A ginger group is a formal or informal group within an organisation seeking to influence its direction and activity. The term comes from the phrase ginger up, meaning to enliven or stimulate. Ginger groups work to alter the organisation's policies, practices, or office-holders, while still supporting its general goals. Ginger groups sometimes form within the political parties of Commonwealth countries such as the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, India, and Pakistan.
The Monday Night Cabal
Further information: Milner's KindergartenThe Monday Night Cabal was a 'ginger group' of influential people set up in London by Leo Amery at the start of 1916 to discuss war policy. The nucleus of the group consisted of Lord Milner, George Carson, Geoffrey Dawson, Waldorf Astor and F. S. Oliver. The group got together for Monday night dinners and to discuss politics. Throughout 1916, their numbers and influence grew to include Minister of Munitions David Lloyd George, General Henry Wilson, Philip Kerr, and Mark Jameson. It was through the Ginger Group that Times editor Geoffrey Dawson published a December 4, 1916 news story titled "Reconstruction" that set in motion events that caused Prime Minister H. H. Asquith to resign, signalling the rise of the Lloyd George Ministry.
Other examples
- Ginger Group, a radical group of left-wing Canadian MPs in the 1920s and early 1930s
- Ginger Group (Queensland)
- Kitchen Cabinet, a term used by political opponents of President of the United States Andrew Jackson to describe his ginger group
- League of Empire Loyalists, a 1950s UK ginger group
- Momentum, which has been described as a ginger group within the British Labour Party
See also
- Entryism, a more militant tactic not always supporting general goals
- Pressure group, an outside, as opposed to inside, group formed to influence the direction and activity of an organisation
Footnotes
- Schur, Norman W. (2013). British English A to Zed: A Definitive Guide to the Queen's English. New York: Skyhorse Publishing. p. 152. ISBN 978-1-62087-577-3.
- Lok Sabha Secretariat (1975). Glossary of Idioms, English-Hindi: Containing Idioms, Phrases, and Proverbial Sayings Under Letters A to Z. New Delhi: Lok Sabha Secretariat. p. 98. OCLC 2540350.
- Amery, Leo, "My Political Life, Vol. II", pg. 81
- Stubbs, J. O. (1972). "Lord Milner and Patriotic Labour, 1914-1918". The English Historical Review. 87 (345): 717–754. doi:10.1093/ehr/LXXXVII.CCCXLV.717. JSTOR 562198.
- Marlowe, John, "Milner: Apostle of Empire", pgs. 249-250
- Gollin, Alfred, "Proconsul in Politics", pgs. 323-364
- Stewart, A.T.Q., "Edward Carson", pgs. 105-106
- Ley, Shaun (2015-11-30). "Deselection fear hangs over Corbyn's critics - BBC News". Bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 2019-09-05.
References
- Amery, Leo, My Political Life, Vol. II, War and Peace (1914-1929), London: Hutchinson, 1953
- Gollin, Alfred, Proconsul in Politics, London: Blond, 1964
- Marlowe, John, Milner: Apostle of Empire, London: Hamish Hamilton, 1976
- Stewart, A.T.Q., Edward Carson, Belfast: Blackstaff, 1981
External links
- Internet Archive, Link (Please sign up to view original source material for Footnotes and References)
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