Frank Tomney (24 May 1908 – 19 September 1984) was aBritishLabour Party politician.[1][2]
Born inBolton,Lancashire, Tomney found himself jobless during theGreat Depression and walked to London in search of employment.[2] After arriving in London he moved into theRowton House inHammersmith, a hostel forworking men. This was to be the beginning of a long association with that area of west London.
Tomney obtained work as a night-watchman in a glass blowing factory, and became an activetrade unionist.[2] From 1940 he was branch secretary of theGeneral and Municipal Workers Union.[2][1]
With an approachinggeneral election in 1950, the Labour Party found itself without a candidate atHammersmith North. The sittingMember of Parliament,D. N. Pritt, had been expelled from the party and had won the seat in 1945 as a member of the left-wingLabour Independent Group. Tomney volunteered to stand, and was comfortably elected with a majority of nearly 3,000 votes over Pritt.[2] He was re-elected at each election until he stood down in1979, and was seen as being on the right wing of the Labour Party, a fact that was often to lead to conflict within the constituency party in Hammersmith North.[2]
In 1976 Tomney wasdeselected by his constituency party.[3] This was partly a result of his having right-wing views on homosexuality, race and capital punishment which one party official described as being closer to the policies of theNational Front.[4]
Tomney took an interest in European and international affairs, and was a delegate to theCouncil of Europe and theWestern European Union on a number of occasions between 1963 and 1979.[1] In 1968 he was leader of the United Kingdom delegation to theUnited Nations, and from 1976 to 1977 was aMember of the European Parliament.[1][2] He was opposed to sanctions againstRhodesia.
He lived inRickmansworth,Hertfordshire, and was a member ofWatford Town Council from 1946 to 1950 and ofHertfordshire County Council from 1950 to 1954.[1]
Tomney retired from the House of Commons in 1979. He died aged 76 inHillingdon Hospital.[2]
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| Preceded by | Member of Parliament forHammersmith North 1950–1979 | Succeeded by |