MP and government minister; Born May 18, 1919; Died March 10, 2008.
Hugh Brown was a self-effacing yet effective Labour MP and Scottish Office minister, whose proudest moment was a mediating role in the so-called Cod War of 1975-76. When the UK Government refused to recognise a unilateral extension of Icelandic fishing territory, British fishing trawlers had their nets cut by the Icelandic coast guard, while there were several rammings by Icelandic ships and British trawlers, frigates and tugboats.
Brown had responsibility for the normally low-key fisheries brief at the Scottish Office and became involved in day-to-day negotiations with Iceland. He turned out to be more sensitive than the lead negotiator, Tony Crosland (MP for the northern fishing port of Grimsby), and emerged with huge respect among Icelanders for his even-handedness. His conduct earned a letter of commendation from Prime Minister Harold Wilson and even the Scottish Secretary, Willie Ross, who was not easy to impress.
Hugh Dunbar Brown was born on May 18, 1919, in Glasgow, the son of a Clydeside engineer. His parents were in the Independent Labour Party (ILP), which Hugh joined himself in 1935. He was educated at Allan Glen's School and Whitehill Secondary in Glasgow, but left aged 14 to work at the Post Office, later becoming a civil servant at the Ministry of Pensions and National Insurance in 1947.
That year he also married into another strong Glasgow Labour clan, the Carmichaels. His wife Mary was the daughter of Jimmy Carmichael, the ILP MP for Glasgow Bridgeton, and the sister of Neil Carmichael, who was elected MP for Glasgow Woodside at a 1963 by-election. Witnessing political demonstrations in George Square, together with the Spanish Civil War, also pushed Hugh towards a career in politics and, ultimately, Parliament.
He rose to be a manager of the National Insurance Office in Glasgow, and also won election to Glasgow Corporation in 1954, representing Provan. Always politely left-wing, he generated controversy by opposing Prince Philip's freedom of Glasgow in 1955, but went on to become a magistrate in 1961.
But when he was selected as the prospective parliamentary candidate for the Glasgow Provan constituency in 1962, Brown was promptly dismissed from his civil service position. He managed to sustain himself for two years until capturing Provan with a whopping 29,830 majority at the General Election of 1964. The seat remained Brown's for more than 20 years, and he held it for the last time with a 15,385 majority over the SDP in 1983.
Brown was immediately independently-minded as a backbench Member of Parliament. He urged the end of cigarette advertising just months after being elected, proposed the confiscation of the Royal Yacht Britannia to be used for touring councillors in July 1966, and led a backbench rebellion against restrictions on Post Office power to manufacture equipment in February 1969. Despite this independent streak, he served as PPS to Judith Hart, the Paymaster-General, from 1968-69.
Given his background, Brown was a knowledgeable contributor to more technical Commons debates on pensions policy and social security issues. He was also a conscientious parliamentary committee man and, in 1968, was instrumental in establishing the Easterhouse Project to combat gang warfare in his native city. By the late 1960s home rule, or devolution, was in the air, but Brown was cautious and warned against going "overboard" in response to Margo MacDonald's victory at the Govan by-election in November 1973. When Labour returned to office in March 1974 he finally achieved ministerial office as an under-secretary at the Scottish Office a few months later. Headed up by the gruff Willie Ross, Brown was assigned to home affairs, agriculture, fisheries and food.
Brown stayed in post when Ross was succeeded by the gentler Bruce Millan as Secretary of State in 1976. He devoted himself largely to Scottish affairs and was also a diligent constituency MP. Feelings ran high in August 1976 when the Robroyston Hospital closed, but Brown patiently explained the government's position not only in a Commons adjournment debate but at a series of meetings with various groups in different parts of the city.
He remained active in opposition again from 1979, mostly as an admirably calm vice-chairman of the Labour Parliamentary Affairs Group during the difficult years of Tory government. Having fought off a Militant challenger in his own constituency, Brown backed Michael Foot's inquiry into the movement in late 1981. And during the bitter deputy leadership contest in September of that year, he voted for Tony Benn, believing that the other candidate, Denis Healey, would split the party. When Foot resigned following the 1983 General Election, Brown voted for Neil Kinnock as leader and Roy Hattersley as his deputy.
Brown retired from the House of Commons at the subsequent General Election in 1987. He enjoyed his retirement, playing golf in Milngavie and watching football as an "agnostic" Celtic supporter.
He was also a devoted jazz fan, and the Dutch Swing College Band and Django Reinhardt gave him many hours of listening pleasure.
Hugh Brown died on Monday from pneumonia caused by old age. His wife Mary, who was for many years his secretary in the House of Commons, predeceased him in 1999. A daughter, Jean Brock, survives him.
- By DAVID TORRANCE
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