Roy Mason

Roy Mason, Baron Mason of Barnsley, PC, DL (18 April 1924 – 19 April 2015) was a British Labour politician and former Cabinet minister who was Secretary of State for Defence and Secretary of State for Northern Ireland in the late 1970s.

Early life

He was born in Royston on 18 April 1924,^[1] and grew up in Carlton, Barnsley, in South Yorkshire. Mason first went down the mines at the age of fourteen and he became a branch official of the National Union of Mineworkers in his early twenties. Aged 26 he studied at the London School of Economics as a mature student on a Trades Union Congress scholarship. ^[2] He remained in the coal industry until he was elected as Member of Parliament (MP) for the Barnsley constituency at a by-election in 1953.^[3]

Posts

Mason was Labour Party spokesman on Home Affairs, Defence and Post Office, 1960-1964. Minister of State at the Board of Trade, 1964-1967. Minister of Defence (Equipment), 1967-1968. Minister of Power, 1968-1969. President of the Board of Trade, 1969-1970. Secretary of State for Defence, 1974-1976. Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, 1976–1979

Northern Ireland

A high-profile politician, Mason's appointment to Northern Ireland was unexpected and seemed to indicate a tougher response from the British Government than that pursued by his predecessor, Merlyn Rees. In late 1976, he told the Labour party conference that "Ulster had had enough of initiatives, White Papers and legislation for the time being, and now needed to be governed firmly and fairly". He rejected both military and political solutions in favour of "justice for all; with equality before the law; and, crucially, with republican terrorism treated as a security problem, and nothing else".^[4]

While Secretary of State for Defence Mason had been responsible for the introduction of SAS units into the 'bandit country' of South Armagh. At Stormont Mason was responsible for the tougher role taken by the security forces and authorised an increase in British Army covert tactics with the SAS allowed to operate throughout Northern Ireland. Mason's time in Northern Ireland was characterised by a reduction in violence; "in 1976 there were 297 deaths in Northern Ireland; in the next three years the figures were 111, 80, 120.^[5] In 1977 he stood up to militant loyalists attempt to repeat their successful Ulster Workers Council strike tactic of 1974. In the same year he twice attempted to get some movement towards a political settlement from the local political parties but both attempts failed.

Mason's policies in Northern Ireland earned the ire of Irish nationalist MPs.^[6] This played a part in the March 1979 vote of no confidence, which the Labour government lost by one vote, precipitating the 1979 general election.^[6] Nationalist MP Gerry Fitt abstained in the vote of no confidence, stating that he could not support a government with Mason as its Northern Ireland secretary.^[6]

After Labour's election defeat in 1979 Mason came under increasing pressure from leftwingers in his constituency party under the influence of Arthur Scargill but did not countenance joining the Social Democratic Party. Mason received full police protection, over 30 years after leaving office. In 1982 the then Energy Secretary Nigel Lawson suggested to Margaret Thatcher that she should make Mason the next Coal Board chairman, but she refused, saying that Mason was "Not one of us". Instead, Ian MacGregor was appointed.^[7]

Later life

After his retirement from the House of Commons at the 1987 general election, he was created a life peer on 20 October 1987 taking the title Baron Mason of Barnsley, of Barnsley in South Yorkshire.^[8] Mason lived in the same semi-detached house with his wife Marjorie from their marriage until he was aged 84.

He died from a long illness aged 91 on 19 April 2015.^[9][10] He was survived by his widow and two daughters.^[3]

References

External links

• Hansard 1803–2005: contributions in Parliament by Roy Mason

Secretaries of State for Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland Office
Whitelaw Pym Rees Mason Atkins Prior Hurd King Brooke Mayhew Mowlam Mandelson Reid Murphy Hain* Woodward Paterson Villiers Brokenshire
*Also Secretary of State for Wales; Secretary of State for Wales and Northern Ireland Opposition Shadow Secretary of State for Northern Ireland

Defence Secretaries of the United Kingdom
Ministers for Defence	Winston Churchill Clement Attlee A. V. Alexander Manny Shinwell Winston Churchill The Earl Alexander of Tunis Harold Macmillan Selwyn Lloyd Sir Walter Monckton Anthony Head Duncan Sandys Harold Watkinson Peter Thorneycroft
Secretaries of State for Defence	Peter Thorneycroft Denis Healey The Lord Carrington Ian Gilmour Roy Mason Fred Mulley Francis Pym John Nott Michael Heseltine George Younger Tom King Malcolm Rifkind Michael Portillo George Robertson Geoff Hoon John Reid Des Browne John Hutton Bob Ainsworth Liam Fox Philip Hammond Michael Fallon

Presidents of the Board of Trade
Shaftesbury Bridgewater Stamford Weymouth Stamford Winchilsea Guilford Berkeley Suffolk Holderness Fitzwalter Monson Halifax Sandys Townshend Shelburne Hillsborough Dartmouth Hillsborough Nugent Hillsborough Dartmouth Sackville Carlisle Grantham Sydney Liverpool Montrose Auckland Bathurst Clancarty Robinson Huskisson Grant Vesey-Fitzgerald Herries Auckland Thomson Baring Thomson Labouchere Ripon Gladstone Dalhousie Clarendon Labouchere Henley Cardwell Stanley Henley Dnoughmore Gibson Northcote Richmond Bright Parkinson-Fortescue Adderley Sandon Chamberlain Richmond Stanhope Mundella Stanley Hicks Beach Mundella Bryce Ritchie Balfour Salisbury Lloyd George Churchill Buxton Burns Runciman Stanley Geddes Horne Baldwin Cunliffe-Lister Graham Cunliffe-Lister Runciman Stanley Duncan Lyttelton Duncan Llewellin Dalton Lyttelton Cripps Wilson Shawcross Thorneycroft Eccles Maulding Erroll Heath Jay Crosland Mason Noble Davies Walker Benn Varley Joseph Jenkin Shore Dell Smith Nott Biffen Cockfield Parkinson Tebbit Brittan Channon Young Ridley Lilley Heseltine Lang Beckett Mandelson Byers Hewitt Johnson Darling Hutton Mandelson Cable Javid Clark Fox

Callaghan Cabinet
Joel Barnett Tony Benn Albert Booth James Callaghan Anthony Crosland Edmund Dell Lord Elwyn-Jones David Ennals Michael Foot Roy Hattersley Denis Healey Roy Jenkins Harold Lever Roy Mason Bruce Millan John Morris Fred Mulley Stanley Orme David Owen Lord Peart Reg Prentice Merlyn Rees Bill Rodgers Lord Shepherd Peter Shore John Silkin John Smith Eric Varley Shirley Williams

Second Wilson Cabinet
Tony Benn James Callaghan Barbara Castle Anthony Crosland Lord Elwyn-Jones Michael Foot Denis Healey Roy Jenkins Harold Lever Roy Mason Bob Mellish John Morris Fred Mulley Stanley Orme Lord Peart Reg Prentice Merlyn Rees Bill Rodgers Willie Ross Lord Shepherd Peter Shore Edward Short John Silkin Eric Varley Shirley Williams Harold Wilson