Edward Loyden (3 May 1923 – 27 April 2003), known as Eddie Loyden, was a British Labour politician. Loyden was Member of Parliament (MP) for Liverpool Garston from February 1974 until he lost the seat to the

Conservatives Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy and ideology that seeks to promote and preserve traditional institutions, customs, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilizati ...

in May 1979. However, favourable boundary changes allowed him to be re-elected in

1983 1983 saw both the official beginning of the Internet and the first mobile cellular telephone call. Events January * January 1 – The migration of the ARPANET to TCP/IP is officially completed (this is considered to be the beginning of the ...

, and he remained MP for Liverpool Garston until he retired in 1997.

Early years

He was born in 1923 into a large, working-class family living in Portland Street off Vauxhall Road, Liverpool. His father Patrick was a van driver for Tate and Lyle. On leaving school, Eddie worked for a cobblers in the Scotland Road area, but from a young age he wanted to be a seafarer and he would often cycle to the docks to try to get work. At the age of fifteen he got employment as a deck boy on a coaster, leaving his bike at the docks. His mother knew nothing of this until she received a telegram from his new employer.

Politics

He spent the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

in the Merchant Navy and saw many friends perish at sea. After the war he worked for the Mersey Dock and Harbour Board and became chairman of his branch of the Powers Workers Union, later part of the

Transport and General Workers Union The Transport and General Workers' Union (TGWU or T&G) was one of the largest general trade unions in the United Kingdom and Ireland—where it was known as the Amalgamated Transport and General Workers' Union (ATGWU)—with 900,000 members (a ...

. He joined the Labour Party and was elected to Liverpool City Council in 1960. His maiden speech focused on the plight of the unemployed and the poor housing conditions that still existed in the City of Liverpool. He was involved in the seamen's strike of 1966, despite

Harold Wilson James Harold Wilson, Baron Wilson of Rievaulx (11 March 1916 – 23 May 1995) was a British statesman and Labour Party (UK), Labour Party politician who twice served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, from 1964 to 1970 and again from 197 ...

’s denigration of the strikers as a "tightly knit group of politically motivated men". In 1974 Loyden was elected MP for the Garston area of Liverpool, a former traditional Tory seat. His majority was small, and he lost the seat to

Malcolm Thornton Sir George Malcolm Thornton (born 3 April 1939) is a British Conservative politician who served as the Member of Parliament (MP) for Liverpool Garston from 1979 to 1983, and for Crosby from 1983 to 1997. Education He was educated at Wallasey ...

in 1979 and went on to be elected as City Councillor for the St Mary's ward in Garston, going on to become deputy Leader of the City Council. In 1983 he was re-elected to Parliament, and also in 1987 with a vastly increased majority. In the 1980s and 1990s he campaigned for the families of the seamen of the MV Derbyshire, which sank in

Typhoon Orchid The name Orchid has been used for five tropical cyclones in the Western Pacific Ocean. * Typhoon Orchid (1980) (T8013, 19W, Toyang) – made landfall on Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the nort ...

in 1980. He retired in 1997. He died in 2003 from

Alzheimer's disease Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a neurodegenerative disease and the cause of 60–70% of cases of dementia. The most common early symptom is difficulty in remembering recent events. As the disease advances, symptoms can include problems wit ...

aged 79.

References

* ''Times Guide to the House of Commons'', Times Newspapers Limited, 1979, 1992 and 1997 editions. * Political obituaries, ''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in Manchester in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'' and changed its name in 1959, followed by a move to London. Along with its sister paper, ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardi ...

''.

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Loyden, Edward 1923 births 2003 deaths Labour Party (UK) councillors in Liverpool Labour Party (UK) MPs for English constituencies Transport and General Workers' Union-sponsored MPs UK MPs 1974 UK MPs 1974–1979 UK MPs 1983–1987 UK MPs 1987–1992 UK MPs 1992–1997 Members of the Parliament of the United Kingdom for Liverpool constituencies