James Dempsey (6 February 1917 – 12 May 1982) was a Scottish
Labour Party politician who was
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 ...
for
Coatbridge and Airdrie from 1959 until his death.
Background
Dempsey was educated at Holy Family School,
Mossend
Mossend is a small town in North Lanarkshire, Scotland, located on the A775 road to the immediate east of its 'sister town' Bellshill, west of the villages of Holytown and New Stevenston, north of the larger town of Motherwell and south of the E ...
, the
Co-operative College
Co-operative College is a British educational charity dedicated to the promotion of co-operative values, ideas and principles within co-operatives, communities and society.
Origins and development
The Co-operative College was established in 1919 ...
in
Loughborough
Loughborough ( ) is a market town in the Charnwood borough of Leicestershire, England, the seat of Charnwood Borough Council and Loughborough University. At the 2011 census the town's built-up area had a population of 59,932 , the second larg ...
, and at the
National Council of Labour Colleges The National Council of Labour Colleges (NCLC) was an organisation set up in the United Kingdom to foster independent working class education.
The organisation was founded at a convention held in the Clarion Club House, Yardley, Birmingham on 8/9 ...
. He was a clerk with a
haulage firm and a councillor on
Lanarkshire
Lanarkshire, also called the County of Lanark ( gd, Siorrachd Lannraig; sco, Lanrikshire), is a historic county, lieutenancy area and registration county in the central Lowlands of Scotland.
Lanarkshire is the most populous county in Scotlan ...
County Council
A county council is the elected administrative body governing an area known as a county. This term has slightly different meanings in different countries.
Ireland
The county councils created under British rule in 1899 continue to exist in Irela ...
from 1945. He later worked as a lecturer on political economy and a writer on local government.
Parliament
In
1959
Events January
* January 1 - Cuba: Fulgencio Batista flees Havana when the forces of Fidel Castro advance.
* January 2 - Lunar probe Luna 1 was the first man-made object to attain escape velocity from Earth. It reached the vicinity of E ...
, Dempsey was elected the
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 ...
for
Coatbridge and Airdrie. His maiden speech, on 28 October 1959, was on the subject of unemployment. His final appearance was asking a question about the Christmas payments for pensioners, on 18 January 1982.
A devout Catholic, he opposed the
Abortion Act 1967
The Abortion Act 1967 is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom legalising abortions on certain grounds by registered practitioners, and regulating the tax-paid provision of such medical practices through the National Health Service (NHS ...
.
Amid a series of health problems, he announced that he would not contest the
1983 general election, but died from a heart attack before then, on 12 May 1982, at his home in
Bellshill
Bellshill (pronounced "Bells hill") is a town in North Lanarkshire in Scotland, southeast of Glasgow city centre and west of Edinburgh. Other nearby localities are Motherwell to the south, Hamilton, South Lanarkshire, Hamilton to the south ...
.
[ In the resulting by-election, the Labour Party held his seat with Tom Clarke.
]
Family
Dempsey's brother John Dempsey (Bellshill) was a footballer for Ipswich town
Ipswich Town Football Club is a professional association football club based in Ipswich, Suffolk, England. They play in League One, the third tier of the English football league system.
The club was founded in 1878 but did not turn profession ...
(England), Hamilton Hamilton may refer to:
People
* Hamilton (name), a common British surname and occasional given name, usually of Scottish origin, including a list of persons with the surname
** The Duke of Hamilton, the premier peer of Scotland
** Lord Hamilt ...
, Queen of the South, Newry Town
Newry City Football Club was a Northern Irish association football, football club founded in 1918 and dissolved in 2012. It was based in Newry, County Down and played its home matches at The Showgrounds (Newry), the Showgrounds. Club colours we ...
(Ireland) and Cowdenbeath
Cowdenbeath (; sco, Coudenbeith) is a town and burgh in west Fife, Scotland. It is north-east of Dunfermline and north of the capital, Edinburgh. The town grew up around the extensive coalfields of the area and became a police burgh in 18 ...
. John was also a football scout after his playing career, with Hamilton Academical
Hamilton Academical Football Club, often known as Hamilton Accies, or The Accies, is a Scottish association football, football club from Hamilton, South Lanarkshire, Hamilton, South Lanarkshire who currently compete in the Scottish Championshi ...
, and more famously Glasgow Celtic
The Celtic Football Club, commonly known as Celtic (), is a Scottish professional football club based in Glasgow, which plays in the Scottish Premiership. The club was founded in 1887 with the purpose of alleviating poverty in the immigran ...
for 11 years; from 1965 to 1976 he served under the late Jock Stein
John "Jock" Stein (5 October 1922 – 10 September 1985) was a Scottish football player and manager. He was the first manager of a British side to win the European Cup, with Celtic in 1967. Stein also guided Celtic to nine successive Scottish ...
during the club's win in the 1967 European Cup Final.
Dempsey and his wife, Jane, had six children.[ His son ]Brian
Brian (sometimes spelled Bryan in English) is a male given name of Irish and Breton origin, as well as a surname of Occitan origin. It is common in the English-speaking world.
It is possible that the name is derived from an Old Celtic word me ...
is a businessman and a former director of Celtic F.C.
The Celtic Football Club, commonly known as Celtic (), is a Scottish professional football club based in Glasgow, which plays in the Scottish Premiership. The club was founded in 1887 with the purpose of alleviating poverty in the immigran ...
References
*
*''Times Guide to the House of Commons'', 1966 & 1979
External links
*
1917 births
1982 deaths
20th-century Roman Catholics
Alumni of the Co-operative College
Clerks
Councillors in Scotland
Scottish Labour MPs
Scottish Roman Catholics
UK MPs 1959–1964
UK MPs 1964–1966
UK MPs 1966–1970
UK MPs 1970–1974
UK MPs 1974
UK MPs 1974–1979
UK MPs 1979–1983
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