George Morgan Thomson

Lord Thomson of (George) was born in Stirling but moved when quite young to Monifieth near and attended Grove Academy. He proved to be an excellent scholar but left school at 16 to become a local reporter with D C Thomson in Dundee. This well-established firm published a range of newspapers in but were also famous as the originators of the comics The Dandy and The Beano which then had circulations of over 400,000. George became the deputy editor of the Dandy and then editor for a brief period when he was only 18. In 1940 he enlisted in the Royal Air Force and served as ground crew for Fighter Command (defective eyesight precluded a role in the flight crew). On returning in 1946 to DC Thomson, he came into conflict with the management over his right to join a trade union and he left them to become deputy editor in Glasgow of Forward, an independent weekly socialist newspaper founded by the future Secretary of State for Scotland, Tom Johnston, and edited by him until 1940. When George joined the newspaper, the editor was Emrys Hughes, the Labour MP for South Ayrshire, who was a pacifist and very much on the left wing of the Labour party. Since George was more ‘middle of the road’ in terms of his politics, this partnership must have been strained. George became the editor in 1948 when Hughes resigned because of ill health. At this time he was known as Morgan Thomson (to distinguish him from two other journalists also called George Thomson), and in the same year he married Grace Jenkins who remained his spouse and political ally for the next 60 years. Both George and Grace had become heavily involved in proselytising activities with groups such as ‘Young Forward’, and the Iona Community where the Rev George McLeod was the leading light. 1950 saw his first entry into formal politics when he was adopted as the Labour candidate for Glasgow Hillhead in a by- election. This was a Conservative seat and although he polled a respectable vote, the Tory candidate (Commander TGD Galbraith) was duly elected. This experience of the hustings stood him in good stead when he was selected to stand in his home city of Dundee in a by-election, caused by the death in a car accident of Tom Cook the sitting MP. Thus in 1952 he entered Parliament as the Member for Dundee East and remained so for the next 20 years.

He made his mark early as an impressive parliamentarian and was encouraged by his fellow MP for Dundee West, the Old Etonian John Strachey, who had served in the Attlee government of 1945-50. He also ensured that his family (now with two daughters Caroline and Ailsa) were not neglected, and rented a house in Harlow New Town and moved later to Herne Hill in south . George soon demonstrated his radical side by supporting Sidney Silverman’s Bill on the abolition of capital punishment and, in 1956, by vigorously opposing the Suez adventure of Anthony Eden. On the other hand, he allied himself to those Labour MPs who campaigned for the centre-right such as Dennis Healey and James Callaghan. One of his first commitments in Westminster was to education, and he became the Parliamentary representative for the Education Institute of Scotland, and one of the leading members and later Chairman of the Council for Education in the Commonwealth. His skills as a debater were soon recognised by the Labour leader Hugh Gaitskell, and in 1959 he was made the opposition spokesman for the Colonies and the Commonwealth. In 1960, at the time of the CND marches, he derided the whole concept of nuclear disarmament and in so doing incurred the wrath of some of the activists in Dundee East Labour Party. This antagonism of a minority remained a constant sore until he resigned as an MP in 1972.

On the return of a Labour government in 1964, George joined the Foreign Office as a Minister of State and in 1966 became the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster with responsibility for relations with Europe and the Common Market - thus beginning his long association with European affairs and the battles that ensued on the desirability of the UK joining. In August 1967, he entered the cabinet as Commonwealth Secretary and was soon embroiled in trying to deal with the declaration of UDI (Unilateral Declaration of Independence) made by Ian Smith and the white minority in Northern Rhodesia (now Zimbabwe). In spite of his efforts to find a compromise with Smith at a famous rendezvous on HMS Fearless in Gibraltar, he eventually had to admit that the only way to deal with the situation was to impose sanctions on the colony. Other major problems that had to be tackled included the civil war in Nigeria (with a breakaway Biafra) and the withdrawal of British troops from Aden. When the Commonwealth Office was integrated into the Foreign Office in 1968, George became a Minister without Portfolio and was asked by Harold Wilson to be responsible for the implementation of the Radcliffe-Maud Report on local government.

In 1970, when the Wilson government lost office, he became the shadow Defence Secretary. The government of Edward Heath had now decided to push forward negotiations to join the EEC (European Economic Community), based to a significant extent on the soundings made earlier by George. This provoked considerable schisms within the Parliamentary Labour party. As a result, Harold Wilson decided that the next Labour Government would hold a referendum on whether to join the Community and, in disagreement, George resigned from the Shadow Cabinet (along with Roy Jenkins) and became the Chairman of the Labour Committee for Europe. Along with 68 other Labour MPs, he also voted in the Commons in favour of Edward Heath’s proposal to join the EEC. It was not surprising therefore that he was asked by Edward Heath to become, along with Christopher Soames, the first Labour European Commissioner. Thus in January 1973 George began a new phase in his life - he resigned as an MP and moved into the very different world of European politics at Brussels and Strasbourg. He soon gained a reputation as a strong team player and as such was immensely respected by his colleagues. This no doubt helped him in his task of creating an effective regional policy, and it is widely accepted that this would not have happened without his determination and skill in winning over French, German and Dutch opposition. As a result, some of the poorer regions in the community, such as in Sicily and the Scottish Highlands, were able to obtain special EEC funding.

During his time at Brussels, the Labour government under Harold Wilson was still deeply split on the European issue and, in 1975, a referendum on staying within the EEC was held and Wilson allowed his ministers to campaign on either side. George played a prominent part in campaigning for the pro–European lobby, and in the event there was a two to one majority for staying in Europe.

In 1977, at the end of his four year term at Brussels, he was created a life peer (Lord Thomson of Monifieth) and was asked to chair the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA). In the same year George, having received an honorary degree in 1973, became the Chancellor of Heriot Watt University - a post he held for the next 14 years. As a boy who had never gone to university this gave him special pleasure, as did the receipt of honorary degrees from Dundee, Abertay and Aston universities in later years. Another essentially Scottish honour which he cherished was being made a Knight of the Thistle in 1981.

His tenure at the ASA had been considered a successful one, and he was asked in 1980 by the Conservative Home Secretary William Whitelaw to take on the much more difficult task of chairing the Independent Broadcasting Authority (IBA). Two new TV channels, Channel 4 and TV-AM, were being launched and George was soon involved in controversy with the government over reporting of the Falklands war and the filming of the death of IRA suspects in Gibraltar. He also came into conflict with Mrs Mary Whitehouse and her Viewers and Listeners Panel on a number of occasions. The IBA during his tenure had a reputation for being critical when necessary, but was very protective of the freedom of the media.

George left the IBA in 1988 and officially joined the Liberal Democrats - until that time he thought it appropriate to remain aloof from party politics and he sat on the cross benches in the House of Lords. His decision to leave the Labour Party was not taken lightly considering his 40 or more years membership. He was probably influenced by the constant turmoil in the Labour Party - at that time Neil Kinnock had been battling with the Militant faction, and also by the fact that both his daughters had wed prominent Liberal and Social Democrats. In the Lords he became the party spokesman on Foreign Affairs and Broadcasting.

His wide expertise in both politics and administration was recognised by the private sector and he joined various Boards including the Boards of ICI, The Royal Bank of Scotland and the Woolwich Equitable Insurance Company. Other posts which gave him particular satisfaction were being a trustee of Leeds Castle (a plebeian Scot being laird of a castle!), and a trustee of the charity The Pilgrim Trust. In spite of this impressive rise through the establishment, George was not snobbish in any way and never lost his ability to relate to individuals. He was always courteous and friendly - a trait which stood him in good stead when negotiating either complex political problems or dealing with awkward constituents.

George never lost his characteristic Dundee accent and its sonorous cadences will be sadly missed by his many friends and colleagues. He is survived by his wife Grace and his daughters Caroline and Ailsa. Willie Russell

George Morgan Thomson, Baron Thomson of Monifieth KT, PC, HonDLitt(Heriot-Watt), HonLLD(Dundee), HonDSc(Aston), Hon Fellow(Abertay), FEIS, FRTS . Born 16th January 1921; Elected FRSE 1 March 1982; Died 3rd October 2008.