James Burnie MC (10 May 1882 – 15 May 1975) was an English businessman and

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 ...

politician.

Family and education

Burnie was born in

Bootle Bootle (pronounced ) is a town in the Metropolitan Borough of Sefton, Merseyside, England, which had a population of 51,394 in 2011; the wider Bootle (UK Parliament constituency), Parliamentary constituency had a population of 98,449. Histo ...

Lancashire Lancashire ( , ; abbreviated Lancs) is the name of a historic county, ceremonial county, and non-metropolitan county in North West England. The boundaries of these three areas differ significantly. The non-metropolitan county of Lancashi ...

, the son of Joseph Burnie, a local businessman. He was educated at St John's School, Bootle and at Merchant Taylors' School, Crosby. In 1910, he married Ruth E. Thornton. The couple had a son and a daughter together. The marriage lasted until his wife died in 1939.''Who was Who'', OUP 2007

Career

Burnie went into his father's business, eventually becoming Director of Bell & Burnie Ltd, specialists in cold store insulation. At the outbreak of the

First World War 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 ...

in 1914, Burnie was mobilised as a Sergeant. He retired as a Major in Bootle Battalion, 7th

King's Liverpool Regiment The King's Regiment (Liverpool) was one of the oldest line infantry regiments of the British Army, having been formed in 1685 and numbered as the 8th (The King's) Regiment of Foot in 1751. Unlike most British Army infantry regiments, which wer ...

, having gained the

Military Cross The Military Cross (MC) is the third-level (second-level pre-1993) military decoration awarded to officers and (since 1993) other ranks of the British Armed Forces, and formerly awarded to officers of other Commonwealth countries. The MC i ...

in 1918. He retained his commission after the war and retired from the Territorial Army Reserve of Officers upon reaching the age of fifty. In 1922, Burnie was chosen to formally unveil the new Bootle War memorial dedicated to the memory of over a thousand men from Bootle who had fallen in the First World War in a ceremony which took place on 15 October 1922.

Politics

MP

Burnie was elected to

Parliament In modern politics, and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: Representation (politics), representing the Election#Suffrage, electorate, making laws, and overseeing ...

as a Liberal at the 1922 general election for his home town of

, gaining the seat from the

Conservatives 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 in ...

with a majority of 3,409 votes. He held the seat at the 1923 general election, this time in a three-cornered contest with the Conservatives and

Labour Labour or labor may refer to: * Childbirth, the delivery of a baby * Labour (human activity), or work ** Manual labour, physical work ** Wage labour, a socioeconomic relationship between a worker and an employer ** Organized labour and the labour ...

but with a decreased majority of just 453 votes.

Liberals divided

In March 1924, he was one of 24 Liberal MPs who voted with the Conservatives and against his own party during an internal split on a Liberal motion deploring the construction of five new naval cruisers Around this time, the Liberal Party was frequently divided in Parliament over its stance towards the First Labour Government of Prime Minister

Ramsay MacDonald James Ramsay MacDonald (; 12 October 18669 November 1937) was a British politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, the first who belonged to the Labour Party, leading minority Labour governments for nine months in 1924 ...

. Even on the initial vote to bring down the Conservative government of

Stanley Baldwin Stanley Baldwin, 1st Earl Baldwin of Bewdley, (3 August 186714 December 1947) was a British Conservative Party politician who dominated the government of the United Kingdom between the world wars, serving as prime minister on three occasions, ...

and install Labour's minority administration, ten Liberal MPs voted with the Conservatives.

1924

The sort of difficulties which beset the Liberal Party in Parliament were apparent nationally at the 1924 general election. The Liberals were finding it difficult to define their political position in relation to the Labour and Conservative parties and electorally, as the third party in a two-party system, they were being targeted and squeezed by the others. These electoral currents proved too strong for Burnie and in another three-cornered fight in Bootle he lost his seat to the Conservative candidate Vivian Leonard Henderson and finished in third place behind Labour's John Kinley; who would later serve as the MP for Bootle from 1929 to 1931 and again from 1945 to 1955.F W S Craig, p97

1924-1950

Burnie did not stand again until the 1935 general election, when he again contested Bootle for the Liberal Party, only just managing to save his deposit. The following year, he was elected

Mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilities of a mayor as well a ...

of Bootle He was selected as the Liberal candidate for

Chester Chester is a cathedral city and the county town of Cheshire, England. It is located on the River Dee, close to the English–Welsh border. With a population of 79,645 in 2011,"2011 Census results: People and Population Profile: Chester Loca ...

after the 1935 election but never fought the seat. He did return to the political fray for the 1950 general election however, contesting one of Bootle's near neighbours,

Crosby Crosby may refer to: Places ;Canada *Crosby, Ontario, part of the township of Rideau Lakes, Ontario *Crosby, Ontario, a neighbourhood in the city of Markham, Ontario ;England *Crosby, Cumbria *Crosby, Lincolnshire *Crosby, Merseyside ** Crosby (U ...

''Who’s Who of 475 Liberal Candidates fighting the 1950 General Election'', LPD 1950 p13 but this seems to have been his last attempt to get back into 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. ...

Death

Burnie died on 15 May 1975, aged 93 years.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Burnie, James 1882 births 1975 deaths Liberal Party (UK) MPs for English constituencies Mayors of places in Lancashire UK MPs 1922–1923 UK MPs 1923–1924 People educated at Merchant Taylors' Boys' School, Crosby Recipients of the Military Cross Politics of Merseyside Politics of Lancashire People from Bootle British Army personnel of World War I King's Regiment (Liverpool) officers