Berwick-upon-Tweed by-election, 1973
Encyclopedia
The Berwick-upon-Tweed by-election, 1973 was a parliamentary by-election
held on 8 November 1973 for the British House of Commons
constituency
of Berwick-upon-Tweed
. It was one of four UK by-elections held on the same day.
The by-election took place during the 1970s Liberal Party
revival. This was the fifth Liberal gain during the 1970-1974 Parliament. Although largely overshadowed by the SNP's spectacular victory in Glasgow Govan
on the same day, it was the narrowest by-election result since the Carmarthen by-election
of 1928.
Member of Parliament (MP), Antony Claud Frederick Lambton, resigned following a private scandal. To resign from the House of Commons he asked to be appointed to the sinecure office of Steward of the Chiltern Hundreds, which appointment was made on 1 June 1973. The Stewardship is a notional office of profit under the Crown, appointment to which vacates an MPs seat in Parliament. Lambton, a Conservative, had been MP for the constituency since 1951.
Antony Lambton (10 July 1922 – 30 December 2006), was briefly the 6th Earl of Durham
in 1970 but disclaimed that title to remain in the House of Commons. He was known before 1970 by the courtesy title
of Viscount Lambton, a style he continued to claim after renouncing his peerage.
1. The Liberal Party candidate was Alan James Beith
, born on 20 April 1943. He was a lecturer in politics and a local Councillor. Beith had contested the constituency in the 1970 general election
,
Beith won the by-election, in a seat in which he had finished third in the 1970 general election. He has retained the seat since the by-election and (in 2010) is the longest serving current Liberal Democrat MP.
Beith was the Liberal Party Chief Whip
1977-1985 and Deputy Leader 1985-1988. Following the formation of the (Social and) Liberal Democrats in 1988, he contested the party leadership. Beith subsequently became Deputy Leader of the Parliamentary Party, a post he held from 1992 until 2003.
2. The Conservative candidate was J.D.M. Hardie. He had previously contested the Scottish seats of West Stirlingshire
in 1966 and Berwickshire and East Lothian in 1970.
After losing the by-election, Hardie again contested the seat in the February 1974 general election
.
3. The Labour Party
was represented by Dr Gordon Johnston Adam
, a mining engineer (born 28 March 1934). At the 1966 general election
, Adam was the Labour Party candidate for the Tynemouth
constituency.
In August 1973, he was chosen to fight the byelection in Berwick-upon-Tweed, and decided to focus on the issues of housing and prices. The Times Diary noted that Labour had drafted 13 professionals in to lead their campaign but described Adam as "a charm-free technocrat". Adam saw Labour overtaken by the Liberal Party
who narrowly won the seat; he took comfort that the Labour vote had held firm.
Adam again contested the constituency in the February 1974 general election
. He was a member of the European Parliament from 1979 until he retired in 2004 (apart from six months in 1999).
4. T.G. Symonds was an Independent candidate. Tim Symonds then joined the Liberal Party and became the Liberal Parliamentary candidate in Newcastle East in the late-1974 general election. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Newcastle_upon_Tyne_East_%28UK_Parliament_constituency%29#Elections_in_the_1970s. In 1980 he co-founded with Lesley Abdela the all-Party 300 Group for Women in Politics.
5. Robert Goodall was an Independent candidate. He had previously contested West Derbyshire
in 1944
, 1945 and 1967
, and the Macclesfield by-election, 1971
, finishing bottom of the poll each time.
By-election
A by-election is an election held to fill a political office that has become vacant between regularly scheduled elections....
held on 8 November 1973 for the British 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...
constituency
United Kingdom constituencies
In the United Kingdom , each of the electoral areas or divisions called constituencies elects one or more members to a parliament or assembly.Within the United Kingdom there are now five bodies with members elected by constituencies:...
of Berwick-upon-Tweed
Berwick-upon-Tweed (UK Parliament constituency)
Berwick-upon-Tweed is a 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.-Boundaries:...
. It was one of four UK by-elections held on the same day.
The by-election took place during the 1970s 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...
revival. This was the fifth Liberal gain during the 1970-1974 Parliament. Although largely overshadowed by the SNP's spectacular victory in Glasgow Govan
Glasgow Govan by-election, 1973
The Glasgow Govan by-election was held on 8 November 1973, following the death of John Rankin, Labour Party Member of Parliament for the Glasgow Govan constituency. Rankin had died one month earlier, on 8 October 1973. Rankin had held the seat since 1955. With the exception of a narrow Conservative...
on the same day, it was the narrowest by-election result since the Carmarthen by-election
Carmarthen by-election, 1928
The Carmarthen by-election, 1928 was a parliamentary by-election held for the British House of Commons constituency of Carmarthen in West Wales on 28 June 1928.- Vacancy :...
of 1928.
Previous MP
The seat had become vacant when the constituency's ConservativeConservative 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...
Member of Parliament (MP), Antony Claud Frederick Lambton, resigned following a private scandal. To resign from the House of Commons he asked to be appointed to the sinecure office of Steward of the Chiltern Hundreds, which appointment was made on 1 June 1973. The Stewardship is a notional office of profit under the Crown, appointment to which vacates an MPs seat in Parliament. Lambton, a Conservative, had been MP for the constituency since 1951.
Antony Lambton (10 July 1922 – 30 December 2006), was briefly the 6th Earl of Durham
Earl of Durham
Earl of Durham is a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. It was created in 1833 for the prominent Whig politician and colonial official John Lambton, 1st Baron Durham. Known as "Radical Jack", he played a leading role in the passing of the Great Reform Act of 1832...
in 1970 but disclaimed that title to remain in the House of Commons. He was known before 1970 by the courtesy title
Courtesy title
A courtesy title is a form of address in systems of nobility used for children, former wives and other close relatives of a peer. These styles are used 'by courtesy' in the sense that the relatives do not themselves hold substantive titles...
of Viscount Lambton, a style he continued to claim after renouncing his peerage.
Candidates
Five candidates were nominated. The list below is set out in descending order of the number of votes received at the by-election.1. The Liberal Party candidate was Alan James Beith
Alan Beith
Sir Alan James Beith is a British Liberal Democrat politician and Member of Parliament for Berwick-upon-Tweed.-Early life:Alan Beith was born in 1943 in Poynton, in Cheshire...
, born on 20 April 1943. He was a lecturer in politics and a local Councillor. Beith had contested the constituency in 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...
,
Beith won the by-election, in a seat in which he had finished third in the 1970 general election. He has retained the seat since the by-election and (in 2010) is the longest serving current Liberal Democrat MP.
Beith was the Liberal Party Chief Whip
Chief Whip
The Chief Whip is a political office in some legislatures assigned to an elected member whose task is to administer the whipping system that ensures that members of the party attend and vote as the party leadership desires.-The Whips Office:...
1977-1985 and Deputy Leader 1985-1988. Following the formation of the (Social and) Liberal Democrats in 1988, he contested the party leadership. Beith subsequently became Deputy Leader of the Parliamentary Party, a post he held from 1992 until 2003.
2. The Conservative candidate was J.D.M. Hardie. He had previously contested the Scottish seats of West Stirlingshire
West Stirlingshire (UK Parliament constituency)
West Stirlingshire was a county constituency of the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, to which it elected one Member of Parliament by the first past the post electoral system....
in 1966 and Berwickshire and East Lothian in 1970.
After losing the by-election, Hardie again contested the seat in the February 1974 general election
United Kingdom general election, February 1974
The United Kingdom's general election of February 1974 was held on the 28th of that month. It was the first of two United Kingdom general elections held that year, and the first election since the Second World War not to produce an overall majority in the House of Commons for the winning party,...
.
3. The 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...
was represented by Dr Gordon Johnston Adam
Gordon Adam
Dr Gordon Johnston Adam is a British mining engineer and Labour Party politician. With one brief interruption, he served as a Member of the European Parliament for 25 years.-Training and career:...
, a mining engineer (born 28 March 1934). At the 1966 general election
United Kingdom general election, 1966
The 1966 United Kingdom general election on 31 March 1966 was called by sitting Labour Prime Minister Harold Wilson. Wilson's decision to call an election turned on the fact that his government, elected a mere 17 months previously in 1964 had an unworkably small majority of only 4 MPs...
, Adam was the Labour Party candidate for the Tynemouth
Tynemouth (UK Parliament constituency)
Tynemouth is a borough constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It elects one Member of Parliament using the first past the post voting system.-History:...
constituency.
In August 1973, he was chosen to fight the byelection in Berwick-upon-Tweed, and decided to focus on the issues of housing and prices. The Times Diary noted that Labour had drafted 13 professionals in to lead their campaign but described Adam as "a charm-free technocrat". Adam saw Labour overtaken by 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...
who narrowly won the seat; he took comfort that the Labour vote had held firm.
Adam again contested the constituency in the February 1974 general election
United Kingdom general election, February 1974
The United Kingdom's general election of February 1974 was held on the 28th of that month. It was the first of two United Kingdom general elections held that year, and the first election since the Second World War not to produce an overall majority in the House of Commons for the winning party,...
. He was a member of the European Parliament from 1979 until he retired in 2004 (apart from six months in 1999).
4. T.G. Symonds was an Independent candidate. Tim Symonds then joined the Liberal Party and became the Liberal Parliamentary candidate in Newcastle East in the late-1974 general election. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Newcastle_upon_Tyne_East_%28UK_Parliament_constituency%29#Elections_in_the_1970s. In 1980 he co-founded with Lesley Abdela the all-Party 300 Group for Women in Politics.
5. Robert Goodall was an Independent candidate. He had previously contested West Derbyshire
West Derbyshire (UK Parliament constituency)
West Derbyshire was a county constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. From 1885 until it was replaced by the Derbyshire Dales constituency in the 2010 General Election, it elected one Member of Parliament by the first past the post voting system.It...
in 1944
West Derbyshire by-election, 1967
The West Derbyshire by-election for the British House of Commons took place on 23 November 1967. It was caused by the resignation of Conservative Member of Parliament Aidan Crawley to become Chairman of London Weekend Television where he remained until 1973...
, 1945 and 1967
West Derbyshire by-election, 1967
The West Derbyshire by-election for the British House of Commons took place on 23 November 1967. It was caused by the resignation of Conservative Member of Parliament Aidan Crawley to become Chairman of London Weekend Television where he remained until 1973...
, and the Macclesfield by-election, 1971
Macclesfield by-election, 1971
The Macclesfield by-election, 1971 was a parliamentary by-election held on 30 September 1971 for the constituency of Macclesfield in Cheshire. It was caused by the elevation to the peerage of the sitting MP, the Conservative Arthur Vere Harvey....
, finishing bottom of the poll each time.
Votes
See also
- Berwick-upon-Tweed constituencyBerwick-upon-Tweed (UK Parliament constituency)Berwick-upon-Tweed is a 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.-Boundaries:...
- List of United Kingdom by-elections (1950–1979)
- United Kingdom by-election recordsUnited Kingdom by-election recordsUK by-election records is an annotated list of notable records from UK Parliamentary by-elections. A by-election occurs when a Member of Parliament resigns, dies, or is disqualified or expelled, and an election is held to fill the vacant seat...
- Edinburgh North by-election, 1973Edinburgh North by-election, 1973A by-election for the UK Parliament took place in Edinburgh North on 8 November 1973. Alexander Fletcher held the seat for the Conservatives, after his predecessor became Duke of Buccleuch....
- Glasgow Govan by-election, 1973Glasgow Govan by-election, 1973The Glasgow Govan by-election was held on 8 November 1973, following the death of John Rankin, Labour Party Member of Parliament for the Glasgow Govan constituency. Rankin had died one month earlier, on 8 October 1973. Rankin had held the seat since 1955. With the exception of a narrow Conservative...
- Hove by-election, 1973Hove by-election, 1973The Hove by-election was held on 8 November 1973 for the British House of Commons constituency of Hove in East Sussex.The by-election was caused by the death of Conservative Party Member of Parliament Martin Maddan....