James Mortimer Peddie, Baron Peddie,

MBE Mbe may refer to: * Mbé, a town in the Republic of the Congo * Mbe Mountains Community Forest, in Nigeria * Mbe language, a language of Nigeria * Mbe' language, language of Cameroon * ''mbe'', ISO 639 code for the extinct Molala language Molal ...

(5 April 1905 — 13 April 1978) was a British businessman and politician, a leading figure in the UK

co-operative A cooperative (also known as co-operative, co-op, or coop) is "an autonomous association of persons united voluntarily to meet their common economic, social and cultural needs and aspirations through a jointly owned and democratically-control ...

movement.

Early life and education

Peddie was son of Crofton Peddie (1863-1938), of Hull, Yorkshire and of Stirling, a labourer at a colour-works, and his wife Ethel, daughter of George Whisker, of Hull, formerly a farmer in

North Yorkshire North Yorkshire is the largest ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county (lieutenancy area) in England, covering an area of . Around 40% of the county is covered by National parks of the United Kingdom, national parks, including most of ...

. The Peddie family were from Kelso, on the Scottish Borders (formerly

Roxburghshire Roxburghshire or the County of Roxburgh ( gd, Siorrachd Rosbroig) is a historic county and registration county in the Southern Uplands of Scotland. It borders Dumfriesshire to the west, Selkirkshire and Midlothian to the north-west, and Berw ...

), and through marriage in the 1800s acquired property on

Antigua Antigua ( ), also known as Waladli or Wadadli by the native population, is an island in the Lesser Antilles. It is one of the Leeward Islands in the Caribbean region and the main island of the country of Antigua and Barbuda. Antigua and Bar ...

; Peddie's great-grandfather, Robert Peddie, MD, was a member of the House of Assembly of Antigua. He was educated at St Paul's Council School, the Hull Municipal Technical College, and at the

London School of Economics , mottoeng = To understand the causes of things , established = , type = Public research university , endowment = £240.8 million (2021) , budget = £391.1 millio ...

Career

Peddie started his work in the co-operative movement for the Hull Co-operative Society as Publicity Manager and a director. He served in the Ministry of Information during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

then became a director of the

Co-operative Wholesale Society A co-operative wholesale society, or CWS, is a form of co-operative federation (that is, a co-operative in which all the members are co-operatives), in this case, the members are usually consumer cooperatives. According to co-operative economi ...

. He served on the boards of the

Co-operative Insurance Society Co-op Insurance is the trading name of CIS General Insurance, a general insurance company, which is part of the Co-operative Group, based in Manchester, United Kingdom. Co-op Insurance Services, an insurance intermediary incorporated in 2017, is ...

and the

Co-operative Permanent Building Society The Co-operative Permanent Building Society was a mutual building society, providing mortgages and savings accounts to its members. Its head office was located at New Oxford House in London.Nationwide). He was the President of

Co-operative Congress The Co-operative Congress is the national conference of the UK Co-operative Movement. The first of the modern congresses took place in 1869 following a series of meetings called the "Owenite Congress" in the 1830s. Members of Co-operatives UK (p ...

in 1958. Peddie also served on the national executive of the

Co-operative Party The Co-operative Party is a centre-left political party in the United Kingdom, supporting co-operative values and principles. Established in 1917, the Co-operative Party was founded by co-operative societies to campaign politically for the fair ...

and chaired the Party 1957–1965. He became a bridge between the co-operative and

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 ( ...

movements, and the Labour Party, serving on the National Council of Labour, Co-op and Trade Unions. He served as

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) *President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ful ...

of both the

es of 1958. Peddie was appointed a

Member of the Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...

(MBE) in the

1944 Birthday Honours The 1944 King's Birthday Honours, celebrating the official birthday of King George VI, were announced on 2 June 1944 for the United Kingdom and British Empire, New Zealand, and South Africa. The recipients of honours are displayed here as they w ...

, and was created Baron Peddie, of the City and County of

Kingston upon Hull Kingston upon Hull, usually abbreviated to Hull, is a port city and unitary authority in the East Riding of Yorkshire, England. It lies upon the River Hull at its confluence with the Humber Estuary, inland from the North Sea and south-east ...

on 8 February 1961. He sat on the Labour benches as a

Labour Co-operative Labour and Co-operative Party (often abbreviated Labour Co-op; cy, Llafur a'r Blaid Gydweithredol) is a description used by candidates in United Kingdom elections who stand on behalf of both the Labour Party and the Co-operative Party. Candidat ...

peer. He was one of the first members of the

National Consumer Council National may refer to: Common uses * Nation or country ** Nationality – a ''national'' is a person who is subject to a nation, regardless of whether the person has full rights as a citizen Places in the United States * National, Maryland, ce ...

and was appointed chair of the

National Board for Prices and Incomes The National Board for Prices and Incomes was created by the government of Harold Wilson in 1965 in an attempt to solve the problem of inflation in the British economy by managing wages and prices. The board's chairman was Aubrey Jones, formerl ...

and of the Post Office Users Council. Peddie was also a governor of the

British Film Institute The British Film Institute (BFI) is a film and television charitable organisation which promotes and preserves film-making and television in the United Kingdom. The BFI uses funds provided by the National Lottery to encourage film production, ...

and the Advertising Standards Authority.

Personal life

In 1931, Peddie married Hilda Mary Alice, daughter of Henry James Ernest Bull, of

Lowestoft Lowestoft ( ) is a coastal town and civil parish in the East Suffolk district of Suffolk, England.OS Explorer Map OL40: The Broads: (1:25 000) : . As the most easterly UK settlement, it is north-east of London, north-east of Ipswich and sou ...

, Suffolk and of Hull. They had a son and two daughters.Who was Who, A Companion to Who's Who, Vol. 7, A. & C. Black, 1971, p. 616

References

*Lord Graham of Edmonton, 'A proud legacy', ''

The Co-operative News ''Co-op News'' is a UK-based monthly news magazine and website for the global co-operative movement. First published in Manchester in 1871 as ''The Co-operative News'', the paper is the world's oldest co-operative newspaper. Originally a weekly ...

'', 29 April-13 May 2008 {{DEFAULTSORT:Peddie, James 1978 deaths 1905 births Labour Co-operative life peers Members of the Order of the British Empire Presidents of Co-operative Congress Life peers created by Elizabeth II