Donald Box
Encyclopedia
Donald Stewart Box was a Welsh
stockbroker and Conservative Party
politician.
, Box was educated at The Cathedral School, Llandaff
, St John's School in Pinner, and Harrow County School for Boys. He joined the stockbrokers' company Henry J. Thomas at the age of 17. At the outbreak of the Second World War he joined the Royal Air Force
and served in the middle east in Egypt
, Palestine
and Transjordan
. This experience gave him knowledge and interest in the middle east refugee problem which he took up later in life.
and fought Newport
at the 1955 general election
and a by-election the following year
.
, Box was selected for Cardiff North
and won the seat. He made his mark as a strong opponent of strikes (especially unofficial ones). He championed the cause of business and of redevelopment of Cardiff's docklands, and blamed any failures on the left. In line with his constituency, in which a large proportion of the property was leasehold, he supported leasehold reform.
Box had good looks and an easygoing manner, who could come up with amusing phrases denigrating his political opponents; in 1966, despite being nearly 50 and having been an MP for six years, he was described as "young and inexperienced" by Speaker Horace King. He was a strong opponent of the bill to suspend capital punishment
in 1965, and criticised excessive welfare payments.
, Box returned to Lyddon & Company. From 1973 he was a member of the London Stock Exchange when regional members were allowed. He became a Director of N.M. Rothschild in 1988. He died of cancer
.
Wales
Wales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and the island of Great Britain, bordered by England to its east and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It has a population of three million, and a total area of 20,779 km²...
stockbroker and Conservative Party
Conservative Party (UK)
The Conservative Party, formally the Conservative and Unionist Party, is a centre-right political party in the United Kingdom that adheres to the philosophies of conservatism and British unionism. It is the largest political party in the UK, and is currently the largest single party in the House...
politician.
Early and military career
Born in CardiffCardiff
Cardiff is the capital, largest city and most populous county of Wales and the 10th largest city in the United Kingdom. The city is Wales' chief commercial centre, the base for most national cultural and sporting institutions, the Welsh national media, and the seat of the National Assembly for...
, Box was educated at The Cathedral School, Llandaff
The Cathedral School, Llandaff
The Cathedral School, Llandaff is a coeducational Welsh independent senior, prep and pre-prep day school. It is located in Llandaff, Cardiff. The school is part of the Woodard Schools foundation, as well as having many links to the neighbouring Llandaff Cathedral.In 1880 Dean John Vaughan opened a...
, St John's School in Pinner, and Harrow County School for Boys. He joined the stockbrokers' company Henry J. Thomas at the age of 17. At the outbreak of the Second World War he joined the Royal Air Force
Royal Air Force
The Royal Air Force is the aerial warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Formed on 1 April 1918, it is the oldest independent air force in the world...
and served in the middle east in Egypt
Egypt
Egypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, Arabic: , is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Southwest Asia. Egypt is thus a transcontinental country, and a major power in Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East and the Muslim world...
, Palestine
Palestine
Palestine is a conventional name, among others, used to describe the geographic region between the Mediterranean Sea and the Jordan River, and various adjoining lands....
and Transjordan
Transjordan
The Emirate of Transjordan was a former Ottoman territory in the Southern Levant that was part of the British Mandate of Palestine...
. This experience gave him knowledge and interest in the middle east refugee problem which he took up later in life.
Political involvement
He returned to Cardiff following the war and became a member of the Cardiff Stock Exchange and a partner in Lyddon & Company, stockbrokers. Having joined the Young Conservatives, Box graduated to the Conservative PartyConservative Party (UK)
The Conservative Party, formally the Conservative and Unionist Party, is a centre-right political party in the United Kingdom that adheres to the philosophies of conservatism and British unionism. It is the largest political party in the UK, and is currently the largest single party in the House...
and fought Newport
Newport (Monmouthshire) (UK Parliament constituency)
Newport was a borough constituency in Monmouthshire from 1918 to 1983. It returned one Member of Parliament to the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, elected by the first past the post system....
at the 1955 general election
United Kingdom general election, 1955
The 1955 United Kingdom general election was held on 26 May 1955, four years after the previous general election. It resulted in a substantially increased majority of 60 for the Conservative government under new leader and prime minister Sir Anthony Eden against Labour Party, now in their 20th year...
and a by-election the following year
Newport by-election, 1956
The Newport by-election, 1956 was a parliamentary by-election held on 6 July 1956 for the British House of Commons constituency of Newport in Monmouthshire....
.
Parliamentary career
For the 1959 general electionUnited Kingdom general election, 1959
This United Kingdom general election was held on 8 October 1959. It marked a third successive victory for the ruling Conservative Party, led by Harold Macmillan...
, Box was selected for Cardiff North
Cardiff North (UK Parliament constituency)
Cardiff North is aborough constituency in the city of Cardiff. It returns one Member of Parliament to the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, elected by the first past the post voting system....
and won the seat. He made his mark as a strong opponent of strikes (especially unofficial ones). He championed the cause of business and of redevelopment of Cardiff's docklands, and blamed any failures on the left. In line with his constituency, in which a large proportion of the property was leasehold, he supported leasehold reform.
Box had good looks and an easygoing manner, who could come up with amusing phrases denigrating his political opponents; in 1966, despite being nearly 50 and having been an MP for six years, he was described as "young and inexperienced" by Speaker Horace King. He was a strong opponent of the bill to suspend capital punishment
Capital punishment
Capital punishment, the death penalty, or execution is the sentence of death upon a person by the state as a punishment for an offence. Crimes that can result in a death penalty are known as capital crimes or capital offences. The term capital originates from the Latin capitalis, literally...
in 1965, and criticised excessive welfare payments.
Stockbroking
After losing his seat in the 1966 general electionUnited Kingdom general election, 1966
The 1966 United Kingdom general election on 31 March 1966 was called by sitting Labour Prime Minister Harold Wilson. Wilson's decision to call an election turned on the fact that his government, elected a mere 17 months previously in 1964 had an unworkably small majority of only 4 MPs...
, Box returned to Lyddon & Company. From 1973 he was a member of the London Stock Exchange when regional members were allowed. He became a Director of N.M. Rothschild in 1988. He died of cancer
Cancer
Cancer , known medically as a malignant neoplasm, is a large group of different diseases, all involving unregulated cell growth. In cancer, cells divide and grow uncontrollably, forming malignant tumors, and invade nearby parts of the body. The cancer may also spread to more distant parts of the...
.