Expelled, Excluded and Restored

[gwynthegriff]

Oct 25, 2021 12:34:55 GMT finsobruce said:

And back to Aberdeen. Not to be outdone by the ILP the SDF expelled a councillor in 1897. Councillor Cooper was listed as having committed two serious 'crimes'

1. He supported on J L Clark at the recent School Board election contrary to branch policy.

2. He attended civic functions. Now you might think this was a duty for a local councillor but no, these functions "representing as they do the high water mark of modern gluttony" and "his disgraceful behaviour at same...retards the progress of the Socialist movement in Aberdeen".

In 26 years I attended two Mayor's Balls* and no Civic Services.

* One the year I was elected (when I thought it an obligation); the second because a colleague wanted some Liberal company on her table. (Ironically the tables had been cocked up and we got split up. Mrs TheG and I ended up on the Tory Ladies table which was an entertaining evening. Their alcohol capacity would put Arthur Figgis to shame.

[finsobruce]

In an unusual move the 1899 Labour Day celebrations in Blackburn did not result in the expulsion of anyone from the SDF or ILP merely them calling for the resignation of a Tory Cllr Nuttall as he had spent the previous three months in Monte Carlo . Hopefully not with the money of Blackburn corporation. For his part Cllr Nuttall hoped to become the next mayor.

[finsobruce]

In 1994 87 year old Tory councillor Col Frank Saunders who had been a member of the authority for thirty years was deselected by his local party for the Viewforth ward of Stirling council. He decided not to do a chicken run and stood as an Independent.

In the same year Sandra Moorhouse was 'dropped' as Tory candidate for the St Mary's ward of North Tyneside council having served since 1980 as she had been spending too much time in Madrid. She explained that she was absent due to her husband's job being located there. He was a marketing manager for Northumbrian Water (In Madrid??)

[finsobruce]

In February 1939 the Tiverton Gazette reported that a court case against town councillor Fred Gould for stealing a piece of cheese was not being proceeded with. It formed part of a case against the owner of the Bee Hive Stores Mr Frank Williams concerning a breach of the shop hours act. It was alleged that the shops inspector Mr Webber had found Mr Gould in possesion of a box containing 2lb of cheese three hours after the regulation closing time . Gould and Mr Williams jnr then ran into the local Constitutional club with the cheese.

[neilm]

Oct 26, 2021 12:31:57 GMT finsobruce said:

In February 1939 the Tiverton Gazette reported that a court case against town councillor Fred Gould for stealing a piece of cheese was not being proceeded with. It formed part of a case against the owner of the Bee Hive Stores Mr Frank Williams concerning a breach of the shop hours act. It was alleged that the shops inspector Mr Webber had found Mr Gould in possesion of a box containing 2lb of cheese three hours after the regulation closing time . Gould and Mr Williams jnr then ran into the local Constitutional club with the cheese.

One wonders what the shops inspector expected to find.

[john07]

I must admit that during my three year spell on Coventry City Council from 1980 to 1983, I was expelled from the Labour Group twice (or was it three times?) and avoided explusion on the third (forth?) time after Councillor Nick Nolan failed to follow the group leadership.

On all occasions I was reinstated to the Group after appeal to the Labour Party NEC.

The expulsions were coming from the time when Labour gained a considerable number of seats, many of whom were new councillors, in the all-out election of 1980. The old guard did not like their hegemony being challenged and the 'newcomers' were treated with suspicion.

The inevitable conflict followed a classic Hegelian path with the conficts eventually producing a resolution. The Thesis-Antithesis face off would eventually lead to a Synthesis. The ruling memebers of the Labour group eventually realised that an accommodation needed to be reached.

A fairly quient spell, towards the end of my second year on the council, was followed by a surprise invitation to a meeting from the Group leader and the Chief Whip in which I was offered Deputy Chair of the Transportation and Highways Committee. I accepted and served a year in the post before I declined to defend my seat in Cheylesmore in 1983.

[finsobruce]

In 1958 Mr G Dalgarno was nominated as Labour candidate for the Buddle ward, Wallsend council. It was a last minute change as the previous nominee William Gladstone was a member of the local Fire Brigade and thus ineligible.

[mrhell]

T Dan Smith expelled from the Revolutionary Communist Party and the Independent Labour Party. However, not from the Labour Party although later he was banned from rejoining after letting his membership go while in prison.