Reginald Norman Bottini (14 October 1916 – 5 May 1999) was a

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies. * British national identity, the characteristics of British people and culture ...

trade union A trade union (British English) or labor union (American English), often simply referred to as a union, is an organization of workers whose purpose is to maintain or improve the conditions of their employment, such as attaining better wages ...

leader. Bottini was born in

Tooting Tooting is a district in South London, forming part of the London Borough of Wandsworth. It is located south south-west of Charing Cross. History Tooting has been settled since pre-Anglo-Saxons, Saxon times. The name is of Anglo-Saxon ori ...

, his family being restaurant workers who had migrated from Italy. He attended Bec Grammar School before becoming a shipping clerk.

Tam Dalyell Sir Thomas Dalyell, 11th Baronet ( ; 9 August 1932 – 26 January 2017), known as Tam Dalyell, was a Scottish politician who served as Member of Parliament (MP) for Linlithgow (formerly West Lothian) from 1962 to 2005. A member of the Labour ...

,
Obituary: Reg Bottini
, ''

The Independent ''The Independent'' is a British online newspaper. It was established in 1986 as a national morning printed paper. Nicknamed the ''Indy'', it began as a broadsheet and changed to tabloid format in 2003. The last printed edition was publis ...

'', 11 May 1999 His father had been killed fighting during

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

, and as a result, Bottini registered as a

conscientious objector A conscientious objector is an "individual who has claimed the right to refuse to perform military service" on the grounds of freedom of conscience or religion. The term has also been extended to objecting to working for the military–indu ...

during

World War II 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 ...

; he spent the war doing agricultural work, mostly on land drainage around

Folksworth Folksworth is a village and former civil parish, now in the parish of Folksworth and Washingley, in Cambridgeshire, England. Folksworth lies approximately south-west of Peterborough, just off the A1(M). Folksworth is situated within Huntingd ...

, but the working conditions damaged his health.Barry Leathwood,
Reg Bottini
, ''

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 ...

'', 28 May 1999 After the war, Bottini became an assistant in the legal department of the

National Union of Agricultural Workers The National Union of Agricultural and Allied Workers (NUAAW) was a trades union representing farmworkers in the United Kingdom. The Union was founded in 1906 by trade union activist George Edwards. It was dissolved in 1982 when it merged into ...

(NUAW),Bottini, Reginald Norman
, ''

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'' and became strongly associated with the right wing of the union. In 1954, he moved to become head of the union's negotiating department then, in 1969, was elected as the union's general secretary, taking up the post at the start of the following year. Bottini was very active in the Labour Party, chairing its Reigate constituency party for five years. He was the leading figure behind the party's "Prosper the Plough" national agricultural policy document, published in 1959. In 1976, working with Joan Maynard, he persuaded the Labour government to enact the Rent (Agriculture) Bill, improving the security of tenancy for agricultural workers in tied cottages. Bottini sat on a large number of committees and boards, including the Advisory Committee on Toxic Substances, Agricultural Wages Board, BBC Agricultural Advisory Council,

Central Arbitration Committee The Central Arbitration Committee is a UK government body, established in 1975, whose task is to oversee the regulation of UK labour law as it relates to trade union recognition and collective bargaining. Chairs * Michael Burton *Former deputy c ...

, Clean Air Council,

European Economic and Social Committee The European Economic and Social Committee (EESC) is a consultative body of the European Union (EU) established in 1958. It is an advisory assembly composed of representatives from employers' organization, employers' associations, workers' unio ...

, Food Hygiene Advisory Council,

Meat and Livestock Commission The Meat and Livestock Commission (MLC) was set up by the UK Government under the Agriculture Act 1967 with government money with the remit to promote the sale of red meat. The MLC was previously an independent non-departmental public body, but ...

South Eastern Electricity Board Seeboard, formerly South Eastern Electricity Board (SEEB), was a England, British electricity company. The electrical power industry in the United Kingdom was nationalised by the Electricity Act 1947, when over 600 electric power companies were me ...

and Waste Management Advisory Council. In 1970, Bottini was also elected to the

General Council of the Trades Union Congress The General Council of the Trades Union Congress is an elected body which is responsible for carrying out the policies agreed at the annual British Trades Union Congresses (TUC). Organisation The council has 56 members, all of whom must be proposed ...

. He was made a

Commander of the Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding valuable service in a wide range of useful activities. It comprises five classes of awards across both civil and military divisions, the most senior two o ...

in 1974. He retired from his union posts in 1978 due to poor health, and from his other positions by 1985. He retired to

Market Harborough Market Harborough is a market town in the Harborough District, Harborough district of Leicestershire, England, close to the border with Northamptonshire. The population was 24,779 at the United Kingdom census, 2021, 2021 census. It is the ad ...

, and chaired the Market Harborough Volunteer Bureau for most of the period from 1989 until his death.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bottini, Reg 1916 births 1999 deaths Commanders of the Order of the British Empire General secretaries of the National Union of Agricultural and Allied Workers Members of the General Council of the Trades Union Congress People from Tooting English conscientious objectors English people of Italian descent