James Milner, 1st Baron Milner of Leeds, MC*, PC (12 August 1889 – 16 July 1967), was a British Labour Party politician.
The Lord Milner of Leeds | |
|---|---|
| Deputy Speaker of the House of Commons Chairman of Ways and Means | |
| In office 10 March 1943 – 20 December 1951 | |
| Preceded by | Douglas Clifton Brown |
| Succeeded by | Sir Charles MacAndrew |
| Member of Parliament for Leeds South East | |
| In office 1 August 1929 – 20 December 1951 | |
| Preceded by | Henry Slesser |
| Succeeded by | Denis Healey |
| Member of the House of Lords Lord Temporal | |
| In office 20 December 1951 – 16 July 1967 as a hereditary peer | |
| Preceded by | Peerage created |
| Succeeded by | The 2nd Baron Milner of Leeds |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 12 August 1889 |
| Died | 16 July 1967 (aged 77) |
Biography
editMilner was educated at the University of Leeds and became a solicitor. He was a major in World War I and was wounded, awarded the Military Cross and bar for his service. He was a Leeds City Councillor and Deputy Lord Mayor of Leeds in 1928, and was also Chairman of Leeds Labour Party and President of Leeds Law Society. He later became deputy-lieutenant of the West Riding of Yorkshire.
He was elected as the Labour Member of Parliament (MP) for Leeds South East at a by-election in August 1929,[1] and served until 1951. He became Chairman of Ways and Means and Deputy Speaker[2] and led the British Group of the Inter-Parliamentary Union. He was made a Privy Counsellor in 1945.
In 1951, the Speaker of the House of Commons, Douglas Clifton Brown, had stepped down. As Chairman of Ways and Means, Milner wanted to be Labour's first-ever Speaker. However, the Conservatives, now the majority party, nominated William Morrison. The vote went along party lines – the first time the post had been contested in the 20th century – and Milner lost. As some compensation, he was elevated to the House of Lords as Baron Milner of Leeds, of Roundhay in the City of Leeds, on 20 December 1951.[3] Denis Healey replaced him in the subsequent by-election.
Honours
edit- Military Cross and Bar (MC)
- 1914–15 Star
- British War Medal
- WWI Victory Medal
- Member of His Majesty's Most Honourable Privy Council (PC) (1945)
- Freedom of the City of Leeds (1967)
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Personal life
editMilner married Lois Tinsdale Brown on 10 February 1917. They had three children:[5]
- Hon. (Lois Elizabeth Florence) Zaidée Milner (born 9 January 1919, died 1980)
- (Arthur James) Michael Milner, 2nd Baron Milner of Leeds (born 12 September 1923, died 20 August 2003)
- Hon. Shelagh Mary Margaret Milner (born 8 March 1925)
Milner died in 1967 at the age of 77 and was succeeded in the barony by his only son, Michael. His remains are interred in the Garden of Remembrance at St John the Evangelist Church, Moor Allerton, Leeds.
References
edit- ^ Craig, F. W. S. (1983) [1969]. British parliamentary election results 1918–1949 (3rd ed.). Chichester: Parliamentary Research Services. p. 164. ISBN 0-900178-06-X.
- ^ "Chairman of Ways and Means and Deputy-Chairman". Parliamentary Debates (Hansard). House of Commons. 10 March 1943. col. 699.
- ^ "No. 39414". The London Gazette. 21 December 1951. p. 6650.
- ^ Debrett's Peerage. 2019. p. 3645.
- ^ The peerage.com, entry for 1st Lord Milner of Leeds
Sources
edit- Iain Dale, ed. (2003). The Times House of Commons 1929, 1931, 1935. Politico's (reprint). ISBN 1-84275-033-X.
- The Times House of Commons 1945. 1945.
- The Times House of Commons 1950. 1950.