislation. (1)

Among its proposals were the following:

A programme of national economic development aimed at reducing unemployment.

The establishment of a Board of National Investment which would invest in industry.

That the Board of Trade is given the power to investigate and publish the workings of monopolies.

That statutory works councils should be established in all establishments with more than fifty employees.

That there should be extension of profit sharing in industry. It declared that there should be popular ownership, not public ownership.

(1) The White Paper was a modified version of OTL Britain's Industrial Future, being the Report of the Liberal Industrial Inquiry, published in February 1928. A review was published in The Economic Journal for June 1928: http://www.jstor.org/stable/2223861 .

 

[perfectgeneral]

One time when tariffs and planned production can offer an advantage to industry is when the free market collapses.

Speculation:

A national programme of modernisation, rationalisation and efficiency can be imposed at a time when output is low enough that the transition doesn't inhibit supply.

Aerofilms offers industrial survey from the air. Photo recce could be used used to measure floor space devoted to various industries around the country.

Ailsa Craig Motor Co was a struggling marine diesel engine company. All diesel manufacturing merged into two companies with little overlap in specialisation.

Albright & Wilson was an industrial chemical company as was Frederick Allen & Sons - many minor members of the Association of British Chemical Manufacturers join Associated Chemical Industries as a rival to ICI.

Ardinco 'Perphecto' works installs new hydraulic metal presses and die cuting mills. Merged with Art Metal Construction Co. as Sheet Steel Pressing Co.

Kynoch and BSA tool up to produce military and sporting rifles, carbines and ammunition in the .256 inch mk 3 rimless calibre (6.5mm x 50mm). Switching British and Commonwealth rifles and ammunition over from .303 to a smaller, lighter, cheaper .256 standard will keep BSA, LSA and RSA Enfield in business at a time of very few military orders. Such a change in standard ammunition had been delayed since before the Great War. Small arms calibres would now be limited to 9x19mm Parabellum Pistol, .256 Rifle and .5 inch Machine Gun. (The 0.5 inch Machine gun was supported to ensure rapid US imports in time of war).

Altanta (of Brixton) expand machine tool and jig manufacturing to largest scale in market. British Standards impose new standard sizes.

Aston and Mander scientific and drawing relocated to larger premises as a contract drafting agency. Scientific instruments relocated to new Bedford electrical 'park' along with C Crestwick Atkinson M.I.R.E.

 

[stevep]

One time when tariffs and planned production can offer an advantage to industry is when the free market collapses.

Speculation:

perfectgeneral

Ah, but that only occurs about 95% of the time.

Seriously, both tariffs/planning and 'free market' operations rely more heavily on how they are implemented than inherent weaknesses/advantages of either system.

Steve

 

[pipisme]

The attitude of the Conservative Party to the White Paper on British industry was that it was a combination of platitudes, a few passably good ideas and a prescription for the extension of state regulation and control of industry, verging on socialism. The Tories opposed as impracticable its advocacy of deficit financing to stimulate trade and support a major programme of public works.

The Labour Party attitude varied. The left-wing condemned it as collection of palliatives intended to shore up a decaying and unjust capitalist system. The party leadership, particularly Ramsay MacDonald and Philip Snowden, the guardian of strict of financial orthodoxy, opposed it. They believed that socialism would be achieved gradually by the Labour Party winning public opinion. To be too radical would be electorally disastrous.

The most constructive policy proposals in the Labour Party were those by the Independent Labour Party (ILP). The ILP was affiliated to the Labour Party. Its Living Wage Plan published in July 1928 called for a minimum wage for all workers, expanded social services, a national system of family allowances, the nationalisation of the Bank of England and major industries. This was rejected at the Labour Party conference in Birmingham in late September 1928 because of the votes of party loyalists and the trade unions,

 

[pipisme]

In the Aberdeen North by-election on August 16, 1928 caused by the death of the sitting Labour MP, Henry Brailsford, one-time editor of the ILP weekly newspaper the New Leader held the seat for Labour as an ILP candidate. The Tories came second and the Liberals third.

In late October 1928, the ILP members in the House of Commons announced that they would challenge Ramsay MacDonald for the leadership of the Labour Party in the annual leadership elections the following month. Usually these were a formality with the leader not opposed for re-election. In this TL and in OTL the leader of the Labour Party was elected by Labour MPs. MacDonald's challenger was James Maxton, the chairman of the ILP.

The result of the election on November 12 was:

Ramsay MacDonald: 129 votes
James Maxton: 36 votes (all ILP members)
Five Labour MPs did not vote.

On November 17, the ILP announced that it would no longer affiliate to the Labour Party, but become an independent political party. ILP members of Parliament would resign the Labour whip and form their own party with James Maxton as their leader, or chairman.

Maxton said that if he had to choose between Tory Reaction or McDonaldism or progressive Liberalism he would choose progressive Liberalism, though of course he would always fight for socialism

One of the ILP members was John Wheatley, who resigned from his position as Labour spokesman on Health. There were 36 ILP MPs.

 

[perfectgeneral]

I didn't expect the militant socialists to be the first to crumble! Talk about a win(Liberal) win(Labour) situation.

Interesting to note that Barium Consolidated wound up in 1930/31, just as X ray photograpghy of a heavy metal meal was becoming a diagnosic tool. It also 'turned out' to be a great lining for metal casting to prevent metal casts from joining to metal moulds.

 

[pipisme]

The establishment of the Independent Labour Party (ILP) as a separate Party from the Labour Party meant that it was entitled to one member on the Speaker's Conference on the voting system and on House of Commons committees, at the expense of Labour. The ILP representative on the Speaker's Conference was Josiah Wedgwood, the member for Newcastle-under-Lyme. He was a Liberal MP from 1906 to 1919 when he crossed the floor to Labour.

The Family Allowances Bill received its second reading in late November 1928. It provided for the payment of 4 shillings a week in respect of all children up to the age of 15 (the school leaving age), or up to the age of 18 if they were still in education. Payment would be to the mother, or to the father if he was a widower. It would be financed by an increase of 2d on surtax. It was supported by the ILP and Labour but opposed by almost all Tories. They argued that the country could not afford it and proposed that the allowances should be paid only to widows or widowers. They also opposed the increase in surtax. Nancy Astor and a few other Tories voted in favour of the bill.

In the Committee Stage, the Tories moved an amendment to exclude children of single parents, unless they were widows or widowers. They argued that the state should not subsidy women who get themselves pregnant outside of marriage. In opposing the amendment Lucy Masterman, the Parliamentary Secretary to the Ministry of Health, said that it would be immoral to punish the children of women who had fallen into sin, or had been seduced by unscrupulous and irresponsible men. The amendment was defeated. An ILP amendment to increase the amount of the allowance to 8 shillings a week was heavily defeated, with only the ILP voting for it.

After it passed through both Houses of Parliament, the bill received the royal assent in early February 1929.

 

[pipisme]

In January 1929, 1,100,000 insured workers were unemployed. (1) However unemployment was always two to three hundred thousand higher in winter than in summer.

The Speaker's Conference on the voting system reported in February 1929. Its recommendations were as follows:

1) By a majority of 13 to 10 it voted to replace the existing first past the post (FPTP) method of election by the single transferable vote (STV) For: 8 Liberals, 4 Conservatives and one ILP. Against: 3 Conservatives, 6 Labour and one Liberal.

2) If STV were to be adopted, it voted by 14 votes to 9 that very large rural constituencies should continue to be single member seats with elections conducted under FPTP rather than the alternative vote. For: 7 Conservatives, 6 Labour and one Liberal. Against: 8 Liberals and one ILP.

In a statement in the House of Commons, the Home Secretary, Sir Norman Birkett, said that the government had treated the report of the Conference with the utmost seriousness and would introduce legislation to implement its recommendations when Parliamentary time allowed. It would give Liberal members a free vote on any such legislation.

(1) In OTL, the number of insured workers who were unemployed in January 1929 was 1,466,000.

 

[Archangel]

The British economy seems to be in slightly better shape TTL.

 

[pipisme]

The debate on the second reading of the Electoral Reform Bill in the House of Commons took place over two days on May 15 and 16, 1929. Under the terms of the bill elections to the House of Commons would be by the single transferable vote (STV). However in 13 large-size rural constituencies (7 in Scotland, 3 in Wales, 2 in northern England and one in Northern Ireland) and 3 university constituencies, elections would continue to be held under the first past the post system (FPTP). By-elections in the STV seats would be by FPTP.

Introducing the bill, Home Secretary Birkett said the government was officially neutral. The bill was an opportunity for the House of Commons to express its opinion on the majority recommendations of the Speaker's Conference in regard to changing the voting system. If it received a second reading the government would provide sufficient parliamentary time for it to complete its subsequent stages.

He rehearsed the arguments for and against STV and FPTP. He pointed out that four of the past six general elections (those of January and December 1910, 1923 and 1928) had resulted in no party having an overall majority of seats in the House of Commons. The previous general election in April 1928 had resulted in the number of seats won by each party being broadly in proportion to the percentage of the votes it had obtained in the country. No party was grossly under or over represented.