Margaret Herbison

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Margaret McCrorie Herbison (12 March 1907 – 29 December 1996) was a Scottish Labour politician.

Educated at Belshill Academy and the University of Glasgow, her early career was spent as a teacher of English and history and a tutor for the National Council of Labour Colleges. The daughter of a miner, she would later serve on the Miners' Welfare Commission. until she was elected as Member of Parliament for North Lanarkshire in 1945. She held this seat until her retirement in 1970.

In government she held office as Joint Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Scotland from 1950 to 1951, as Minister of Pensions and National Insurance from 1964 to 1966, and as Minister of Social Security from 1966 to 1967. She was opposition spokesperson on Scotland (1951-56, 1959-62), Education (1956-59), and Pensions (1958-59 and 1962-64).

She was a Member of Labour National Executive Committee, and Labour Party Chairman in 1957. In the House of Commons, she was Chairman of Select Committee on Overseas Aid in 1969-70. She was a British delegate to the Council of Europe.

Following her retirement, she was appointed as Lord High Commissioner to the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland in 1970 and 1971.

[edit] References

• (1945) The Times House of Commons 1945. 
• (1950) The Times House of Commons 1950. 
• (1955) The Times House of Commons 1955. 

This page incorporates information from Leigh Rayment's Peerage Page.

Parliament of the United Kingdom
Preceded by William Anstruther-Gray	Member of Parliament for North Lanarkshire 1945–1970	Succeeded by John Smith
Political offices
Preceded by Edwin Gooch	Chair of the Labour Party 1956–1957	Succeeded by Tom Driberg