Howard Sydney Johnson (25 December 1910 – 13 September 2000) was a British solicitor and

building society A building society is a financial institution owned by its members as a mutual organization. Building societies offer banking and related financial services, especially savings and mortgage lending. Building societies exist in the United Kingdo ...

director who became an unorthodox

Conservative Party The Conservative Party is a name used by many political parties around the world. These political parties are generally right-wing though their exact ideologies can range from center-right to far-right. Political parties called The Conservative P ...

Member of Parliament. Johnson, who considered himself a radical, espoused many positions which put him outside the mainstream including opposition to

fox hunting Fox hunting is an activity involving the tracking, chase and, if caught, the killing of a fox, traditionally a red fox, by trained foxhounds or other scent hounds. A group of unarmed followers, led by a "master of foxhounds" (or "master of ho ...

and support for unilateral nuclear disarmament. After leaving Parliament he passed through the

Liberal Party The Liberal Party is any of many political parties around the world. The meaning of ''liberal'' varies around the world, ranging from liberal conservatism on the right to social liberalism on the left. __TOC__ Active liberal parties This is a li ...

and eventually into supporting the Labour Party.

Family and education

Johnson was a native of

Brighton Brighton () is a seaside resort and one of the two main areas of the City of Brighton and Hove in the county of East Sussex, England. It is located south of London. Archaeological evidence of settlement in the area dates back to the Bronze A ...

, and was born into a Conservative family.

Patrick Cosgrave Patrick John Francis Cosgrave (28 September 1941 – 16 September 2001) was a British-Irish journalist and writer. A staunch supporter of the British Conservative Party, he was an adviser to Margaret Thatcher whilst she was Leader of the Opposi ...

, "Howard Johnson" (Obituary), ''The Independent'', 22 September 2000, p. 6. His mother's family had a long connection with Brighton council, having been councillors and

aldermen An alderman is a member of a municipal assembly or council in many jurisdictions founded upon English law. The term may be titular, denoting a high-ranking member of a borough or county council, a council member chosen by the elected members them ...

. He went to

Brighton College Brighton College is an independent, co-educational boarding and day school for boys and girls aged 3 to 18 in Brighton, England. The school has three sites: Brighton College (the senior school, ages 11 to 18); Brighton College Preparatory Sc ...

and

Highgate School Highgate School, formally Sir Roger Cholmeley's School at Highgate, is an English co-educational, fee-charging, independent day school, founded in 1565 in Highgate, London, England. It educates over 1,400 pupils in three sections – Highgate ...

, and then trained as a solicitor; he qualified in 1933.

Andrew Roth Andrew Roth (23 April 1919 – 12 August 2010) was a biographer and journalist known for his compilation of ''Parliamentary Profiles'', a directory of biographies of British Members of Parliament, a small sample of which is available online in ...

, "Howard Johnson" (Obituary), ''The Guardian'', 26 September 2000, p. 20.

Solicitor

He set up and became senior partner in a Brighton-based solicitors' partnership, Howard Johnson & McQue, in 1933. Johnson acted mainly as a criminal defence solicitor, taking on hopeless cases and clients whom other solicitors avoided; he was said to have "almost invariably" declined to take a case for the prosecution. While representing suspected murderers and prostitutes, his courtroom behaviour was flamboyant."Howard Johnson" (Obituary), ''The Times'', 15 September 2000, p. 25.

Wartime

While still a teenager, Johnson had joined the Territorial Army. He was called into the

Royal Artillery The Royal Regiment of Artillery, commonly referred to as the Royal Artillery (RA) and colloquially known as "The Gunners", is one of two regiments that make up the artillery arm of the British Army. The Royal Regiment of Artillery comprises t ...

in the regular

army An army (from Old French ''armee'', itself derived from the Latin verb ''armāre'', meaning "to arm", and related to the Latin noun ''arma'', meaning "arms" or "weapons"), ground force or land force is a fighting force that fights primarily on ...

on the outbreak of war in 1939, and served in North Africa where he was injured in 1943 and invalided out with the rank of Major. Johnson returned to Brighton where he became involved in local politics; at the local elections in November 1945 he was elected as a

Conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization i ...

Brighton Borough Council Brighton () is a seaside resort and one of the two main areas of the City of Brighton and Hove in the county of East Sussex, England. It is located south of London. Archaeological evidence of settlement in the area dates back to the Bronze Ag ...

from a ward in

Kemp Town Kemp Town Estate, also known as Kemp Town, is a 19th-century Regency architecture residential estate in the east of Brighton in East Sussex, England, UK. It consists of Arundel Terrace, Lewes Crescent, Sussex Square, Chichester Terrace, and ...

."New Factors at Brighton", ''The Times'', 17 February 1950, p. 5. On the council he specialised in housing and worked together with Lewis Cohen (the Mayor, and a Labour councillor) to support a local housing association. Johnson and Cohen also knew each other through business.

1950 election

The Parliamentary constituency of

had, up to the 1950 general election, consisted of the whole of

and

Hove Hove is a seaside resort and one of the two main parts of the city of Brighton and Hove, along with Brighton in East Sussex, England. Originally a "small but ancient fishing village" surrounded by open farmland, it grew rapidly in the 19th cen ...

and returned two members. From 1950 it was divided into three single-member constituencies, leaving the new

Brighton Kemptown Brighton Kemptown, often referred to as Brighton Kemptown and Peacehaven by local political parties, is a constituency represented in the House of Commons of the UK Parliament since 2017 by Lloyd Russell-Moyle, a Labour Co-op MP. The constit ...

without a sitting member. Johnson was adopted as the Conservative Party candidate for this seat, which was the least Conservative part of the existing seat and where the outcome was thought to be uncertain. He stood down from the council in 1949 to devote more time to fighting the Parliamentary seat.

Parliament

Helped by his second wife, who had been a popular

music hall Music hall is a type of British theatrical entertainment that was popular from the early Victorian era, beginning around 1850. It faded away after 1918 as the halls rebranded their entertainment as variety. Perceptions of a distinction in Bri ...

artiste under her maiden name of Betty Frankiss, Johnson won by 3,001 votes. He made his maiden Parliamentary speech in May 1950, on the subject of controls on housing, about which he had professional experience as a director of land and property development companies."The Times House of Commons 1950", p. 94. Johnson opposed restrictions except to control the size of new homes."Parliament", ''The Times'', 23 May 1950, p. 2. Taking up a constituency interest, in June 1950 he called for reform of the licensing laws."Parliament", ''The Times'', 24 June 1950, p. 3.

Local campaigns

At the 1951 general election, Johnson found his Labour opponent was his friend Lewis Cohen. He increased his majority to over 5,000."The Times House of Commons, 1951", p. 50. In November 1953, Johnson prompted laughter in the

House of Commons The House of Commons is the name for the elected lower house of the bicameral parliaments of the United Kingdom and Canada. In both of these countries, the Commons holds much more legislative power than the nominally upper house of parliament. ...

with a question to the

Secretary of State for War The Secretary of State for War, commonly called War Secretary, was a secretary of state in the Government of the United Kingdom, which existed from 1794 to 1801 and from 1854 to 1964. The Secretary of State for War headed the War Office and ...

asking whether he would employ troops to clear

seaweed Seaweed, or macroalgae, refers to thousands of species of macroscopic, multicellular, marine algae. The term includes some types of '' Rhodophyta'' (red), ''Phaeophyta'' (brown) and ''Chlorophyta'' (green) macroalgae. Seaweed species such as ...

from the south coast to exterminate the breeding grounds for a new type of fly,

Coelopa frigida ''Coelopa frigida'' is a species of seaweed fly or kelp fly. It is the most widely distributed species of seaweed fly. It can be found on most shorelines in the temperate Northern Hemisphere. Other species of seaweed flies include ''Coelopa nebula ...

. Johnson claimed that the flies were advancing on London and urged the use of troops with powerful flame-throwers."Parliament", ''The Times'', 25 November 1953, p. 3. He was in touch with his constituents in urging restrictions on the sale of obscene postcards, and in calling for action against '

Teddy Boy The Teddy Boys or Teds were a mainly British youth subculture of the mid 1950s to mid 1960s who were interested in rock and roll and R&B music, wearing clothes partly inspired by the styles worn by dandies in the Edwardian period, which Savil ...

s'.

Grand National campaign

Johnson began a campaign against animal cruelty in 1954 when he first tabled a motion about the death of four horses in that year's

Grand National The Grand National is a National Hunt horse race held annually at Aintree Racecourse in Liverpool, England. First run in 1839, it is a handicap ...

."'Cruelty And Suffering' In Grand National", ''The Times'', 1 April 1954, p. 6. Johnson asked for Parliamentary time for a debate on the subject and was rebuffed."Parliament", ''The Times'', 9 April 1954, p. 11. He then raised the question in an adjournment debate, pointing out that in the last five Grand Nationals, out of 192 horses which had started, only 36 had finished and nine had had to be killed. Johnson called for an inquiry and demanded the end of heavy whipping."Parliament", ''The Times'', 30 April 1954, p. 3. Johnson was in a minority of 32 Conservative MPs to support an increase in the Parliamentary salary in May 1954;"M.P.s' Salary Vote", ''The Times'', 26 May 1954, p. 4. the issue caused some concern among his constituents but the executive council of Kemptown (Brighton) Conservative Association passed a unanimous vote of confidence in him.''The Times'', 14 June 1954, p. 2.

Police corruption

It was only after winning re-election in

1955 Events January * January 3 – José Ramón Guizado becomes president of Panama. * January 17 – , the first nuclear-powered submarine, puts to sea for the first time, from Groton, Connecticut. * January 18– 20 – Battle of Yijian ...

, again against Lewis Cohen, that Johnson became more controversial. He began to feed information about local police corruption to a team from

Scotland Yard Scotland Yard (officially New Scotland Yard) is the headquarters of the Metropolitan Police, the territorial police force responsible for policing Greater London's 32 boroughs, but not the City of London, the square mile that forms London's ...

investigating it, which caused annoyance. He kept up the pressure and in 1957 a major inquiry was called into bribery and corruption, which involved officers running protection rackets among Brighton bookmakers and nightclubs. Early in 1956 Johnson backed moves to end

capital punishment Capital punishment, also known as the death penalty, is the state-sanctioned practice of deliberately killing a person as a punishment for an actual or supposed crime, usually following an authorized, rule-governed process to conclude that t ...

, and when constituents complained he replied by inviting them to choose "a mere robot" instead. His outspokenness and dedication to constituency work meant that he was reckoned to have a substantial 'personal vote' of constituents who would vote for him despite not supporting his party. Only four horses finished the 1957 Grand National. Johnson deplored this outcome, and he also became vocal in condemning

deer hunting Deer hunting is hunting for deer for meat and sport, an activity which dates back tens of thousands of years. Venison, the name for deer meat, is a nutritious and natural food source of animal protein that can be obtained through deer hunting. ...

after learning that a hind had been drowned by the

Devon and Somerset Staghounds The red deer of Exmoor have been hunted since Norman times, when Exmoor was declared a Royal Forest. Collyns stated the earliest record of a pack of Staghounds on Exmoor was 1598. In 1803, the "North Devon Staghounds" became a subscription pack. ...

after being hunted for five hours. Johnson described it as disgraceful and a practice "which prevents our calling ourselves a civilised nation"; with many Conservative MPs supporting hunting, his remarks had a cool reception.

Radical campaigner

Johnson announced his decision to stand down from Parliament in April 1957, saying that he found it too difficult to continue as a solicitor and an MP."Kemptown M.P. Not to Seek Re-election", ''The Times'', 6 April 1957, p. 4. However, behind his decision was the fact that he had ceased to support the Conservative Party (although in all his time in Parliament he never broke the Conservative whip). Philip Norton, "Dissension in the House of Commons 1945–1974" (Macmillan, 1975) shows no dissenting votes. Johnson was increasingly distressed by his clashes with Conservative colleagues over animal rights issues (later claiming to have been "

sent to Coventry To send someone to Coventry is an idiom used in England meaning to deliberately ostracise someone. Typically, this is done by not talking to them, avoiding their company, and acting as if they no longer exist. In essence, and by modern parlance ...

" by colleagues"'Obstruction' By R.S.P.C.A.", ''The Times'', 30 March 1960, p. 6.), but also regarded the Conservative Party as having taken a shift to the right which he could not support; he described himself as a "radical". In his last year in Parliament, Johnson again took up against the Grand National after the 1959 race saw only four finishers and one horse put down after breaking its back at

Becher's Brook Becher's Brook ( ) is a fence jumped during the Grand National, a National Hunt horse race held annually at Aintree Racecourse near Liverpool, England. It is jumped twice during the race, as the and fence, as well as on four other occasions du ...

. He sent a

telegram Telegraphy is the long-distance transmission of messages where the sender uses symbolic codes, known to the recipient, rather than a physical exchange of an object bearing the message. Thus flag semaphore is a method of telegraphy, whereas p ...

Home Secretary The secretary of state for the Home Department, otherwise known as the home secretary, is a senior minister of the Crown in the Government of the United Kingdom. The home secretary leads the Home Office, and is responsible for all national ...

Rab Butler Richard Austen Butler, Baron Butler of Saffron Walden, (9 December 1902 – 8 March 1982), also known as R. A. Butler and familiarly known from his initials as Rab, was a prominent British Conservative Party politician. ''The Times'' obituary c ...

denouncing the "massacre of horses" and demanding immediate legislation to either ban the race or to change the rules so as to remove all danger.

Animal rights campaigns

After leaving Parliament, Johnson continued as a local solicitor, and directed his political energies towards animal rights campaigning. He worked with Donald Chapman, a Labour MP, going to campaign against fox hunts, which outraged the huntsman. On 29 October 1959 the Southdown hunt with 14 hounds charged into Johnson's garden at

Ditchling Ditchling is a village and civil parish in the Lewes District of East Sussex, England. The village is contained within the boundaries of the South Downs National Park; the order confirming the establishment of the park was signed in Ditchling. ...

in Sussex, wrecking the hedges and damaging crops. When one huntsman dismounted and advanced on Johnson brandishing his riding crop and threatening to "teach him a lesson", Johnson urged the man to hit him and promised to keep his hands behind his back if he did. Johnson remarked "I told him it would suit me admirably if he hit me, as it would show others what hunting people are like." Instead the man rode off. Johnson worked with others in the

Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals The Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (RSPCA) is a charity operating in England and Wales that promotes animal welfare. The RSPCA is funded primarily by voluntary donations. Founded in 1824, it is the oldest and largest an ...

to try to persuade it to condemn fox hunting. The society disapproved of the campaign and in 1961 decided to purge itself of the leaders. Johnson was summoned before a special council in July 1961 and asked to explain his "conduct prejudicial to the society"; the outcome was his expulsion. He moved on to the

League Against Cruel Sports The League Against Cruel Sports, formerly known as the League for the Prohibition of Cruel Sports, is a UK-based animal welfare charity which campaigns to stop blood sports such as fox hunting, hare and deer hunting; game bird shooting; and anim ...

of which he became Vice-President; he supported

direct action Direct action originated as a political activist term for economic and political acts in which the actors use their power (e.g. economic or physical) to directly reach certain goals of interest, in contrast to those actions that appeal to oth ...

by squatting in the roads in front of hunts, arguing that the result of any protesters being killed was that the huntsman "stand a very fine chance of hanging or imprisonment".

Later politics

Having joined the

in 1962, Johnson was adopted as their candidate for the

Brighton Pavilion The Royal Pavilion, and surrounding gardens, also known as the Brighton Pavilion, is a Grade I listed former royal residence located in Brighton, England. Beginning in 1787, it was built in three stages as a seaside retreat for George, Pri ...

constituency."Liberal To Oppose Lord Lambton", ''The Times'', 28 November 1962, p. 5. However, he soon resigned the candidature. After the

1964 general election The following elections occurred in 1964. Africa * 1964 Cameroonian parliamentary election * 1964 Central African Republic parliamentary election * 1964 Central African Republic presidential election * 1964 Dahomeyan general election * 1964 Gabo ...

he rejoined the Conservative Party, arguing that the party in opposition was rethinking its policy in a "radically more progressive" direction which was in line with his ideas. He offered himself for selection again as the Conservative candidate for Kemptown in 1965; the executive of the association declined to shortlist him but were over-ruled by the membership at large."Kemptown Tories Choose Sales Executive", ''The Times'', 20 February 1965, p. 8. In the final selection the local party rejected Johnson. In 1965 he contributed to

Patrick Moore Sir Patrick Alfred Caldwell-Moore (; 4 March 1923 – 9 December 2012) was an English amateur astronomer who attained prominence in that field as a writer, researcher, radio commentator and television presenter. Moore was president of the Brit ...

's book "Against Hunting"."Who Was Who", A & C Black. His political stances became more left-wing, as he joined the

Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament The Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament (CND) is an organisation that advocates unilateral nuclear disarmament by the United Kingdom, international nuclear disarmament and tighter international arms regulation through agreements such as the Nucle ...

, and dismayed his colleagues in the property development business by opposing the Brighton bypass road. In the 1980s he became a supporter of the Labour Party.

Retirement

Johnson rounded off his business career as a director of the Alliance Building Society from 1960 to 1983, prior to its merger into the

Alliance & Leicester Alliance & Leicester plc was a British bank and former building society, formed by the merger in 1985 of the Alliance Building Society and the Leicester Building Society. The business demutualised in the middle of 1997, when it was floated on ...

. He retired to the

Isle of Man ) , anthem = "O Land of Our Birth" , image = Isle of Man by Sentinel-2.jpg , image_map = Europe-Isle_of_Man.svg , mapsize = , map_alt = Location of the Isle of Man in Europe , map_caption = Location of the Isle of Man (green) in Europe ...

where he was a director of the Alliance & Leicester's local branch from 1992 to 1996.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Johnson, Howard 1910 births 2000 deaths Conservative Party (UK) MPs for English constituencies UK MPs 1950–1951 UK MPs 1951–1955 UK MPs 1955–1959 English solicitors Councillors in East Sussex People educated at Brighton College People educated at Highgate School 20th-century British lawyers 20th-century English lawyers People from Ditchling British Army personnel of World War II Royal Artillery officers