Joseph Harper (17 March 1914 – 24 June 1978) was a
Labour Party politician in
Great Britain
Great Britain is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean off the north-west coast of continental Europe, consisting of the countries England, Scotland, and Wales. With an area of , it is the largest of the British Isles, the List of European ...
.
He was elected as the
Member of Parliament MP for
Pontefract
Pontefract is a historic market town in the City of Wakefield, a metropolitan district in West Yorkshire, England. It lies to the east of Wakefield and south of Castleford. Historically part of the West Riding of Yorkshire, it is one of the ...
at a by-election in 1962. He was MP for the constituency and then the reformed
Pontefract and Castleford constituency until he died in office at the age of 64. Playwright
James Graham has attributed Harper's death to his decision to "
elayemergency surgery in his determination to never miss a vote".
[ A hung parliament? It’ll be the 1970s again, and people will die]
by James Graham, in ''the Guardian
''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in Manchester in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'' and changed its name in 1959, followed by a move to London. Along with its sister paper, ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardi ...
''; published June 13, 2017; retrieved June 13, 2017
At the
by-election held following Harper's death, the seat was held for Labour by
Geoffrey Lofthouse
Geoffrey Lofthouse, Baron Lofthouse of Pontefract, JP (18 December 1925 – 1 November 2012), popularly known in his former constituency as Geoff Lofthouse, was a British Labour politician, MP and life peer.
Early life
He was born in Feathe ...
.
Harper was from a working-class background working at Ackton Hall Colliery, Featherstone. He lived at 11 Bedford Close, Featherstone with his wife Gwen and youngest daughter Pat. He had a further daughter, Wendy, who also resided on Bedford Close, and two sons Glyn and Graham.
References
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External links
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1914 births
1978 deaths
Labour Party (UK) MPs for English constituencies
National Union of Mineworkers-sponsored MPs
UK MPs 1959–1964
UK MPs 1964–1966
UK MPs 1966–1970
UK MPs 1970–1974
UK MPs 1974
UK MPs 1974–1979
Ministers in the Wilson governments, 1964–1970
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