Jack Beattie

Jack Beattie (1886 – 9 March 1960) was a politician from Northern Ireland.

While working as a teacher, he joined the Northern Ireland Labour Party (NILP). In 1925, he became a Member of the Northern Ireland House of Commons for Belfast East, then represented Belfast Pottinger from 1929, at one point becoming the leader of the NILP. Unlike the majority of the NILP, he supported Irish unity, and in 1934 he was expelled. In the same year, he became an organiser for the Northern Ireland Teachers' Organisation.

In 1942, Beattie was readmitted to the NILP and the following year he won the Belfast West by-election, 1943 and resigned from the NILP. In 1945, he held his seat and formed the Federation of Labour (Ireland), but took the Labour Party (UK) whip in the British House of Commons. In 1949, he lost his seat in the Northern Ireland Parliament and disbanded the Federation and joined the Irish Labour Party. Although he lost Belfast West in the 1950 UK general election, he retook it in 1951 but lost it once more at the 1955 election. His attempt to win Belfast Central in the NI Parliament in 1953 also failed.

References

• 'Who's Who of British MPs: Volume IV, 1945-1979' by Michael Stenton and Stephen Lees (Harvester, Brighton, 1979) ISBN 0-85527-335-6