Will Lawther
Sir William Lawther was a politician and trade union leader in the United Kingdom.
Born in Choppington, in Northumberland, Lawther was educated at Choppington Colliery School, then became a coal miner. He became active in the Northumberland Miners' Association, which funded him to study at the Central Labour College.
Lawther was active in the Labour Party, standing unsuccessfully for the party in South Shields at the 1922, 1923 and 1924 United Kingdom general elections. From 1925 to 1929, he served on Durham County Council. At the 1929 United Kingdom general election, he switched to contest Barnard Castle, winning the seat, though he was defeated in 1931.
Out of Parliament, Lawther returned to trade unionism. He was elected to the General Council of the Trades Union Congress in 1935, and as President of the Miners' Federation of Great Britain in 1939. The MFGB became the National Union of Mineworkers, with Lawther remaining president. In 1949, he was President of the TUC, and later that year, he was knighted.
Lawther retired from his trade union posts in 1954, and died in 1976.
