John Stonehouse
| John Stonehouse | |
|---|---|
| Minister of Posts and Telecommunications | |
|
In office 1 October 1969 – 19 June 1970 |
|
| Prime Minister | Harold Wilson |
| Preceded by | Himself (Postmaster General) |
| Succeeded by | Christopher Chataway |
| Postmaster General | |
|
In office 1 July 1968 – 1 October 1969 |
|
| Prime Minister | Harold Wilson |
| Preceded by | Roy Mason |
| Succeeded by |
Position abolished Himself (Minister of Posts and Telecommunications) The Viscount Hall (Chairman of the Post Office) |
| Member of Parliament for Walsall North |
|
|
In office 28 February 1974 – 27 August 1976 |
|
| Preceded by | William Wells |
| Succeeded by | Robin Hodgson |
| Member of Parliament for Wednesbury |
|
|
In office 28 February 1957 – 28 February 1974 |
|
| Preceded by | Stanley Evans |
| Succeeded by | Constituency abolished |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
28 July 1925 Southampton, United Kingdom |
| Died | 14 April 1988 (aged 62) Southampton, United Kingdom |
| Political party | Liberal Democrats (1988) |
| Other political affiliations |
Labour Co-operative (before 1981) Social Democratic (1981–88) |
| Alma mater | London School of Economics |
John Thomson Stonehouse (28 July 1925 – 14 April 1988) was a British Labour and Co-operative Party politician and junior minister under Harold Wilson. Stonehouse is perhaps best remembered for his unsuccessful attempt at faking his own death in 1974.
More than twenty years after his death, it was publicly revealed that he had been an agent for the Czechoslovak Socialist Republic military intelligence. In 1979 the Prime Minister, Margaret Thatcher, and top cabinet members learned from a Czech defector that Stonehouse had been a paid Czech spy since 1962. He had provided secrets about government plans as well as technical information about aircraft, and received about £5,000. He was already in prison for fraud and the government decided there was insufficient evidence to bring to trial, so no announcement or prosecution was made.
Stonehouse had a Trade Union upbringing and joined the Labour Party at the age of 16. He was educated at Taunton's College, Southampton, and the London School of Economics. His mother, Rosina Stonehouse (born Rosina M. Taylor) was the sixth female mayor of Southampton and councillor on Southampton City Council. Stonehouse was in the RAF for two years from 1944 when he was called up.
An economist, he became involved in co-operative enterprise and was a manager of African co-operative societies in Uganda 1952–54. He served as a director (1956–62) and president (1962–64) of the London Co-operative Society.
Stonehouse was first elected as Labour Co-operative Member of Parliament (MP) for Wednesbury in a 1957 by-election, having contested Twickenham in 1950 and Burton in 1951.
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