Alexander Gordon Cameron (15 June 1876 – 30 May 1944) was a British

trade union A trade union (labor union in American English), often simply referred to as a union, is an organization of workers intent on "maintaining or improving the conditions of their employment", ch. I such as attaining better wages and benefits ...

ist and Labour Party politician.

Biography

Cameron was born in 1876 in Oban,

Argyll Argyll (; archaically Argyle, in modern Gaelic, ), sometimes called Argyllshire, is a historic county and registration county of western Scotland. Argyll is of ancient origin, and corresponds to most of the part of the ancient kingdom of ...

, and served his

apprentice Apprenticeship is a system for training a new generation of practitioners of a trade or profession with on-the-job training and often some accompanying study (classroom work and reading). Apprenticeships can also enable practitioners to gain a ...

ship as a joiner in

Glasgow Glasgow ( ; sco, Glesca or ; gd, Glaschu ) is the most populous city in Scotland and the fourth-most populous city in the United Kingdom, as well as being the 27th largest city by population in Europe. In 2020, it had an estimated popul ...

."Obituary: Mr A. G. Cameron" ''The Times'', 31 May 1944 p. 8 On becoming a

journeyman A journeyman, journeywoman, or journeyperson is a worker, skilled in a given building trade or craft, who has successfully completed an official apprenticeship qualification. Journeymen are considered competent and authorized to work in that fie ...

he moved to London, where he became an active member of the

Amalgamated Society of Carpenters and Joiners The Amalgamated Society of Carpenters and Joiners (ASC&J) was a New Model Trade Union in the 1860s in the United Kingdom, representing carpenters and joiners. History The formation of the Society was spurred by the Stonemason's strike, 1859, ...

(ASC&J), becoming the union's shipping delegate in 1912, and assistant general secretary in 1915, and general secretary in 1919. When the ASC&J became part of the

Amalgamated Society of Woodworkers The Amalgamated Society of Woodworkers (ASW) was a British trade union representing carpenters, joiners and allied trades. The ASW was formed in 1921 by the amalgamation of two smaller unions. It was itself merged into the Union of Constructi ...

in 1921, Cameron was its first general secretary. He was nominated by his union as a parliamentary candidate for the

Independent Labour Party The Independent Labour Party (ILP) was a British political party of the left, established in 1893 at a conference in Bradford, after local and national dissatisfaction with the Liberals' apparent reluctance to endorse working-class candidates ...

. After failing to become the prospective candidate for Glasgow Camlachie in 1908, and the ASC&J declined an invitation to sponsor him as candidate for

Coventry Coventry ( or ) is a city in the West Midlands, England. It is on the River Sherbourne. Coventry has been a large settlement for centuries, although it was not founded and given its city status until the Middle Ages. The city is governed b ...

in the following year. He stood unsuccessfully at Liverpool Kirkdale at the January 1910 general election and again at a

by-election A by-election, also known as a special election in the United States and the Philippines, a bye-election in Ireland, a bypoll in India, or a Zimni election (Urdu: ضمنی انتخاب, supplementary election) in Pakistan, is an election used to f ...

later in the year. In the December 1910 general election he was defeated at Jarrow, where Labour lost to the Liberals. In 1914 Cameron was elected to the

executive Executive ( exe., exec., execu.) may refer to: Role or title * Executive, a senior management role in an organization ** Chief executive officer (CEO), one of the highest-ranking corporate officers (executives) or administrators ** Executive dir ...

of the Labour Party, a position he was to retain for many years. In 1917 he was appointed by the Coalition Government to be one of the Scottish members of the ''Commission on Industrial Unrest''. In 1918 he again failed to be elected to parliament, this time at Woolwich West. In 1920 Cameron was part of the Labour Party delegation to the

Second International The Second International (1889–1916) was an organisation of socialist and labour parties, formed on 14 July 1889 at two simultaneous Paris meetings in which delegations from twenty countries participated. The Second International continued th ...

Geneva , neighboring_municipalities= Carouge, Chêne-Bougeries, Cologny, Lancy, Grand-Saconnex, Pregny-Chambésy, Vernier, Veyrier , website = https://www.geneve.ch/ Geneva ( ; french: Genève ) frp, Genèva ; german: link=no, Genf ; it, Ginevr ...

. He was elected chairman of the Labour Party for 1920/21. In 1925 ill health led to his resigning from his posts as representative to the Socialist International and general secretary of the woodworkers' union.''News in Brief'', The Times, 26 February 1925, p. 9 At the 1929 general election Cameron finally succeeded in being elected, becoming MP for

Widnes Widnes ( ) is an industrial town in the Borough of Halton, Cheshire, England, which at the 2011 census had a population of 61,464. Historically in Lancashire, it is on the northern bank of the River Mersey where the estuary narrows to form th ...

. He was however defeated at the next election in 1931 when there was a large swing against Labour. Cameron retired from politics, and at the time of his death in a London hospital in 1944, was described as a building contractor.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Cameron, Alexander 1876 births 1944 deaths Amalgamated Society of Woodworkers-sponsored MPs Labour Party (UK) MPs for English constituencies UK MPs 1929–1931 People from Oban General Secretaries of the Amalgamated Society of Carpenters and Joiners General Secretaries of the Amalgamated Society of Woodworkers Members of the Executive of the Labour and Socialist International Chairs of the Labour Party (UK)