The Friends of Ireland was a group of British Labour Party Members of Parliament in support of the ending of the

partition of Ireland The Partition of Ireland () was the process by which the Government of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland (UK) divided Ireland into two self-governing polities: Northern Ireland and Southern Ireland (the area today known as the R ...

. The group was founded in 1945 by Hugh Delargy. Delargy became its secretary, while Henry McGhee and

Richard Stokes Richard or Dick Stokes may refer to: * Richard Stokes (politician), British soldier and politician * Richard Stokes (producer), British television producer * Richard Stokes (priest), English Anglican priest * Dick Stokes (hurler), Irish hurler * ...

were appointed as joint treasurers. Delargy immediately wrote to

Anthony Mulvey Anthony Mulvey (188211 January 1957) was an Ireland, Irish nationalist (Ireland), nationalist politician. Born in County Leitrim, Mulvey edited the ''Ulster Herald'' newspaper before his election to represent Fermanagh and Tyrone (UK Parliament c ...

of the new Anti-Partition League of Ireland (APL), stating that he intended for the two groups to work together.Brendan Lyng, ''Holding the Ground: The Nationalist Party in Northern Ireland, 1945-72'', p.28 However, the two groups had some differing views; the Friends of Ireland were also happy to work with the

Northern Ireland Labour Party The Northern Ireland Labour Party (NILP) was a political party in Northern Ireland which operated from 1924 until 1987. Origins The roots of the NILP can be traced back to the formation of the Belfast Labour Party in 1892. Previously, in 1885 ...

and believed that the ultimate answer to the social problems of Catholics in

Northern Ireland Northern Ireland ( ; ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, part of the United Kingdom in the north-east of the island of Ireland. It has been #Descriptions, variously described as a country, province or region. Northern Ireland shares Repub ...

was

socialism Socialism is an economic ideology, economic and political philosophy encompassing diverse Economic system, economic and social systems characterised by social ownership of the means of production, as opposed to private ownership. It describes ...

, while the Anti-Partition League accused the British Labour government of having "Tory attitudes" and saw the reunification as the ultimate answer.Bob Purdie, "The Friends of Ireland", in: Tom Gallagher, ''Contemporary Irish Studies'', pp.81-94 Other active members of the Friends included Geoffrey Bing, William Foster, John Haire, Valentine McEntee and H. B. Morgan. Membership totalled 30 in 1945, and 120 in 1948, but most of the membership was purely nominal. In the

British House of Commons The House of Commons is the lower house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Like the upper house, the House of Lords, it meets in the Palace of Westminster in London, England. The House of Commons is an elected body consisting of 650 memb ...

, the group attempted to raise concerns about social conditions and the freedom of opposition groups to meet and campaign in Northern Ireland, but these were usually ruled out of order by the Speaker. The debate on the Northern Ireland Act 1947, was the best opportunity for this, and Delargy and

of the Nationalist Party, while not opposing the Act, co-operated in raising objections about the

Government of Northern Ireland A government is the system or group of people governing an organized community, generally a state. In the case of its broad associative definition, government normally consists of legislature, executive, and judiciary. Government is a ...

. However, the

Ireland Act 1949 The Ireland Act 1949 ( 12, 13 & 14 Geo. 6. c. 41) is an act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom intended to deal with the consequences of the Republic of Ireland Act 1948 as passed by the Irish parliament, the Oireachtas. Background Follo ...

marked a split between the Friends and the APL, with leading members of the friends criticising the

Government of Ireland The Government of Ireland () is the executive (government), executive authority of Republic of Ireland, Ireland, headed by the , the head of government. The government – also known as the cabinet (government), cabinet – is composed of Mini ...

declaration of a republic. The APL decided to stand candidates against Labour in areas with large Irish populations at the 1950 general election, and Delargy dissociated himself from the APL, with the Friends then disintegrating.

References

{{reflist Organisations associated with the Labour Party (UK) Organizations established in 1945 1950 disestablishments in the United Kingdom Irish nationalism 1945 establishments in the United Kingdom