Wayland Young
Encyclopedia
Wayland Hilton Young, 2nd Baron Kennet (2 August 1923 – 7 May 2009) was a British
writer Labour Party
and SDP
politician who served in numerous national and international official and unofficial capacities.
, and the sculptor Kathleen Scott
, née Bruce, widow of Captain Robert Falcon Scott
of the Antarctic. His half-brother was the painter and conservationist Sir Peter Scott. Cousin of Sir George Young, Bart He was educated at West Downs School
, Alpine College, Stowe School
and Trinity College, Cambridge - Exhibitioner. During World War II
he served in the Royal Navy
from 1942 to 1945, as an Ordinary Seaman and as Sublieutenant. He then went on to the Foreign Office
serving between 1946–47 and 1949–1951. In between and after he was a Journalist - Observer Correspondent in Rome and North Africa, and weekly columnist on the Guardian ("Sitting on a Column"), and theatre critic for Tribune. He was a frequent contributor to Encounter, where his articles were widely noticed - "Sitting on a Fortune" (about prostitution) and a review showing up many errors of fact in Roland Huntford's book on Scott and Amundsen, which denigrated the former (ignoring the scientific character of Scott's expedition), and presented the event as merely a "race" which the latter "won". He also wrote three novels, and several Pamphlets for the Fabian Society on defence, disarmament, pollution, Europe and other topics (some together with his wife, Elizabeth Young. Together they also wrote a book, Old London Churches, (which identified the six churches designed by NIcholas Hawksmoor as works of real genius). He also took part in the Campaign for the Abolition of Theatre Censorship as its Secretary. His energetic interest in Disarmament did not lead him to join the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament - it worked for unilateral British nuclear disarmament: he believed that only General and Comprehensive Disarmament could be useful and effective.
, and took his seat in the House of Lords
in 1960 upon the death of his father. He started his political career in the Labour Party. He served as Parliamentary Secretary (Junior Minister) in the Ministry of Housing and Local Government
(under Richard Crossman
,then later Anthony Greenwood) where he worked, among much else, on planning and conservation, and on devising the soon-to-be-set up Department of the Environment (Secretary of State, Tony Crosland) He was responsible for setting up the Royal Commission on Environmental Pollution
and for giving off. According to his 1972 publication Preservation he worked on setting-up the 'Four Towns Report' and played an important role in establishing the foundations of conservation policy through the Town and Country Planning Act 1968 and his 1970 Kennet Report.
After the fall of the [first] Wilson
Government in 1970, he was appointed Honorary Fellow of the Royal Institute of British Architects, and became Chairman of the Council for the Protection of Rural England, of the Advisory Committee on Pollution of the Sea (ACOPS), and various other organizations. He served as Opposition Spokesman on Foreign Affairs in the House of Lords from 1971 to 1974. He was also a member of the European Parliament, of the Western European Union
, and a NATO Parliamentarian.
Kennet joined the SDP, serving as Chief Whip of the party in the House of Lords between 1981 and 1983. He returned to the Labour Party in the 1990s before leaving in opposition to Tony Blair
's foreign policy. Under the terms of the House of Lords Act 1999
, he lost his automatic right to a seat; he was unsuccessful in the election by the Labour hereditary peers of two of their number to continue to sit after the coming into force of the Act, finishing last in a field of six candidates.
In 2005 he sought to return to the House in the by election among Liberal Democrat hereditary peers caused by the death of Earl Russell
; he was unsuccessful, receiving no votes.
Until late in life he remained chairman of the Stonehenge Alliance, and an active member of the Avebury Society and Action for the River Kennet (ARK).
who was the muse for Pink Floyd's
"See Emily Play
"; and the writers Louisa Young (the children's author Zizou Corder) and Zoe Young.
, on disarmament
and arms control
, on the churches of London
often collaborating with his wife Elizabeth Young, and on various political scandals, notably the Profumo Affair
and the Montesi scandal. His 1964 work Eros Denied was a groundbreaking manifesto of the sexual revolution
. Young's 1972 publication Preservation
is an important insight of present UK conservation and preservation laws and policies, through the conservation struggles of the late 19th century until the 1968 Planning Act.
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...
writer 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...
and SDP
Social Democratic Party (UK)
The Social Democratic Party was a political party in the United Kingdom that was created on 26 March 1981 and existed until 1988. It was founded by four senior Labour Party 'moderates', dubbed the 'Gang of Four': Roy Jenkins, David Owen, Bill Rodgers and Shirley Williams...
politician who served in numerous national and international official and unofficial capacities.
Early life
Young was the son of the multi-talented politician Edward Hilton Young, 1st Baron KennetEdward Hilton Young, 1st Baron Kennet
Sir Edward Hilton Young, 1st Baron Kennet, GBE, PC , was a British politician and writer.- Family and early life :...
, and the sculptor Kathleen Scott
Kathleen Scott
Kathleen Scott, Baroness Kennet, FRSBS was a British sculptor.-Early life:Born Edith Agnes Kathleen Bruce at Carlton in Lindrick, Bassetlaw, Nottinghamshire, she was the youngest of eleven children of Canon Lloyd Stuart Bruce and Jane Skene Kathleen Scott, Baroness Kennet, FRSBS (27 March...
, née Bruce, widow of Captain Robert Falcon Scott
Robert Falcon Scott
Captain Robert Falcon Scott, CVO was a Royal Navy officer and explorer who led two expeditions to the Antarctic regions: the Discovery Expedition, 1901–04, and the ill-fated Terra Nova Expedition, 1910–13...
of the Antarctic. His half-brother was the painter and conservationist Sir Peter Scott. Cousin of Sir George Young, Bart He was educated at West Downs School
West Downs School
West Downs School, Romsey Road, Winchester, Hampshire, was an English independent preparatory school, which was established in 1897 and closed in 1988.-History:...
, Alpine College, Stowe School
Stowe School
Stowe School is an independent school in Stowe, Buckinghamshire. It was founded on 11 May 1923 by J. F. Roxburgh, initially with 99 male pupils. It is a member of the Rugby Group and Headmasters' and Headmistresses' Conference. The school is also a member of the G20 Schools Group...
and Trinity College, Cambridge - Exhibitioner. During World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
he served in the Royal Navy
Royal Navy
The Royal Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Founded in the 16th century, it is the oldest service branch and is known as the Senior Service...
from 1942 to 1945, as an Ordinary Seaman and as Sublieutenant. He then went on to the Foreign Office
Foreign and Commonwealth Office
The Foreign and Commonwealth Office, commonly called the Foreign Office or the FCO is a British government department responsible for promoting the interests of the United Kingdom overseas, created in 1968 by merging the Foreign Office and the Commonwealth Office.The head of the FCO is the...
serving between 1946–47 and 1949–1951. In between and after he was a Journalist - Observer Correspondent in Rome and North Africa, and weekly columnist on the Guardian ("Sitting on a Column"), and theatre critic for Tribune. He was a frequent contributor to Encounter, where his articles were widely noticed - "Sitting on a Fortune" (about prostitution) and a review showing up many errors of fact in Roland Huntford's book on Scott and Amundsen, which denigrated the former (ignoring the scientific character of Scott's expedition), and presented the event as merely a "race" which the latter "won". He also wrote three novels, and several Pamphlets for the Fabian Society on defence, disarmament, pollution, Europe and other topics (some together with his wife, Elizabeth Young. Together they also wrote a book, Old London Churches, (which identified the six churches designed by NIcholas Hawksmoor as works of real genius). He also took part in the Campaign for the Abolition of Theatre Censorship as its Secretary. His energetic interest in Disarmament did not lead him to join the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament - it worked for unilateral British nuclear disarmament: he believed that only General and Comprehensive Disarmament could be useful and effective.
Political career
Young succeeded to the title of Baron KennetBaron Kennet
Baron Kennet, of the Dene in the County of Wiltshire, is a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. It was created in 1935 for the journalist and politician Sir Hilton Young. He was the youngest son of Sir George Young, 3rd Baronet, of Formosa Place. He was succeeded by his son, the second...
, and took his seat in the House of Lords
House of Lords
The House of Lords is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Like the House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminster....
in 1960 upon the death of his father. He started his political career in the Labour Party. He served as Parliamentary Secretary (Junior Minister) in the Ministry of Housing and Local Government
Ministry of Housing and Local Government
The Ministry of Housing and Local Government was a United Kingdom government department formed after the Second World War, covering the areas of housing and local government....
(under Richard Crossman
Richard Crossman
Richard Howard Stafford Crossman OBE was a British author and Labour Party politician who was a Cabinet Minister under Harold Wilson, and was the editor of the New Statesman. A prominent socialist intellectual, he became one of the Labour Party's leading Zionists and anti-communists...
,then later Anthony Greenwood) where he worked, among much else, on planning and conservation, and on devising the soon-to-be-set up Department of the Environment (Secretary of State, Tony Crosland) He was responsible for setting up the Royal Commission on Environmental Pollution
Royal Commission on Environmental Pollution
The Royal Commission on Environmental Pollution in the United Kingdom was created under Royal Warrant in 1970 to advise the Queen, Government, Parliament and the public on environmental issues...
and for giving off. According to his 1972 publication Preservation he worked on setting-up the 'Four Towns Report' and played an important role in establishing the foundations of conservation policy through the Town and Country Planning Act 1968 and his 1970 Kennet Report.
After the fall of the [first] Wilson
Harold Wilson
James Harold Wilson, Baron Wilson of Rievaulx, KG, OBE, FRS, FSS, PC was a British Labour Member of Parliament, Leader of the Labour Party. He was twice Prime Minister of the United Kingdom during the 1960s and 1970s, winning four general elections, including a minority government after the...
Government in 1970, he was appointed Honorary Fellow of the Royal Institute of British Architects, and became Chairman of the Council for the Protection of Rural England, of the Advisory Committee on Pollution of the Sea (ACOPS), and various other organizations. He served as Opposition Spokesman on Foreign Affairs in the House of Lords from 1971 to 1974. He was also a member of the European Parliament, of the Western European Union
Western European Union
The Western European Union was an international organisation tasked with implementing the Modified Treaty of Brussels , an amended version of the original 1948 Treaty of Brussels...
, and a NATO Parliamentarian.
Kennet joined the SDP, serving as Chief Whip of the party in the House of Lords between 1981 and 1983. He returned to the Labour Party in the 1990s before leaving in opposition to Tony Blair
Tony Blair
Anthony Charles Lynton Blair is a former British Labour Party politician who served as the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 2 May 1997 to 27 June 2007. He was the Member of Parliament for Sedgefield from 1983 to 2007 and Leader of the Labour Party from 1994 to 2007...
's foreign policy. Under the terms of the House of Lords Act 1999
House of Lords Act 1999
The House of Lords Act 1999 was an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that was given Royal Assent on 11 November 1999. The Act reformed the House of Lords, one of the chambers of Parliament. For centuries, the House of Lords had included several hundred members who inherited their seats;...
, he lost his automatic right to a seat; he was unsuccessful in the election by the Labour hereditary peers of two of their number to continue to sit after the coming into force of the Act, finishing last in a field of six candidates.
In 2005 he sought to return to the House in the by election among Liberal Democrat hereditary peers caused by the death of Earl Russell
Conrad Russell, 5th Earl Russell
Conrad Sebastian Robert Russell, 5th Earl Russell was a British historian and politician. His parents were the philosopher and mathematician Bertrand Russell and Patricia Russell...
; he was unsuccessful, receiving no votes.
Until late in life he remained chairman of the Stonehenge Alliance, and an active member of the Avebury Society and Action for the River Kennet (ARK).
Family
Lord Kennet married Elizabeth Ann Adams in 1948 and had one son, Thoby Young, and five daughters, including the artist Emily YoungEmily Young
Emily Young is a British sculptor. She is considered one of the foremost sculptors working in Britain today. She was born in London into a family of artists and writers...
who was the muse for Pink Floyd's
Pink Floyd
Pink Floyd were an English rock band that achieved worldwide success with their progressive and psychedelic rock music. Their work is marked by the use of philosophical lyrics, sonic experimentation, innovative album art, and elaborate live shows. Pink Floyd are one of the most commercially...
"See Emily Play
See Emily Play
"See Emily Play" was the second single recorded by the English psychedelic rock group Pink Floyd. It was written by original frontman Syd Barrett and recorded on 23 May 1967. The single featured "Scarecrow" as its B-side...
"; and the writers Louisa Young (the children's author Zizou Corder) and Zoe Young.
Works
Young published on a wide range of mostly political topics, especially on the politics of ItalyItaly
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
, on disarmament
Disarmament
Disarmament is the act of reducing, limiting, or abolishing weapons. Disarmament generally refers to a country's military or specific type of weaponry. Disarmament is often taken to mean total elimination of weapons of mass destruction, such as nuclear arms...
and arms control
Arms control
Arms control is an umbrella term for restrictions upon the development, production, stockpiling, proliferation, and usage of weapons, especially weapons of mass destruction...
, on the churches of London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
often collaborating with his wife Elizabeth Young, and on various political scandals, notably the Profumo Affair
Profumo Affair
The Profumo Affair was a 1963 British political scandal named after John Profumo, Secretary of State for War. His affair with Christine Keeler, the reputed mistress of an alleged Russian spy, followed by lying in the House of Commons when he was questioned about it, forced the resignation of...
and the Montesi scandal. His 1964 work Eros Denied was a groundbreaking manifesto of the sexual revolution
Sexual revolution
The sexual revolution was a social movement that challenged traditional codes of behavior related to sexuality and interpersonal relationships throughout the Western world from the 1960s into the 1980s...
. Young's 1972 publication Preservation
Preservation
Preservation may refer to:* Heritage preservation:** Historic preservation, of buildings, monuments, etc.** Preservation , of books, recordings, etc.** Conservation , of the natural environment...
is an important insight of present UK conservation and preservation laws and policies, through the conservation struggles of the late 19th century until the 1968 Planning Act.
External links
- Further biographical information
- Lord Kennet - Daily Telegraph obituary
- Times Obituary
- Memorial Service
- Town and Country Planning Act of 1968