John Joseph Jones (8 December 1873 – 21 November 1941), was a Labour Party

Member of Parliament A member of parliament (MP) is the representative in parliament of the people who live in their electoral district. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, this term refers only to members of the lower house since upper house members of ...

(MP). Born in Nenagh, Co Tipperary, Jones moved to

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

where he worked as a builders' labourer. He joined the

Social Democratic Federation The Social Democratic Federation (SDF) was established as Britain's first organised socialist political party by H. M. Hyndman, and had its first meeting on 7 June 1881. Those joining the SDF included William Morris, George Lansbury, James Con ...

(SDF) and was elected to West Ham Council in 1904.Michael Stenton and Stephen Lees, ''Who's Who of British MPs: Volume III'' In the

1906 general election The following elections occurred in the year 1906. Asia * 1906 Persian legislative election Europe * 1906 Belgian general election * 1906 Croatian parliamentary election * Denmark ** 1906 Danish Folketing election ** 1906 Danish Landsting ele ...

, Jones unsuccessfully stood for

Camborne Camborne ( kw, Kammbronn) is a town in Cornwall, England. The population at the 2011 Census was 20,845. The northern edge of the parish includes a section of the South West Coast Path, Hell's Mouth and Deadman's Cove. Camborne was formerl ...

. In 1911, he became a

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 ( ...

organiser, for the National Union of General Workers. In the

1914 Poplar by-election The 1914 Poplar (UK Parliament constituency), Poplar by-election was a UK Parliamentary by-elections, Parliamentary by-election held on 19 February 1914. The constituency returned one Member of Parliament (United Kingdom), Member of Parliament (MP ...

, Jones stood unsuccessfully for the

British Socialist Party The British Socialist Party (BSP) was a Marxist political organisation established in Great Britain in 1911. Following a protracted period of factional struggle, in 1916 the party's anti-war forces gained decisive control of the party and saw t ...

(BSP) - the successor of the SDF. As a supporter of

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

, he joined the National Socialist Party split from the BSP, which soon affiliated to the Labour Party. In the

Coupon election The 1918 United Kingdom general election was called immediately after the Armistice with Germany which ended the History of the United Kingdom during the First World War, First World War, and was held on Saturday, 14 December 1918. The governing ...

, he stood against an official Labour candidate in

Silvertown Silvertown is a district in the London Borough of Newham, in east London, England. It lies on the north bank of the River Thames, Thames and was historically part of the parishes of West Ham and East Ham, Becontree Hundred, hundred of Becontr ...

- the official candidate being an anti-war supporter of the Independent Labour Party. He became one of several National Socialist Party candidates elected, but the only one who stood for the party, rather than for the Labour Party. Despite this, he took the Labour Party

whip A whip is a tool or weapon designed to strike humans or other animals to exert control through pain compliance or fear of pain. They can also be used without inflicting pain, for audiovisual cues, such as in equestrianism. They are generally e ...

in 1919. Jones was described by ''Time Magazine'' as "the wittiest man in the House of Commons". He held his seat in each election until he resigned in February 1940. He died the following year. He was a keen football and cricket fan, and his autobiography was entitled ''My Lively Life''.Who's Who 1938

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* {{DEFAULTSORT:Jones, Jack 1873 births 1941 deaths British Socialist Party members British trade unionists Labour Party (UK) MPs for English constituencies GMB (trade union)-sponsored MPs Politicians from County Tipperary Social Democratic Federation members UK MPs 1918–1922 UK MPs 1922–1923 UK MPs 1923–1924 UK MPs 1924–1929 UK MPs 1929–1931 UK MPs 1931–1935 UK MPs 1935–1945 People from Nenagh