General Secretary of the Labour Party
Encyclopedia
The General Secretary
is the most senior employee of the British
Labour Party
, and acts as the non-voting secretary to the National Executive Committee
. When there is a vacancy the National Executive Committee selects a provisional replacement, subject to approval at the subsequent party conference
.
and Tyneside
, and in the many local offices around the country. The Scottish
and Welsh
Labour Parties are headed by their own general secretaries, in practice subordinate to the national general secretary.
The General Secretary is responsible for employing staff; campaign and media strategies; running the Party's organisational, constitutional and policy committees; organising the Party Conference; liaison with the Socialist International
and Party of European Socialists
; ensuring legal and constitutional propriety; preparing literature.
The General Secretary also acts as the Registered Treasurer under the Political Parties, Elections and Referendums Act 2000
, responsible for preparing accurate financial statements.
As the Labour Party is an unincorporated association without a separate legal personality, the General Secretary represents the party on behalf of the other members of the Labour Party in any legal matters or actions.
, later Prime Minister. In these early years, the post was a very important one, effectively leading the Party outside Parliament. MacDonald and his successor, Arthur Henderson
, were both Members of Parliament and for a period were both Chairmen of the Parliamentary Labour Party
whilst Party Secretary.
Upon Henderson's retirement in 1934, after the 1931 debacle which had seen MacDonald expelled from the Party, it was decided that the position should be separated from the parliamentary party, and power should not be concentrated in the hands of one person. Therefore Henderson's successor would not be allowed to become a Member of Parliament. This ruled out the strongest contender, Herbert Morrison
, and others with parliamentary ambitions. Finally, Jimmy Middleton
, assistant secretary since 1903, was chosen. He was a quiet-spoken man and the job lost much of its previous importance. However, the National Executive Committee
grew in influence.
During World War II
, Morgan Phillips
became General Secretary and went on to oversee two general election victories. A Welshman, he had been a miner but was instrumental in widening Labour's appeal to the middle classes. He also built a professional Party, with key employees working on policy development and electoral organisation.
When Len Williams
, the General Secretary of the early Wilson
years, retired in 1968, he was expected to be replaced by someone younger who could transform the Party and lead it to a third successive victory. However, the Party chose Harry Nicholas
, a long-serving left-wing T&G union figure who would be unlikely to continue to renew and reinvigorate the Party. The Party lost the 1970 general election
.
The 1970s and early-1980s saw developing confrontations between the left and the right in the Party. Jim Mortimer
and Larry Whitty worked hard to keep the Party together after the formation of the Social Democratic Party
and the rise of Militant Tendency
. Whitty oversaw the reforms of Neil Kinnock
and stayed on until the election of Tony Blair
as Leader. It would be Tom Sawyer
who would put in place Blair's controversial New Labour reforms, with the creation of the National Policy Forum
, the change to Clause IV
and the perceived erosion of the power of grassroots members. He opened new offices in Millbank
and created a highly-professional, media-savvy, youthful staff and Party that worked for Labour's landslide victory in the 1997 general election
.
Crucial to this period was the transformation of the party apparatus from an alternative centre of power to the parliamentary leadership (largely a product of the 1970s when the party conference repeatedly disowned government policy), to being more congruent with the leadership's ideas for progress.
In fact the roots of the transformation probably date back to the appointment of Peter Mandelson
as the party's communication director in 1985, but under Blair (and Sawyer) rapidly accelerated.
Margaret McDonagh
became Labour's first female General Secretary in 1998. She had been a rising star and formidable organiser in the run-up to 1997, seen as the key party official responsible for the record landslide victory, but her fearsome style did not endear her to Party members and the left. Her handling of the candidate selection for the 2000 London mayoral election
badly damaged her reputation. However her formidable organisational skills contributed to a second landslide in 2001
. McDonagh left after the 2001 general election victory and was succeeded by David Triesman. Triesman was seen as unsuited to the job, and the party moved in 2004 to appoint Matt Carter
as the youngest-ever General Secretary. He resigned after less than two years following the less than convincing 2005 general election
victory and was replaced in January 2006 by Peter Watt
. Watt became embroiled in the funding scandals of 2007
and resigned soon after. In early 2008 David Pitt-Watson
, a key Gordon Brown
ally, was selected for the post under the banner of party finance reform, but never took up the post "due to contractual difficulties".
General Secretary
The office of general secretary is staffed by the chief officer of:*The General Secretariat for Macedonia and Thrace, a government agency for the Greek regions of Macedonia and Thrace...
is the most senior employee of the British
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
Labour Party
Labour Party (UK)
The Labour Party is a centre-left democratic socialist party in the United Kingdom. It surpassed the Liberal Party in general elections during the early 1920s, forming minority governments under Ramsay MacDonald in 1924 and 1929-1931. The party was in a wartime coalition from 1940 to 1945, after...
, and acts as the non-voting secretary to the National Executive Committee
National Executive Committee
The National Executive Committee or NEC is the chief administrative body of the UK Labour Party. Its composition has changed over the years, and includes representatives of affiliated trade unions, the Parliamentary Labour Party and European Parliamentary Labour Party, Constituency Labour Parties,...
. When there is a vacancy the National Executive Committee selects a provisional replacement, subject to approval at the subsequent party conference
Labour Party (UK) Conference
The Labour Party Conference, or annual national conference of the Labour Party, is formally the supreme decision-making body of the Party.-Conference decisions:...
.
Party structure
The General Secretary heads a staff of around 200 in the two head offices, in LondonLondon
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
and Tyneside
Tyneside
Tyneside is a conurbation in North East England, defined by the Office of National Statistics, which is home to over 80% of the population of Tyne and Wear. It includes the city of Newcastle upon Tyne and the Metropolitan Boroughs of Gateshead, North Tyneside and South Tyneside — all settlements on...
, and in the many local offices around the country. The Scottish
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
and Welsh
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...
Labour Parties are headed by their own general secretaries, in practice subordinate to the national general secretary.
The General Secretary is responsible for employing staff; campaign and media strategies; running the Party's organisational, constitutional and policy committees; organising the Party Conference; liaison with the Socialist International
Socialist International
The Socialist International is a worldwide organization of democratic socialist, social democratic and labour political parties. It was formed in 1951.- History :...
and Party of European Socialists
Party of European Socialists
The Party of European Socialists is a European political party led by Sergei Stanishev, former Prime Minister of Bulgaria. The PES comprises social-democratic national-level political parties primarily from Member state of the European Union, as well as other nations of the European continent. The...
; ensuring legal and constitutional propriety; preparing literature.
The General Secretary also acts as the Registered Treasurer under the Political Parties, Elections and Referendums Act 2000
Political Parties, Elections and Referendums Act 2000
The Political Parties, Elections and Referendums Act 2000 is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that sets out how political parties, elections and referendums are to be regulated in the United Kingdom...
, responsible for preparing accurate financial statements.
As the Labour Party is an unincorporated association without a separate legal personality, the General Secretary represents the party on behalf of the other members of the Labour Party in any legal matters or actions.
History
The post of Party Secretary was created in 1900 at the birth of the Labour Party. The first holder of that position was Ramsay MacDonaldRamsay MacDonald
James Ramsay MacDonald, PC, FRS was a British politician who was the first ever Labour Prime Minister, leading a minority government for two terms....
, later Prime Minister. In these early years, the post was a very important one, effectively leading the Party outside Parliament. MacDonald and his successor, Arthur Henderson
Arthur Henderson
Arthur Henderson was a British iron moulder and Labour politician. He was the 1934 Nobel Peace Prize Laureate and he served three short terms as the Leader of the Labour Party from 1908–1910, 1914–1917 and 1931-1932....
, were both Members of Parliament and for a period were both Chairmen of the Parliamentary Labour Party
Parliamentary Labour Party
In UK politics, the Parliamentary Labour Party is the parliamentary party of the Labour Party in Parliament: Labour MPs as a collective body....
whilst Party Secretary.
Upon Henderson's retirement in 1934, after the 1931 debacle which had seen MacDonald expelled from the Party, it was decided that the position should be separated from the parliamentary party, and power should not be concentrated in the hands of one person. Therefore Henderson's successor would not be allowed to become a Member of Parliament. This ruled out the strongest contender, Herbert Morrison
Herbert Morrison
Herbert Stanley Morrison, Baron Morrison of Lambeth, CH, PC was a British Labour politician; he held a various number of senior positions in the Cabinet, including Home Secretary, Foreign Secretary and Deputy Prime Minister.-Early life:Morrison was the son of a police constable and was born in...
, and others with parliamentary ambitions. Finally, Jimmy Middleton
James Middleton (political organiser)
James Middleton , known as Jim Middleton, was a journalist and political organiser best known for serving as the General Secretary of the Labour Party....
, assistant secretary since 1903, was chosen. He was a quiet-spoken man and the job lost much of its previous importance. However, the National Executive Committee
National Executive Committee
The National Executive Committee or NEC is the chief administrative body of the UK Labour Party. Its composition has changed over the years, and includes representatives of affiliated trade unions, the Parliamentary Labour Party and European Parliamentary Labour Party, Constituency Labour Parties,...
grew in influence.
During World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, Morgan Phillips
Morgan Phillips
Morgan Walter Phillips was a colliery worker and trade union activist who became the General Secretary of the British Labour Party, involved in two of the party's election victories....
became General Secretary and went on to oversee two general election victories. A Welshman, he had been a miner but was instrumental in widening Labour's appeal to the middle classes. He also built a professional Party, with key employees working on policy development and electoral organisation.
When Len Williams
Len Williams
Len Williams is a former Canadian Football League quarterback.After playing his college football at Northwestern University, Williams played 17 games with the Las Vegas Posse in 1994, completing 80 of 138 passes for 1222 yards, 10 touchdowns and 8 interceptions. He also rushed for 86 yards and 1...
, the General Secretary of the early Wilson
Harold Wilson
James Harold Wilson, Baron Wilson of Rievaulx, KG, OBE, FRS, FSS, PC was a British Labour Member of Parliament, Leader of the Labour Party. He was twice Prime Minister of the United Kingdom during the 1960s and 1970s, winning four general elections, including a minority government after the...
years, retired in 1968, he was expected to be replaced by someone younger who could transform the Party and lead it to a third successive victory. However, the Party chose Harry Nicholas
Harry Nicholas
Herbert Richard Nicholas was a trade unionist and political organiser.Born in Bristol, Nicholas worked for the Port of Bristol Authority until 1936, when he took a full-time post in the Transport and General Workers' Union . He moved to London to become National Officer in 1940, and in 1956 rose...
, a long-serving left-wing T&G union figure who would be unlikely to continue to renew and reinvigorate the Party. The Party lost the 1970 general election
United Kingdom general election, 1970
The United Kingdom general election of 1970 was held on 18 June 1970, and resulted in a surprise victory for the Conservative Party under leader Edward Heath, who defeated the Labour Party under Harold Wilson. The election also saw the Liberal Party and its new leader Jeremy Thorpe lose half their...
.
The 1970s and early-1980s saw developing confrontations between the left and the right in the Party. Jim Mortimer
Jim Mortimer (politician)
James "Jim" E. Mortimer is a British politician.Mortimer's early career was in the shipbuilding and engineering industries where he worked as a ship fitter apprentice, a machinist and a planning engineer...
and Larry Whitty worked hard to keep the Party together after the formation of the Social Democratic Party
Social Democratic Party (UK)
The Social Democratic Party was a political party in the United Kingdom that was created on 26 March 1981 and existed until 1988. It was founded by four senior Labour Party 'moderates', dubbed the 'Gang of Four': Roy Jenkins, David Owen, Bill Rodgers and Shirley Williams...
and the rise of Militant Tendency
Militant Tendency
The Militant tendency was an entrist group within the British Labour Party based around the Militant newspaper that was first published in 1964...
. Whitty oversaw the reforms of Neil Kinnock
Neil Kinnock
Neil Gordon Kinnock, Baron Kinnock is a Welsh politician belonging to the Labour Party. He served as a Member of Parliament from 1970 until 1995 and as Labour Leader and Leader of Her Majesty's Loyal Opposition from 1983 until 1992 - his leadership of the party during nearly nine years making him...
and stayed on until the election of Tony Blair
Tony Blair
Anthony Charles Lynton Blair is a former British Labour Party politician who served as the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 2 May 1997 to 27 June 2007. He was the Member of Parliament for Sedgefield from 1983 to 2007 and Leader of the Labour Party from 1994 to 2007...
as Leader. It would be Tom Sawyer
Tom Sawyer, Baron Sawyer
Lawrence "Tom" Sawyer, Baron Sawyer is a British trade unionist and Labour Party politician. He was General Secretary of the Labour Party from 1994 to 1998....
who would put in place Blair's controversial New Labour reforms, with the creation of the National Policy Forum
National Policy Forum
The National Policy Forum of the British Labour Party is part of the policy-making system of the Party, set up by Leader Tony Blair as part of the Partnership in Power process....
, the change to Clause IV
Clause IV
Clause IV historically refers to part of the 1918 text of the British Labour Party constitution which set out the aims and values of the party. Before its revision in 1995, its application was the subject of considerable dispute.-Text:...
and the perceived erosion of the power of grassroots members. He opened new offices in Millbank
Millbank
Millbank is an area of central London in the City of Westminster. Millbank is located by the River Thames, east of Pimlico and south of Westminster...
and created a highly-professional, media-savvy, youthful staff and Party that worked for Labour's landslide victory in the 1997 general election
United Kingdom general election, 1997
The United Kingdom general election, 1997 was held on 1 May 1997, more than five years after the previous election on 9 April 1992, to elect 659 members to the British House of Commons. The Labour Party ended its 18 years in opposition under the leadership of Tony Blair, and won the general...
.
Crucial to this period was the transformation of the party apparatus from an alternative centre of power to the parliamentary leadership (largely a product of the 1970s when the party conference repeatedly disowned government policy), to being more congruent with the leadership's ideas for progress.
In fact the roots of the transformation probably date back to the appointment of Peter Mandelson
Peter Mandelson
Peter Benjamin Mandelson, Baron Mandelson, PC is a British Labour Party politician, who was the Member of Parliament for Hartlepool from 1992 to 2004, served in a number of Cabinet positions under both Tony Blair and Gordon Brown, and was a European Commissioner...
as the party's communication director in 1985, but under Blair (and Sawyer) rapidly accelerated.
Margaret McDonagh
Margaret McDonagh, Baroness McDonagh
Margaret Josephine McDonagh, Baroness McDonagh is a British Labour Party politician and was General Secretary of the Labour Party from 1998 to 2001.-References:...
became Labour's first female General Secretary in 1998. She had been a rising star and formidable organiser in the run-up to 1997, seen as the key party official responsible for the record landslide victory, but her fearsome style did not endear her to Party members and the left. Her handling of the candidate selection for the 2000 London mayoral election
London mayoral election, 2000
The first election to the office of Mayor of London took place on 4 May 2000.-Results:¹Under the Supplementary Vote system, if no candidate receives 50% of 1st choice votes, 2nd choice votes are added to the result for the top two 1st choice candidates...
badly damaged her reputation. However her formidable organisational skills contributed to a second landslide in 2001
United Kingdom general election, 2001
The United Kingdom general election, 2001 was held on Thursday 7 June 2001 to elect 659 members to the British House of Commons. It was dubbed "the quiet landslide" by the media, as the Labour Party was re-elected with another landslide result and only suffered a net loss of 6 seats...
. McDonagh left after the 2001 general election victory and was succeeded by David Triesman. Triesman was seen as unsuited to the job, and the party moved in 2004 to appoint Matt Carter
Matt Carter
Matthew John Carter is Chief Executive Officer, Burson-Marsteller UK and Chairman, Penn Schoen Berland, Europe Middle East and Africa...
as the youngest-ever General Secretary. He resigned after less than two years following the less than convincing 2005 general election
United Kingdom general election, 2005
The United Kingdom general election of 2005 was held on Thursday, 5 May 2005 to elect 646 members to the British House of Commons. The Labour Party under Tony Blair won its third consecutive victory, but with a majority of 66, reduced from 160....
victory and was replaced in January 2006 by Peter Watt
Peter Watt
Peter Martin Watt was the General Secretary of the Labour Party in the United Kingdom from January 2006 until he resigned in November 2007 as a result of the Donorgate affair.-Early and family life:...
. Watt became embroiled in the funding scandals of 2007
Donorgate
The Labour party proxy and undeclared donations was a political scandal involving the British Labour Party in November and December 2007, when it was discovered that, contrary to legislation passed during the Blair Government, the Party had been receiving significant financial donations made...
and resigned soon after. In early 2008 David Pitt-Watson
David Pitt-Watson
David Pitt-Watson is a Scottish business and social entrepreneur and author. He is currently a Senior Advisor to Deloitte Consulting and Hermes Pension Management Limited...
, a key Gordon Brown
Gordon Brown
James Gordon Brown is a British Labour Party politician who was the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Labour Party from 2007 until 2010. He previously served as Chancellor of the Exchequer in the Labour Government from 1997 to 2007...
ally, was selected for the post under the banner of party finance reform, but never took up the post "due to contractual difficulties".
List of General Secretaries
- 1900-1912: Ramsay MacDonaldRamsay MacDonaldJames Ramsay MacDonald, PC, FRS was a British politician who was the first ever Labour Prime Minister, leading a minority government for two terms....
- 1912-1935: Arthur HendersonArthur HendersonArthur Henderson was a British iron moulder and Labour politician. He was the 1934 Nobel Peace Prize Laureate and he served three short terms as the Leader of the Labour Party from 1908–1910, 1914–1917 and 1931-1932....
- 1935-1944: James Middleton
- 1944-1962: Morgan PhillipsMorgan PhillipsMorgan Walter Phillips was a colliery worker and trade union activist who became the General Secretary of the British Labour Party, involved in two of the party's election victories....
- 1962-1968: Len WilliamsLen WilliamsLen Williams is a former Canadian Football League quarterback.After playing his college football at Northwestern University, Williams played 17 games with the Las Vegas Posse in 1994, completing 80 of 138 passes for 1222 yards, 10 touchdowns and 8 interceptions. He also rushed for 86 yards and 1...
- 1968-1972: Harry NicholasHarry NicholasHerbert Richard Nicholas was a trade unionist and political organiser.Born in Bristol, Nicholas worked for the Port of Bristol Authority until 1936, when he took a full-time post in the Transport and General Workers' Union . He moved to London to become National Officer in 1940, and in 1956 rose...
- 1972-1982: Ron HaywardRon HaywardRonald George Hayward CBE , known as Ron Hayward, was a leading activist in the British Labour Party.Born near Chipping Sodbury in Oxfordshire, Hayward served in the Royal Air Force during World War II. At the end of the war, he became the Labour Party's secretary and agent in Banbury...
- 1982-1985: Jim MortimerJim Mortimer (politician)James "Jim" E. Mortimer is a British politician.Mortimer's early career was in the shipbuilding and engineering industries where he worked as a ship fitter apprentice, a machinist and a planning engineer...
- 1985-1994: Larry Whitty
- 1994-1998: Tom SawyerTom Sawyer, Baron SawyerLawrence "Tom" Sawyer, Baron Sawyer is a British trade unionist and Labour Party politician. He was General Secretary of the Labour Party from 1994 to 1998....
- 1998-2001: Margaret McDonaghMargaret McDonagh, Baroness McDonaghMargaret Josephine McDonagh, Baroness McDonagh is a British Labour Party politician and was General Secretary of the Labour Party from 1998 to 2001.-References:...
- 2001-2003: David TriesmanDavid Triesman, Baron TriesmanDavid Maxim Triesman, Baron Triesman is a former Chairman of the Football Association, a British politician, a Labour member of the House of Lords and previously a minister at the Department for Innovation, Universities and Skills....
- 2003-2005: Matt CarterMatt CarterMatthew John Carter is Chief Executive Officer, Burson-Marsteller UK and Chairman, Penn Schoen Berland, Europe Middle East and Africa...
- 2005-2008: Peter WattPeter WattPeter Martin Watt was the General Secretary of the Labour Party in the United Kingdom from January 2006 until he resigned in November 2007 as a result of the Donorgate affair.-Early and family life:...
- 2008-2011: Ray Collins
- 2011-present: Iain McNicolIain McNicolIain McNicol is the General Secretary-select of the Labour Party of Great Britain, assuming his duties in September 2011. He currently serves as National Political Officer of the GMB Union...