Stoker Edwards | |
|---|---|
| Member of Parliament | |
| In office 8 August 1942 – 15 October 1964 | |
| Preceded by | J. H. Hall |
| Succeeded by | Peter Shore |
| Constituency |
|
| Civil Lord of the Admiralty | |
| In office 1945–1951 | |
| Prime Minister | Clement Attlee |
| Succeeded by | Simon Wingfield Digby |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Walter James Edwards 1900 (1900) Whitechapel, London, England |
| Died | (1964-10-15)15 October 1964 |
| Political party | Labour |
| Military service | |
| Branch/service | Royal Navy |
| Rank | Leading stoker |
| Battles/wars | Second World War |
Walter James Edwards (1900 – 15 October 1964), known asStoker Edwards orWally Edwards, was a BritishLabour Party politician.
Edwards was born inWhitechapel, in theEast End of London. He briefly worked as acarman from 1917 and in 1918 enlisted in theRoyal Navy as astoker and served until 1923. He then became adocker. He joined the Labour Party and theTransport and General Workers' Union and in 1937 was appointed a full-time officer with the union's Docks Group. From 1935 to 1939 he was chairman of the Whitechapel Labour Party.
In theSecond World War he was recalled as a Naval reservist and rose to the rate ofLeading Stoker. In 1942 he was elected asMember of Parliament (MP) forWhitechapel and St Georges, the first serving Royal Navy rating to be elected to Parliament. Following boundary changes in 1950, he was elected for the newStepney constituency and served until his retirement in 1964. He served asCivil Lord of the Admiralty from 1945 to 1951. A devoutRoman Catholic, he was known as a campaigner againstprostitution, which was a big problem in his constituency. He died on the day of the1964 general election.
Edwards was elected toStepney Borough Council in 1934 and served on it until 1959. In 1944–1945, when he was already an MP, he served asmayor. Edwards' only son, Teddy, was killed on active service in 1944. He also had a daughter, Catherine.
| Parliament of the United Kingdom | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Member of Parliament forWhitechapel and St Georges 1942–1950 | Constituency abolished |
| New constituency | Member of Parliament forStepney 1950–1964 | Succeeded by |
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