Alex Eadie
Alexander Eadie | |
|---|---|
Member of Parliament for Midlothian | |
| In office 31 March 1966 – 16 March 1992 | |
| Preceded by | James Hill |
| Succeeded by | Eric Clarke |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Alexander Eadie 23 June 1920 Scottish Labour Party |
| Spouses | Jemima Ritchie
(m. 1941; died 1981)Janice Murdoch (m. 1983) |
| Relations | Helen Eadie (Daughter in Law) |
| Children | Bob Eadie |
| Occupation | Coal Miner, Union Executive |
Alexander Eadie (23 June 1920 – 26 January 2012),
Early life
Born in Buckhaven, Fife, he was the son of a coal miner, who was later killed in a pit accident. Educated at Buckhaven Senior Secondary School,[2] he left school aged 14 to work part-time at Lochhead Colliery, while he trained as a mining engineer.[1]
Eadie stood for the Scottish presidency of the National Union of Mineworkers in 1961 against Alex Moffat, brother of the outgoing president Abe Moffat. Media commentators gave him little chance as a Fabian Society member in a union executive dominated by communists, but he came within 3,000 votes of victory.[3] He was subsequently in 1965 elected to the Scottish NUM executive, representative for the county of Clackmannanshire.[4]
Political career
Eadie joined the
He was a councillor on
Parliamentary career
Eadie contested
In 1966 a vacancy arose in the mining constituency of Midlothian. Elected Member of Parliament in the 1966 general election with a majority of over 14,416, he warned in his maiden speech at the Palace of Westminster against closing the pits.[1] His seat remained safe until his retirement in 1992,[2] the only scare coming in 1974 when the Scottish National Party reduced his majority to just over 4,000.[1]
After co-sponsoring
Wilson appointed Eadie opposition spokesman on energy in 1973, and served as
Eadie held the energy brief again in opposition under new Labour leader
In the early 1970s, Eadie put forward a Private Members Bill that would have established the principle that no child in Scotland should be treated as incapable of being educated. After he became a junior minister in February 1974, he handed over the brief to
Personal life
Eadie was married twice, firstly in 1941 to Jemima Ritchie; she died in 1981. In 1983 he married his second wife Janice Murdoch. His son from his first marriage is Bob Eadie, a Labour councillor in Fife.[1] His daughter-in-law Helen Eadie was Labour Member of the Scottish Parliament for Cowdenbeath.[1]
After a period of illness, Eadie died at his home in East Wemyss, Fife, on 26 January 2012.[1][2][3][4]
References
- The Times Guide to the House of Commons, Times Newspapers Ltd, 1966 & 1987
- Leigh Rayment's Peerage Pages [better source needed]
Notes
- ^ a b c d e f g h IAN SWANSON (27 January 2012). "Alex Eadie served 'diligently' says former PM Brown – Edinburgh Evening News". Scotsman.com. Retrieved 5 February 2012.
- ^ a b c d "BBC News – Former Midlothian MP Alex Eadie dies aged 91". BBC News. 26 January 2012. Retrieved 4 February 2012.
- ^ a b c d e f g h "Alex Eadie". The Telegraph. 26 January 2012. Retrieved 4 February 2012.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i Brian Wilson (1 February 2012). "Obituary – Alex Eadie". The Guardian. Retrieved 4 February 2012.
External links
- Hansard 1803–2005: contributions in Parliament by Alex Eadie
