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Alfred Barnes (Labour politician)

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(Redirected from Alfred John Barnes) British politician For other people named Alfred Barnes, see Alfred Barnes (disambiguation).

The Right HonourableAlfred Barnes
Minister of Transport
In office
3 August 1945 – 26 October 1951
Prime MinisterClement Attlee
Preceded byThe Lord Leathers
Succeeded byJohn Maclay
Chair of the Co-operative Party
In office
1924–1945
Preceded byWilliam Henry Watkins
Succeeded byWilliam Coldrick
Member of Parliament
for East Ham South
In office
14 November 1935 – 26 May 1955
Preceded byMalcolm Campbell-Johnston
Succeeded byAlbert Oram
In office
15 November 1922 – 27 October 1931
Preceded byClement Edwards
Succeeded byMalcolm Campbell-Johnston
Personal details
Born(1887-07-17)17 July 1887
Plaistow, Newham, England
Died26 November 1974(1974-11-26) (aged 87)
Walton-on-the-Naze, Essex, England
Political partyLabour and Co-operative
Alma materNorthampton Institute
Central School of Arts and Crafts

Alfred John Barnes (17 July 1887 – 26 November 1974) was a British Labour and Co-operative politician.

Born in North Woolwich, he was the youngest child of William Barnes, a docker. His brother Billy became a professional footballer. Barnes lost a leg in a fairground accident at the age of 8. He was educated at the Northampton Institute and the Central School of Arts and Crafts.

Barnes worked originally as an artist in gold and silver. He was an early member of the Independent Labour Party and was heavily involved in the co-operative movement. He was chairman of the London Co-operative Society for nine years until 1923 and was a founder of the Co-operative Party. He became the Party's chairman in 1924 and served until 1945. He was also a director and President of the National Cooperative Publishing Society.

In November 1922, Barnes was elected as the Member of Parliament (MP) for East Ham South. In 1925, he was appointed a Labour Whip and served as a whip in Government, as Junior Lord of the Treasury. However, he was forced to resign in October 1930 - although his position as a director of the National Cooperative Publishing Society was unpaid, parliamentary rules dictated that a minister cannot be a director of a public company (although they could be of a private company): Barnes chose to remain on the co-op board rather than as a whip. Like many Labour MPs, he lost his seat in the 1931 general election but regained it in 1935.

In 1945, Barnes was made a Privy Counsellor and Minister of War Transport, later Minister of Transport, serving until the fall of the Labour government in 1951. He stood down as a Member of Parliament at the 1955 general election.

References

  1. "Barnes, Alfred John (1887–1974), politician". Oxford Dictionary of National Biography (online ed.). Oxford University Press. 2004. doi:10.1093/ref:odnb/30791. Retrieved 9 July 2020. (Subscription or UK public library membership required.)
  2. ^ "Obituary: Mr Alfred Barnes". The Times. 27 November 1974. p. 18.
  3. "William Barnes". Spartacus Educational. Retrieved 10 January 2022.

External links

Parliament of the United Kingdom
Preceded byClement Edwards Member of Parliament for East Ham South
1922–1931 		Succeeded byMalcolm Campbell-Johnston
Preceded byMalcolm Campbell-Johnston Member of Parliament for East Ham South
1935–1955 		Succeeded byAlbert Oram
Political offices
Preceded byThe Lord Leathersas Minister of War Transport Minister of Transport
1945–1951 		Succeeded byJohn Maclay
Party political offices
Preceded byWilliam Henry Watkins Chair of the Co-operative Party
1924–1945 		Succeeded byWilliam Coldrick
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