Donald Thompson
Encyclopedia
Sir Donald Thompson was a British
Conservative Party
politician. He was a Member of Parliament
(MP) from 1979 until 1997.
Thompson attended Holy Trinity School, Halifax
, and Hipperholme Grammar School
. Following National Service
he ran a farm near Halifax then joined the family butcher business of his father, Geoff Thompson, known for its black puddings. His mother, Rachel, had worked as a weaver from the age of 12 until her marriage. Thompson expanded the business considerably and also developed a successful plastics manufacturing business.
Thompson became involved in politics at a young age, setting up Halifax Young Conservatives. He became a county council
lor for the West Riding
from 1967, joining the new West Yorkshire
county council in 1974, then Calderdale
district council from 1975 until 1979. He first stood for Parliament
at the 1970 general election
for the safe Labour
seat of Batley and Morley
. He stood in the marginal seat of Sowerby
in both the February 1974
and October 1974 elections
, losing by small margins. In the 1979 election
he stood again in Sowerby, beating Max Madden
by 1,180. At the 1983 general election
, the seat was adjusted and renamed Calder Valley
.
Thompson was known as a solid, stout, no-nonsense Yorkshire
man. He worked his way up through the whip
s office before joining the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food
as a junior minister. He was sacked in 1989 but bore no resentment against Margaret Thatcher
, telling his colleagues: "There is no iceberg here, but a shire horse unharnessed and put out to grass on blue Conservative grass."
Thompson was knighted in 1992. He lost his seat in the 1997 Labour landslide
. He was married in 1957 to Patricia Hopkins, with whom he had two sons.
In July 1997, following the loss of his seat in parliament, Thompson was appointed Director of the War Memorials Trust (then known as The Friends of War Memorials), a charity
which he had helped to found in 1996. He held the post until his death in 2005.
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. He was a 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,...
(MP) from 1979 until 1997.
Thompson attended Holy Trinity School, Halifax
Halifax, West Yorkshire
Halifax is a minster town, within the Metropolitan Borough of Calderdale in West Yorkshire, England. It has an urban area population of 82,056 in the 2001 Census. It is well-known as a centre of England's woollen manufacture from the 15th century onward, originally dealing through the Halifax Piece...
, and Hipperholme Grammar School
Hipperholme Grammar School
Hipperholme Grammar School is an independent grammar school in Hipperholme , West Yorkshire, England. It educates pupils between the ages of 11 and 18....
. Following National Service
National service
National service is a common name for mandatory government service programmes . The term became common British usage during and for some years following the Second World War. Many young people spent one or more years in such programmes...
he ran a farm near Halifax then joined the family butcher business of his father, Geoff Thompson, known for its black puddings. His mother, Rachel, had worked as a weaver from the age of 12 until her marriage. Thompson expanded the business considerably and also developed a successful plastics manufacturing business.
Thompson became involved in politics at a young age, setting up Halifax Young Conservatives. He became a county council
County council
A county council is the elected administrative body governing an area known as a county. This term has slightly different meanings in different countries.-United Kingdom:...
lor for the West Riding
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...
from 1967, joining the new West Yorkshire
West Yorkshire
West Yorkshire is a metropolitan county within the Yorkshire and the Humber region of England with a population of 2.2 million. West Yorkshire came into existence as a metropolitan county in 1974 after the passage of the Local Government Act 1972....
county council in 1974, then Calderdale
Calderdale
The Metropolitan Borough of Calderdale is a metropolitan borough of West Yorkshire, England, through which the upper part of the River Calder flows, and from which it takes its name...
district council from 1975 until 1979. He first stood for Parliament
Parliament of the United Kingdom
The Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the supreme legislative body in the United Kingdom, British Crown dependencies and British overseas territories, located in London...
at 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...
for the safe Labour
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...
seat of Batley and Morley
Batley and Morley (UK Parliament constituency)
Batley and Morley was a parliamentary constituency centred on the towns of Batley and Morley in West Yorkshire. It returned one Member of Parliament to the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom....
. He stood in the marginal seat of Sowerby
Sowerby (UK Parliament constituency)
Sowerby was a county constituency centred on the village of Sowerby in Calderdale, West Yorkshire. It returned one Member of Parliament to the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom.-History:...
in both the February 1974
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,...
and October 1974 elections
United Kingdom general election, October 1974
The United Kingdom general election of October 1974 took place on 10 October 1974 to elect 635 members to the British House of Commons. It was the second general election of that year and resulted in the Labour Party led by Harold Wilson, winning by a tiny majority of 3 seats.The election of...
, losing by small margins. In the 1979 election
United Kingdom general election, 1979
The United Kingdom general election of 1979 was held on 3 May 1979 to elect 635 members to the British House of Commons. The Conservative Party, led by Margaret Thatcher ousted the incumbent Labour government of James Callaghan with a parliamentary majority of 43 seats...
he stood again in Sowerby, beating Max Madden
Max Madden
Maxwell Francis "Max" Madden is a British journalist and Labour Party politician.Madden was elected as Member of Parliament for Sowerby at the February 1974 election, which he lost to the Conservatives in 1979....
by 1,180. At the 1983 general election
United Kingdom general election, 1983
The 1983 United Kingdom general election was held on 9 June 1983. It gave the Conservative Party under Margaret Thatcher the most decisive election victory since that of Labour in 1945...
, the seat was adjusted and renamed Calder Valley
Calder Valley (UK Parliament constituency)
- Elections in the 2000s :- Elections in the 1990s :- Elections in the 1980s :-Sources:*...
.
Thompson was known as a solid, stout, no-nonsense Yorkshire
Yorkshire
Yorkshire is a historic county of northern England and the largest in the United Kingdom. Because of its great size in comparison to other English counties, functions have been increasingly undertaken over time by its subdivisions, which have also been subject to periodic reform...
man. He worked his way up through the whip
Whip (politics)
A whip is an official in a political party whose primary purpose is to ensure party discipline in a legislature. Whips are a party's "enforcers", who typically offer inducements and threaten punishments for party members to ensure that they vote according to the official party policy...
s office before joining the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food
Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food
The Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food was a United Kingdom government department created by the Board of Agriculture Act 1889 and at that time called the Board of Agriculture, and then from 1903 the Board of Agriculture and Fisheries, and from 1919 the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries...
as a junior minister. He was sacked in 1989 but bore no resentment against Margaret Thatcher
Margaret Thatcher
Margaret Hilda Thatcher, Baroness Thatcher, was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1979 to 1990...
, telling his colleagues: "There is no iceberg here, but a shire horse unharnessed and put out to grass on blue Conservative grass."
Thompson was knighted in 1992. He lost his seat in the 1997 Labour landslide
United Kingdom general election, 1997
The United Kingdom general election, 1997 was held on 1 May 1997, more than five years after the previous election on 9 April 1992, to elect 659 members to the British House of Commons. The Labour Party ended its 18 years in opposition under the leadership of Tony Blair, and won the general...
. He was married in 1957 to Patricia Hopkins, with whom he had two sons.
In July 1997, following the loss of his seat in parliament, Thompson was appointed Director of the War Memorials Trust (then known as The Friends of War Memorials), a charity
Charitable trust
A charitable trust is an irrevocable trust established for charitable purposes, and is a more specific term than "charitable organization".-United States:...
which he had helped to found in 1996. He held the post until his death in 2005.
External links
- The Guardian newspaper's obituary of Donald Thompson
- The Independent newspaper's obituary of Donald Thompson
- The War Memorials Trust