John Jagger (1 October 1872 – 9 July 1942)
was a British
trade unionist
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 Employee ben ...
and
Labour Party politician. After a career in business and trade union leadership, he won a seat 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. ...
in 1935, and held it until his death in a road accident.
Career
Jagger spent the early part of his career in business, and travelled for four years as a business manager in India, China and Burma.
He then became a departmental manager in co-operative stores.
He was chairman of the
York
York is a cathedral city with Roman origins, sited at the confluence of the rivers Ouse and Foss in North Yorkshire, England. It is the historic county town of Yorkshire. The city has many historic buildings and other structures, such as a ...
Trades and Labour Council A labour council, trades council or industrial council is an association of labour unions or union branches in a given area. Most commonly, they represent unions in a given geographical area, whether at the district, city, region, or provincial or ...
,
and became president of the
Amalgamated Union of Co-operative Employees
The Amalgamated Union of Co-operative Employees (AUCE) was a trade union representing retail and related staff of co-operative businesses in the United Kingdom.
The union was founded in 1891 at a meeting in Romiley and was originally named the Ma ...
, of which he was the chief founder. In 1921 he became general president of the
National Union of Distributive and Allied Workers
The National Union of Distributive and Allied Workers (NUDAW) was a trade union in the United Kingdom.
History
The union was founded in 1921, when the Amalgamated Union of Co-operative Employees merged with the National Union of Warehouse and ...
,
and held that post until he entered
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 ...
in 1935.
At the
1935 general election, he was elected as 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 ...
(MP) for
Manchester Clayton, defeating the
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 ...
MP
William Flanagan William Flanagan may refer to:
* William Flanagan (composer) (1923–1969), American composer
* William Flanagan (American football) (1901–1975), professional football player
* William Flanagan (politician) (1871–1944), British Member of Parli ...
.
The seat had been won by Flanagan in
1931
Events
January
* January 2 – South Dakota native Ernest Lawrence invents the cyclotron, used to accelerate particles to study nuclear physics.
* January 4 – German pilot Elly Beinhorn begins her flight to Africa.
* January 22 – Sir I ...
after it had been held by Labour since
1922
Events
January
* January 7 – Dáil Éireann (Irish Republic), Dáil Éireann, the parliament of the Irish Republic, ratifies the Anglo-Irish Treaty by 64–57 votes.
* January 10 – Arthur Griffith is elected President of Dáil Éirean ...
.
In December 1935 he was a speaker at the Congress of Peace and Friendship with Russia, held in
Friends House
Friends House is a multi-use building at 173 Euston Road in Euston, central London, that houses the central offices of British Quakers. The building is also the principal venue for North West London Meeting and the Britain Yearly Meeting
The ...
on the
Euston Road
Euston Road is a road in Central London that runs from Marylebone Road to King's Cross. The route is part of the London Inner Ring Road and forms part of the London congestion charge zone boundary. It is named after Euston Hall, the family ...
in London.
In July 1936, he was one eleven MPs who sent a telegram to
Prime Minister of Spain
The prime minister of Spain, officially president of the Government ( es, link=no, Presidente del Gobierno), is the head of government of Spain. The office was established in its current form by the Constitution of 1978 and it was first regula ...
expressing their "admiration of the heroic fight being put up by the Spanish people against the attack of Fascists".
The MPs pledged themselves "to do everything in our power to rally behind your struggle the whole British people".
In 1938, he was one of the Labour MPs who visited Spain during the
Civil War
A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country).
The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies ...
.
In May 1940, when
Herbert Morrison
Herbert Stanley Morrison, Baron Morrison of Lambeth, (3 January 1888 – 6 March 1965) was a British politician who held a variety of senior positions in the UK Cabinet as member of the Labour Party. During the inter-war period, he was Mini ...
became
Minister of Supply
The Minister of Supply was the minister in the British Government responsible for the Ministry of Supply, which existed to co-ordinate the supply of equipment to the national armed forces. The position was campaigned for by many sceptics of the for ...
in the
wartime coalition government, Jagger was appointed as his
Parliamentary Private Secretary
A Parliamentary Private Secretary (PPS) is a Member of Parliament (MP) in the United Kingdom who acts as an unpaid assistant to a minister or shadow minister. They are selected from backbench MPs as the 'eyes and ears' of the minister in the H ...
(PPS).
Morrison was promoted to
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 ...
in October 1940, and Jagger remained his PPS in the new post.
Death
In July 1942, the 69-year-old Jagger had been staying in a cottage in
Beaconsfield
Beaconsfield ( ) is a market town and civil parish within the unitary authority of Buckinghamshire, England, west-northwest of central London and south-southeast of Aylesbury. Three other towns are within : Gerrards Cross, Amersham and High W ...
in Buckinghamshire.
On 9 July he was riding his
motorcycle
A motorcycle (motorbike, bike, or trike (if three-wheeled)) is a two or three-wheeled motor vehicle steered by a handlebar. Motorcycle design varies greatly to suit a range of different purposes: long-distance travel, commuting, cruising ...
to
Beaconsfield railway station when he collided with a car, and was killed instantly.
His death caused a
by-election in Manchester Clayton, when the seat was held for Labour by
Harry Thorneycroft
Harry Thorneycroft (21 February 1892 – 7 March 1956) was a British hairdresser and Labour Party politician who sat in the House of Commons from 1942 to 1955.
He was educated at an elementary school, and began work in a hairdresser's shop at th ...
.
Family
Jagger married Martha Southern in 1899, and they had two sons.
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Jagger, John
1872 births
1942 deaths
British trade union leaders
Members of the Parliament of the United Kingdom for English constituencies
National Union of Distributive and Allied Workers-sponsored MPs
UK MPs 1935–1945
Motorcycle road incident deaths
Presidents of British trade unions
Road incident deaths in England