Russell Johnston a Passionate and Articulate Exponent Of

ar Passionateusse anDll artiC uLJateo exHPonentnston oF LiberaLisM Lord Russell- Johnston, 1932–2008, was a passionate and articulate exponent of Liberalism who helped keep that cause alive in Scotland throughout the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s and who throughout his political career expounded liberal values in the cause of home rule for Scotland, international human rights, and the creation of a federal Europe. Ross Finnie examines the contribution to Scottish, British and European Liberalism of Russell Johnston. 28 Journal of Liberal History 71 Summer 2011 ar Passionateusse anDll artiC uLJateo exHPonentnston oF LiberaLisM avid Russell John- and was sufficiently motivated to Johnston, on the other hand, ston, known affec- revive the University Liberal Club, secured a swing of 6.9 per cent to tionately as ‘Russell’ becoming its President. Given his defeat the sitting Tory MP Neil to friend and foe commitment to liberalism, his Mclean by 2,136 votes and become alike, was the son skills as a debater and public orator, the Member of Parliament for Dof David Knox Johnston, a cus- and his combination of an engag- Inverness. Johnston had not only toms officer serving on Skye, and ing personality and pawky sense of built on Bannerman’s work in terms Margaret Russell who gave birth humour, it was no surprise when of party membership and organi- in an Edinburgh hospital. He was he was adopted as the Liberal can- sation but also on the need for a brought up on Skye and educated at didate for Inverness in 1961. John- coherent campaign in the Scottish Carbost Public School and Portree ston’s potential had been spotted Highlands. This centred on the idea High School. After graduating MA by Jo Grimond, then the leader of of a Highland Development Board, (Hons) in history from the Univer- the party, who, in turn, informed which Johnston developed further sity of Edinburgh he did National the party’s winnable seats commit- in the pamphlet Highland Devel- Service, being commissioned into tee, chaired by Jeremy Thorpe MP. opment.3 The strategy elected not the Intelligence Corps and rising to The committee enabled Johnston to Johnston only Johnston in Inverness, but also become second-in-command of the concentrate on winning the elec- George Mackie in Caithness and British Intelligence Unit in Berlin. tion when in 1963 it organised the served at Sutherland and Alasdair Macken- After National Service he returned funding for a research post with the zie in Ross and Cromarty, making to Edinburgh to take a teaching Scottish Liberal Party enabling him westminster Grimond no longer the sole Scottish degree at Moray House College to quit his teaching job.1 Liberal MP. of Education and became a his- Johnston’s predecessor in Inver- continuously Johnston served at Westminster tory teacher at Liberton secondary ness had been John Bannerman, continuously for thirty-three years, school near Edinburgh in 1961. the man he regarded as his political for thirty- successfully defending his seat in Johnston had a facility for lan- mentor. Bannerman had built up the eight consecutive elections. He guages being bilingual in English Inverness seat since 1950. In 1961, three years, served nineteen years for Inverness and Gaelic; he was later to become however, as chairman of the Scottish successfully and, after boundary changes which fluent in French and Italian. At party and one of its most charismatic saw the seat lose Johnston’s native both school and university, he dis- figures, Bannerman decided to fight defending Skye, fourteen years for Inver- played a talent for debating and was the Paisley by-election2 and took ness, Nairn and Lochaber (1964–87 a member of the teams that won the 41.4 per cent of the vote to come just his seat in as a Liberal; 1987–92 as a Liberal Scotsman debating prize in 1956 1,654 votes behind Labour. Hav- Democrat). Throughout, Johnston and 1957 and the Observer Mace in ing come so close, Bannerman then eight con- attended diligently to constituents’ 1961. Johnston joined the Liberal decided to fight Paisley again in the concerns and campaigned vigor- Party whilst at university, because 1964 general election, but a 7.5 per secutive ously against what he saw as the he agreed with the writings of the cent swing back to Labour kept him social and economic neglect of the Yorkshire Liberal Elliot Dodds, in second place. elections. Highlands. Increasingly, however, Journal of Liberal History 71 Summer 2011 29 russell JoHnston he paid less and less attention to as parliamentary representative for him, justice for the group, of the state of his local party and its the Royal National Institute for the which he is a part, will follow capacity to fight elections and, as Blind from 1977 to 1997. logically. While the converse is his attention turned more towards Johnston served on the execu- untrue. In this it is fundamen- Europe, he became vulnerable to tive of the Scottish Liberal Party and tally set apart from philosophies the charge made by his opponents: then the Scottish Liberal Democrats like Communism, Socialism and ‘Russell’s in Brussels’. The combi- for thirty-three years from 1961 Nationalism, which start from nation of these factors meant that, to1994. He became vice-chairman this converse, seek to better the with the exception of the election in 1965 and chairman in 1970. He group and believe that this will in 1983, when the Liberals and the was elected to the new position of lead, in time, to the improve- Social Democrat Party (‘SDP’) con- leader of the Scottish party in 1974 ment of the individual’s lot.5 tested the election as the Alliance, and was president from 1988 to 1994. It [Liberalism] is a philoso- Johnston’s share of the vote never He also sought and held office at a phy of distributivism, of decen- got above 40 per cent and in his last UK level. In 1976, on the resignation tralisation and devolution. In contest, in 1992, it dropped to only of Thorpe, who had been leader of Government, the Liberal looks 26 per cent, the lowest percentage the UK party since 1967, Johnston for solutions which, at one and share by a winning candidate in the sought the UK leadership, but only the same time, will facilitate co- election, leaving him with a major- John Pardoe, who was also stand- operation over the widest field ity of only 458 after three recounts. ing, was prepared to nominate him. – hence his enthusiasm for the The year after Johnston was Johnston then backed Pardoe against European Community and the first elected, he was joined at West- Steel who was elected. Following the United Nations – and at the same minster by David Steel, following merger with the SDP, Johnston was time involve individuals to the the latter’s by-election victory in elected unopposed as deputy leader fullest extent in regulating their Roxburgh, Selkirk and Peebles. of the Social and Liberal Democrats own communities by creating After Grimond stepped down as in each of the years 1988 to 1992. federal institutions which rec- leader in 1967, Johnston and Steel Having been attracted to the ognise national aspirations, by went on to dominate the party in Liberal Party by the writings of strengthening local government Scotland for the next three decades. Elliot Dodds, and being an accom- and decentralising the maximum Although they did not always agree, plished orator and lucid writer, degree of power possible to the and Steel went on to become leader Johnston spent much of his time smallest unit possible.6 of the party, both, in their different articulating the principles of Lib- ways, played a major part in devel- eralism in which he so passionately From before he was adopted as a oping the party in the UK from believed. In 1972 he wrote and parliamentary candidate through to being a disparate body of just ten published a pamphlet, To Be a Lib- the early 1980s, Johnston undertook MPs in 1965, to presenting a more eral,4 which stands comparison with because a wide range of speaking engage- coherent political force, as the Lib- many excellent treatises on Liber- ments throughout the UK at which eral Democrats, with twenty-six alism published before and after. Liberalism he demonstrated his oratorical skills MPs, by the time they both retired For some time, the Scottish party and, invariably, moved his audi- from Parliament in 1997. sent a copy to anyone exhibiting is about the ence to understand why liberalism Whilst being part of a small par- an interest in liberalism, and many mattered. He also addressed public liamentary team almost guaranteed prominent members of the Scottish individual, meetings during general elections a portfolio, nevertheless Johnston’s party in the 1990s, such as Jim Wal- and by-elections, which was much talents were always recognised and lace (MP for Orkney and Shetland it makes the appreciated, by candidates, party he was a front-bench spokesper- 1983–2001, MSP for Orkney 1999– workers and the public. Johnston’s son throughout his parliamentary 2007, leader of the Scottish party assumption annual conference speeches were career. His first portfolio was edu- 1993–2005) attest to having joined inspirational (and, incidentally, cation (1964–66), and he then moved the party after reading Johnston’s that if we almost always contained a refer- on to Northern Ireland (1966–70), pamphlet. ence to his mentor Bannerman). foreign affairs (1970–75, 1979–85), The pamphlet sets out a broad concentrate Based on his elegantly crafted script Scottish affairs (1970–73, 1975–83, canvas of liberal thinking and its and delivered in classical oratori- 1985–88), defence (1983–88), and, for application and relevance to cur- on him, jus- cal style, they took on a legendary the Liberal Democrats, foreign and rent affairs.

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