Edward Watson Short, Baron Glenamara, (17 December 1912 – 4 May 2012) was a British Labour Party politician and deputy leader of the Labour Party. He 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 o ...

(MP) for

Newcastle upon Tyne Central Newcastle upon Tyne Central is a constituency represented in the House of Commons of the UK Parliament since 2010 by Chi Onwurah of the Labour Party. As with all constituencies, the constituency elects one Member of Parliament (MP) by the fir ...

and served as a minister during the Labour governments under

Harold Wilson James Harold Wilson, Baron Wilson of Rievaulx, (11 March 1916 – 24 May 1995) was a British politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom twice, from October 1964 to June 1970, and again from March 1974 to April 1976. He ...

, before being appointed to the

House of Lords The House of Lords, also known as the House of Peers, is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Membership is by appointment, heredity or official function. Like the House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminst ...

shortly after

James Callaghan Leonard James Callaghan, Baron Callaghan of Cardiff, ( ; 27 March 191226 March 2005), commonly known as Jim Callaghan, was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1976 to 1979 and Leader of the Labour Party from 1976 to 1980. Callaghan is ...

became Prime Minister. Following the death of

James Allason Lieutenant Colonel James Harry Allason, (6 September 1912 – 16 June 2011) was a British Conservative Party politician, sportsman, and former military planner who worked with Lord Mountbatten and Winston Churchill. At the time of his death, he ...

on 16 June 2011, Short was the oldest living former member of the

British House of Commons The House of Commons is the lower house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Like the upper house, the House of Lords, it meets in the Palace of Westminster in London, England. The House of Commons is an elected body consisting of 65 ...

. He died just under a year later, aged 99. At the time of his death he was the oldest member of the House of Lords.

Early career

Short was born in

Warcop Warcop is a village and civil parish in the Eden district of Cumbria, England. The parish had a population of 491 in the 2001 census, increasing to 532 at the Census 2011. It is near the A66 road and is north of Kirkby Stephen and about ...

, Westmorland. His father Charles Short, a draper, was married to Mary. Short qualified as a teacher at College of the Venerable Bede,

Durham University , mottoeng = Her foundations are upon the holy hills ( Psalm 87:1) , established = (university status) , type = Public , academic_staff = 1,830 (2020) , administrative_staff = 2,640 (2018/19) , chancellor = Sir Thomas Allen , vice_cha ...

, before completing a second degree, in law, at London University. He taught on Tyneside until enlisting in 1939. He served as a Captain in the Durham Light Infantry of the British Army during the

Second World War 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 opposi ...

. After leaving the army, he returned to teaching, becoming Newcastle branch secretary of the National Union of Teachers and in 1947, head of Princess Louise Boys' School, Blyth. Having joined the Labour Party in 1942, Short was elected a councillor on

Newcastle City Council Newcastle City Council is the local government authority for the city and metropolitan borough of Newcastle upon Tyne. The council consists of 78 councillors, three for each of the 26 wards in the city. It is currently controlled by the Labou ...

in 1948, where he led the Labour Group within two years. He was first elected to Parliament for Newcastle upon Tyne Central at the 1951 general election. He was appointed to the

Privy Council A privy council is a body that advises the head of state of a state, typically, but not always, in the context of a monarchic government. The word "privy" means "private" or "secret"; thus, a privy council was originally a committee of the mo ...

in 1964, and was made a

Companion of Honour The Order of the Companions of Honour is an order of the Commonwealth realms. It was founded on 4 June 1917 by King George V as a reward for outstanding achievements. Founded on the same date as the Order of the British Empire, it is sometimes ...

in 1976.

Postmaster General

Short was responsible for the outlawing of

pirate radio stations Pirate radio or a pirate radio station is a radio station that broadcasts without a valid license. In some cases, radio stations are considered legal where the signal is transmitted, but illegal where the signals are received—especially ...

such as

Radio Caroline Radio Caroline is a British radio station founded in 1964 by Ronan O'Rahilly and Alan Crawford initially to circumvent the record companies' control of popular music broadcasting in the United Kingdom and the BBC's radio broadcasting monopoly. ...

. Following the government campaign against the pirates previously led by

Tony Benn Anthony Neil Wedgwood Benn (3 April 1925 – 14 March 2014), known between 1960 and 1963 as Viscount Stansgate, was a British politician, writer and diarist who served as a Cabinet minister in the 1960s and 1970s. A member of the Labour Party, ...

, his predecessor in the post of Postmaster-General (then the minister with responsibility for broadcasting), Short was responsible for introducing the bill which became the Marine, &c., Broadcasting (Offences) Act 1967. In a 1982 interview for BBC Radio's ''The Story of Pop Radio'', Short admitted having enjoyed listening to some of those stations, particularly Radio 390. As Postmaster General, Short ordered the creation of the 1966 England Winners stamp to celebrate England's victory in the

1966 FIFA World Cup The 1966 FIFA World Cup was the eighth FIFA World Cup, a quadrennial football tournament for men's senior national teams. It was played in England from 11 July to 30 July 1966. The England national football team defeated West Germany 4-2 in th ...

Education Secretary

He subsequently served as Education Secretary 1968–70, and became Labour's deputy leader on 25 April 1972 after

Roy Jenkins Roy Harris Jenkins, Baron Jenkins of Hillhead, (11 November 1920 – 5 January 2003) was a British politician who served as President of the European Commission from 1977 to 1981. At various times a Member of Parliament (MP) for the Lab ...

resigned over differences on European policy. Short was seen at the time as a "safe pair of hands". His main rival for the job was the left-winger

Michael Foot Michael Mackintosh Foot (23 July 19133 March 2010) was a British Labour Party politician who served as Labour Leader from 1980 to 1983. Foot began his career as a journalist on ''Tribune'' and the ''Evening Standard''. He co-wrote the 1940 p ...

who was viewed by many on the centre and right of the party as a divisive figure. Short defeated Foot and

Anthony Crosland Charles Anthony Raven Crosland (29 August 191819 February 1977) was a British Labour Party politician and author. A social democrat on the right wing of the Labour Party, he was a prominent socialist intellectual. His influential book '' The ...

in the same

vote Voting is a method by which a group, such as a meeting or an electorate, can engage for the purpose of making a collective decision or expressing an opinion usually following discussions, debates or election campaigns. Democracies elect holde ...

Lord President of the Council

Short's new seniority was reflected in his appointment as

Lord President of the Council The lord president of the Council is the presiding officer of the Privy Council of the United Kingdom and the fourth of the Great Officers of State, ranking below the Lord High Treasurer but above the Lord Keeper of the Privy Seal. The Lord ...

– though not

Deputy Prime Minister A deputy prime minister or vice prime minister is, in some countries, a government minister who can take the position of acting prime minister when the prime minister is temporarily absent. The position is often likened to that of a vice president, ...

– 1974–76, but he did not have the stature to mount a leadership bid himself on Wilson's retirement. He was not offered a Cabinet post on

's election as Prime Minister. His resignation letter said that the time had come for him to step aside for a younger man; this was sarcasm, as he was replaced by Michael Foot, who was only seven months younger than himself. Short was also nine months younger than Callaghan, who had dropped him from the cabinet.

Peerage

He was made a

life peer In the United Kingdom, life peers are appointed members of the peerage whose titles cannot be inherited, in contrast to hereditary peers. In modern times, life peerages, always created at the rank of baron, are created under the Life Peerages ...

as Baron Glenamara, of Glenridding in the County of Cumbria on 28 January 1977, a few months after he had left the Commons. One year before, he was appointed Chairman of Cable and Wireless Ltd, which was at the time a nationalised industry. He served in that post until 1980. As a life peer he was a member of the

, although he stopped attending regularly a few years before his death. His name lives on 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. T ...

with the term "

Short Money Short Money is the common name given to the annual payment to opposition parties in the United Kingdom House of Commons to help them with their costs. It includes funding to assist an opposition party in carrying out its Parliamentary business, ...

". This refers to funds paid by the Government to help run the Parliamentary office of the

Leader of the Opposition The Leader of the Opposition is a title traditionally held by the leader of the largest political party not in government, typical in countries utilizing the parliamentary system form of government. The leader of the opposition is typically se ...

. The then Mr Short pioneered this idea during his time in the House. He was made a

Freeman Freeman, free men, or variant, may refer to: * a member of the Third Estate in medieval society (commoners), see estates of the realm * Freeman, an apprentice who has been granted freedom of the company, was a rank within Livery companies * Free ...

of the City of Newcastle in 2001 "in recognition of his eminent and outstanding public service" and served as Chancellor of the University of Northumbria, a post he retired from in 2005.

References

* * *

Debrett's Debrett's () is a British professional coaching company, publisher and authority on etiquette and behaviour, founded in 1769 with the publication of the first edition of ''The New Peerage''. The company takes its name from its founder, John De ...

People of Today 2006 *

Who's Who ''Who's Who'' (or ''Who is Who'') is the title of a number of reference publications, generally containing concise biographical information on the prominent people of a country. The title has been adopted as an expression meaning a group of not ...

2006 * Times Guide to the House of Commons October 1974

External links

* , - , - , - , - , - , - , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Short, Edward 1912 births 2012 deaths Alumni of the College of the Venerable Bede, Durham British Secretaries of State for Education Councillors in Tyne and Wear Durham Light Infantry officers Labour Party (UK) MPs for English constituencies Labour Party (UK) life peers Leaders of the House of Commons of the United Kingdom Lord Presidents of the Council Members of the Order of the Companions of Honour Members of the Privy Council of the United Kingdom Ministers in the Wilson governments, 1964–1970 National Union of Teachers-sponsored MPs People associated with Northumbria University People from Warcop Schoolteachers from Cumbria UK MPs 1951–1955 UK MPs 1955–1959 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 who were granted peerages United Kingdom Postmasters General Life peers created by Elizabeth II