Tony Leavey
Encyclopedia
John Anthony Leavey, known as Tony Leavey (3 March 1915 – 9 July 1999) was a British
company director and politician.
, then an engineering firm who had not yet specialised in medical devices. He went to Mill Hill School
and then Trinity Hall
, University of Cambridge
before returning to east Lancashire
where he became a director of companies involved in the weaving and matchmaking industries in Colne
and Rawtenstall
.
in France and Belgium; he only just escaped at Dunkirk
, being one of the last to be evacuated. On arriving back in Britain the regiment underwent training in the midlands where Leavey organised a pack of fox hounds with which to go fox hunting
. He was pleased to return to liberate France after D Day
, fighting through to the end of the war. He was mentioned in despatches and reached the rank of Major
. After demobilisation in 1946, Leavey was employed by the family firm of Smith and Nephew and became a Director in 1948. He joined the Yorkshire Hussars
in the Territorial Army as a Major in 1952, but left in 1955.
he was picked to challenge the already well-known Labour MP Barbara Castle
in Blackburn East
. At his second shot at the seat in 1951
, he cut her majority to the point at which the seat looked vulnerable. Instead of fighting again, he was selected for Heywood and Royton
, a Conservative seat where the sitting MP was retiring.
. He was a strong supporter of the government over the Suez Crisis
and attacked nearby Labour MPs for supporting Gamal Abdel Nasser
, being rewarded with appointment as Parliamentary Private Secretary
to Walter Monckton
for one year from 1956 and later to Derick Heathcoat Amory
in 1959; however, his loyalty did not stretch to accepting what he saw as government indifference to the local cotton industry. When his pressure resulted in the passing of the Cotton Industry Act 1959, it was felt to have aided his campaign locally; despite it, in 1962, he was one of five Conservative MPs to support a Labour motion of censure on the subject.
Some of Leavey's campaigns attracted attention, with his call for an end to the teaching of Latin in schools among them. He was insistent that he knew there had been flying saucers
over Lancashire, and wanted girls who went topless to be arrested. He supported Anthony Wedgwood Benn
in his campaign to allow peers to renounce their titles. In 1961 he was made Secretary to the 1922 Committee
of Conservative backbenchers.
When Prime Minister Harold Macmillan
sacked seven members of his cabinet in the "Night of the Long Knives" in 1962, Leavey praised him for being ruthless with colleagues when necessary. He had a tough fight at the 1964 general election
, as Labour had his seat as a target. Leavey, who had a major operation shortly before the election, was ultimately unable by 818 votes to retain it.
Trust from 1974 to 1992 and also became a trustee of the Kurt Hahn Trust in 1987. He also enjoyed fishing.
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...
company director and politician.
Family business
Leavey's father George was chairman of Smith & NephewSmith & Nephew
Smith & Nephew plc is a global medical devices company headquartered in London, United Kingdom. It is the world's largest producer of arthroscopy products, second-largest producer of advanced wound management products, third-largest producer of trauma and clinical therapy products and...
, then an engineering firm who had not yet specialised in medical devices. He went to Mill Hill School
Mill Hill School
Mill Hill School, in Mill Hill, London, is a coeducational independent school for boarding and day pupils aged 13–18. It is a member of the Headmasters' and Headmistresses' Conference, an organisation of public schools in the United Kingdom....
and then Trinity Hall
Trinity Hall, Cambridge
Trinity Hall is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge, England. It is the fifth-oldest college of the university, having been founded in 1350 by William Bateman, Bishop of Norwich.- Foundation :...
, University of Cambridge
University of Cambridge
The University of Cambridge is a public research university located in Cambridge, United Kingdom. It is the second-oldest university in both the United Kingdom and the English-speaking world , and the seventh-oldest globally...
before returning to east Lancashire
Lancashire
Lancashire is a non-metropolitan county of historic origin in the North West of England. It takes its name from the city of Lancaster, and is sometimes known as the County of Lancaster. Although Lancaster is still considered to be the county town, Lancashire County Council is based in Preston...
where he became a director of companies involved in the weaving and matchmaking industries in Colne
Colne
Colne is the second largest town and civil parish in the Borough of Pendle in Lancashire, England, with a population of 20,118. It lies at the eastern end of the M65, 6 miles north-east of Burnley, with Nelson immediately adjacent, in the Aire Gap with two main roads leading into the Yorkshire...
and Rawtenstall
Rawtenstall
Rawtenstall is a town at the centre of the Rossendale Valley, in Lancashire, England. It is the seat for the Borough of Rossendale, in which it is located. The town lies 18 miles north of Manchester, 22 miles east of the county town of Preston and 45 miles south east of Lancaster...
.
War service
As the Second World War loomed, Leavey joined up and served in the 5th Royal Inniskilling Dragoon Guards5th Royal Inniskilling Dragoon Guards
The 5th Royal Inniskilling Dragoon Guards was a cavalry regiment of the British Army in existence from 1922 to 1992, when it was amalgmated into the Royal Dragoon Guards.-The beginning:...
in France and Belgium; he only just escaped at Dunkirk
Operation Dynamo
The Dunkirk evacuation, commonly known as the Miracle of Dunkirk, code-named Operation Dynamo by the British, was the evacuation of Allied soldiers from the beaches and harbour of Dunkirk, France, between 26 May and the early hours of 3 June 1940, because the British, French and Belgian troops were...
, being one of the last to be evacuated. On arriving back in Britain the regiment underwent training in the midlands where Leavey organised a pack of fox hounds with which to go fox hunting
Fox hunting
Fox hunting is an activity involving the tracking, chase, and sometimes killing of a fox, traditionally a red fox, by trained foxhounds or other scent hounds, and a group of followers led by a master of foxhounds, who follow the hounds on foot or on horseback.Fox hunting originated in its current...
. He was pleased to return to liberate France after D Day
Operation Overlord
Operation Overlord was the code name for the Battle of Normandy, the operation that launched the invasion of German-occupied western Europe during World War II by Allied forces. The operation commenced on 6 June 1944 with the Normandy landings...
, fighting through to the end of the war. He was mentioned in despatches and reached the rank of Major
Major
Major is a rank of commissioned officer, with corresponding ranks existing in almost every military in the world.When used unhyphenated, in conjunction with no other indicator of rank, the term refers to the rank just senior to that of an Army captain and just below the rank of lieutenant colonel. ...
. After demobilisation in 1946, Leavey was employed by the family firm of Smith and Nephew and became a Director in 1948. He joined the Yorkshire Hussars
Yorkshire Hussars
The Yorkshire Hussars was a unit of the British Army from 1794 to 1956.The regiment was formed as volunteer cavalry in 1794 during the French Revolutionary Wars. It was converted to an armoured role during World War II. In 1956 it merged with two other Yorkshire yeomanry regiments to form the...
in the Territorial Army as a Major in 1952, but left in 1955.
Politics
At the 1950 general electionUnited Kingdom general election, 1950
The 1950 United Kingdom general election was the first general election ever after a full term of a Labour government. Despite polling over one and a half million votes more than the Conservatives, the election, held on 23 February 1950 resulted in Labour receiving a slim majority of just five...
he was picked to challenge the already well-known Labour MP Barbara Castle
Barbara Castle
Barbara Anne Castle, Baroness Castle of Blackburn , PC, GCOT was a British Labour Party politician....
in Blackburn East
Blackburn East (UK Parliament constituency)
Blackburn East was a parliamentary constituency in the town of Blackburn in Lancashire. It returned one Member of Parliament to the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, elected by the first past the post system....
. At his second shot at the seat in 1951
United Kingdom general election, 1951
The 1951 United Kingdom general election was held eighteen months after the 1950 general election, which the Labour Party had won with a slim majority of just five seats...
, he cut her majority to the point at which the seat looked vulnerable. Instead of fighting again, he was selected for Heywood and Royton
Heywood and Royton (UK Parliament constituency)
Heywood and Royton was a parliamentary constituency centred on the Heywood and Royton districts in the north-west of Greater Manchester. It returned one Member of Parliament to the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom....
, a Conservative seat where the sitting MP was retiring.
Parliamentary career
Leavey won at the 1955 general electionUnited Kingdom general election, 1955
The 1955 United Kingdom general election was held on 26 May 1955, four years after the previous general election. It resulted in a substantially increased majority of 60 for the Conservative government under new leader and prime minister Sir Anthony Eden against Labour Party, now in their 20th year...
. He was a strong supporter of the government over the Suez Crisis
Suez Crisis
The Suez Crisis, also referred to as the Tripartite Aggression, Suez War was an offensive war fought by France, the United Kingdom, and Israel against Egypt beginning on 29 October 1956. Less than a day after Israel invaded Egypt, Britain and France issued a joint ultimatum to Egypt and Israel,...
and attacked nearby Labour MPs for supporting Gamal Abdel Nasser
Gamal Abdel Nasser
Gamal Abdel Nasser Hussein was the second President of Egypt from 1956 until his death. A colonel in the Egyptian army, Nasser led the Egyptian Revolution of 1952 along with Muhammad Naguib, the first president, which overthrew the monarchy of Egypt and Sudan, and heralded a new period of...
, being rewarded with appointment as Parliamentary Private Secretary
Parliamentary Private Secretary
A Parliamentary Private Secretary is a role given to a United Kingdom Member of Parliament by a senior minister in government or shadow minister to act as their contact for the House of Commons; this role is junior to that of Parliamentary Under-Secretary, which is a ministerial post, salaried by...
to Walter Monckton
Walter Monckton, 1st Viscount Monckton of Brenchley
Walter Turner Monckton, 1st Viscount Monckton of Brenchley, GCVO, KCMG, MC, PC was a British politician.-Early years:...
for one year from 1956 and later to Derick Heathcoat Amory
Derick Heathcoat Amory
Derick Heathcoat-Amory, 1st Viscount Amory was a British Conservative politician. He served as Chancellor of the Exchequer from 1958 to 1960 and as Chancellor of the University of Exeter from 1972 to 1981.-Background and education:...
in 1959; however, his loyalty did not stretch to accepting what he saw as government indifference to the local cotton industry. When his pressure resulted in the passing of the Cotton Industry Act 1959, it was felt to have aided his campaign locally; despite it, in 1962, he was one of five Conservative MPs to support a Labour motion of censure on the subject.
Some of Leavey's campaigns attracted attention, with his call for an end to the teaching of Latin in schools among them. He was insistent that he knew there had been flying saucers
Unidentified flying object
A term originally coined by the military, an unidentified flying object is an unusual apparent anomaly in the sky that is not readily identifiable to the observer as any known object...
over Lancashire, and wanted girls who went topless to be arrested. He supported Anthony Wedgwood Benn
Tony Benn
Anthony Neil Wedgwood "Tony" Benn, PC is a British Labour Party politician and a former MP and Cabinet Minister.His successful campaign to renounce his hereditary peerage was instrumental in the creation of the Peerage Act 1963...
in his campaign to allow peers to renounce their titles. In 1961 he was made Secretary to the 1922 Committee
1922 Committee
In British politics, the 1922 Committee is a committee of Conservative Members of Parliament. Voting membership is limited to backbench MPs although frontbench Conservative MPs have an open invitation to attend meetings. While the party was in opposition, frontbench MPs other than the party leader...
of Conservative backbenchers.
When Prime Minister Harold Macmillan
Harold Macmillan
Maurice Harold Macmillan, 1st Earl of Stockton, OM, PC was Conservative Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 10 January 1957 to 18 October 1963....
sacked seven members of his cabinet in the "Night of the Long Knives" in 1962, Leavey praised him for being ruthless with colleagues when necessary. He had a tough fight at the 1964 general election
United Kingdom general election, 1964
The United Kingdom general election of 1964 was held on 15 October 1964, more than five years after the preceding election, and thirteen years after the Conservative Party had retaken power...
, as Labour had his seat as a target. Leavey, who had a major operation shortly before the election, was ultimately unable by 818 votes to retain it.
Business appointments
After leaving Parliament he paid more attention to his work at Smith and Nephew (which had continued in the background during his career, and seen him appointed Deputy Chairman in 1962) and also became Chairman of Wilson (Connolly) Holdings, a midlands-based firm of builders. He had other business interests and was a member of the South East London Industrial Tribunal from 1978 to 1984. In 1982 he wrote (together with Richard Bennett) an official history of Smith and Nephew from its foundation in 1856.Recreations
Enthusiastic about country activities, Leavey continued to enjoy fox hunting and also took part in point-to-point races. He was a council member of the Outward BoundOutward Bound
Outward Bound is an international, non-profit, independent, outdoor educationorganization with approximately 40 schools around the world and 200,000 participants per year...
Trust from 1974 to 1992 and also became a trustee of the Kurt Hahn Trust in 1987. He also enjoyed fishing.