The Baroness Bacon CBE PC | |
|---|---|
) | |
| Chair of the Labour Party | |
| In office 1950–1951 | |
| Prime Minister | Clement Attlee |
| Preceded by | Sam Watson |
| Succeeded by | Harry Earnshaw |
| Member of Parliament for Leeds South East | |
| In office 26 May 1955 – 29 May 1970 | |
| Preceded by | Denis Healey |
| Succeeded by | Stan Cohen |
| Member of Parliament for Leeds North East | |
| In office 5 July 1945 – 6 May 1955 | |
| Preceded by | John Craik-Henderson |
| Succeeded by | Osbert Peake |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 10 September 1909 Normanton, West Yorkshire |
| Died | 24 March 1993 (aged 83) |
| Political party | Labour |
Alice Martha Bacon, Baroness Bacon, CBE, PC (10 September 1909 – 24 March 1993) was a British Labour Party politician. She was born in Normanton, West Yorkshire.[1] Her father was a miner and Labour county councillor. She was educated at Normanton Girls' High School and Stockwell Teachers' Training College before becoming a schoolteacher.
Political career
Bacon delivered her first political speech at the age of 16.[2]
At the 1945 general election, she was elected as MP for Leeds North East. When constituency boundaries were revised for the 1955 general election, she transferred to the Leeds South East constituency, and served as that constituency's MP until she retired at the 1970 general election.
Bacon was a member of the Labour Party's National Executive Committee from 1941 until 1970, and served as the party's chair from 1950 to 1951. In the 1953 Coronation Honours she was appointed a CBE.[3]
When Labour returned to government in 1964, Bacon became a Minister of State at the Home Office, remaining until 1967, and served under Frank Soskice and Roy Jenkins in a period of liberalising reforms. She was appointed to the Privy Council in 1966. From 1967 to 1970 she was Minister of State at the Department of Education and Science.
On her retirement from the House of Commons, Bacon was created on 14 October 1970 Baroness Bacon of the City of Leeds and of Normanton in the West Riding of Yorkshire.[4]
Memorial
A Leeds Civic Trust Blue Plaque was unveiled by Rachel Reeves in 2019 in Leeds Corn Exchange.
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References
- ^ Reeves, Rachel; Carr, Richard (2017), Alice in Westminster: The Political Life of Alice Bacon, London: I. B. taurus & Co. Ltd, ISBN 978-1-78453-768-5
- ^ Stead, Jean. "Woman in Whitehall". The Guardian, 16 November 1964, p. 6.
- ^ "No. 39863". The London Gazette (Supplement). 1 June 1953. p. 2953.
- ^ "No. 45216". The London Gazette. 20 October 1970. pp. 11472–11473.
- Alice Bacon at the Centre for Advancement of Women in Politics
- Leigh Rayment's Peerage Pages
- Leigh Rayment's Historical List of MPs
External links
- Hansard 1803–2005: contributions in Parliament by Alice Bacon
| Parliament of the United Kingdom | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by John Craik-Henderson | Member of Parliament for Leeds North East 1945–1955 | Succeeded by Osbert Peake |
| Preceded by Denis Healey | Member of Parliament for Leeds South East 1955–1970 | Succeeded by Stan Cohen |
| Party political offices | ||
| Preceded by Sam Watson | Chair of the Labour Party 1950–1951 | Succeeded by Harry Earnshaw |