South Yorkshire Times, January 9th, 1960
His “First Impressions” Of Westminster
When is a Member of Parliament not a Member of Parliament? – that this question is not altogether fatuous was shown by Mr. Edwin Wainwright B.E.M., newly elected M.P. for the Dearne Valley Division when he addressed members of Wombwell Rotary Club on Tuesday. He spoke on “First Impressions of Westminster.”
Mr. Wainwright said a person did not become a Member of Parliament at the time he topped the poll. He was not a Member of Parliament until he had gone through the formality of being sworn-in. Mr Wainwright prefaced his talk with a glowing tribute to his predecessor, Mr. Wilfred Paling, saying that the recognised from the very beginning that he was following one of the best men the Labour Party had ever had. He would always do his best to maintain and live up to Mr. Paling’s high standard. He suggested that in spirit Mr Paling was a “natural Rotarian” in that his motto always was “Service before self.”
His Maiden Speech
In a reference to procedural matters, Mr. Wainwright explained the formalities of electing the Speaker of the House and gave the reasons why the Labour Party abstained. There were various opinions as to the timings of a maiden speech, some suggesting that one should wait to get “the feel of the House.” and others that it was better to “get it over at once,” instead of suffering a period of tension. His own maiden speech lasted for about eighteen minutes and he did not feel at all “uncomfortable.”
A timetable given by Mr. Wainwright showed that a Member’s programme of work was well filled from early to late, as a good deal of time was spent in dealing with correspondence and answering enquiries. He said experienced parliamentarians stressed the value of reading and studying Hansard, in which every word spoken was recorded. He thought the best time to visit the house was at question time in the afternoon. He said he would be glad of the opportunity of showing any member of the club around the House of Commons.
A vote of thanks was proposed by Rtn. J. T. Rodwell, who in speaking of Mr Wainwright’s reference to the method of “recognition”, as they were entering the House, told of a man who, when he forgot a name or a face, would address his subject with the question “How’s the old complaint?” This always went down well because everybody had a complaint! (laughter).
The President, Rtn. R. Bancroft, welcomed as visitor Mr. Alfred Hickling, a son of past president Rtn. B. Hickling and the club toasted the birthday of Secretary, Rtn. Ernest Blackburn. Senior vice-president Canon G. W. P. Adkins brought greetings from the Hoylake club.
The president formally admitted to the club Mr. Harold Rawson, Clerk and Chief Financial Officer to the Dearne Valley Water Board, whose sponsors were Rtn. E. W. Burgin and past President J. Upton. Mr. J. W. Davies (35) has been appointed representative for the Sheffield area by Wakefield-Dick Industrial Oils Ltd in succession to Mr. A. Watson, who retires after 35 years. He joined Davy and United Engineering Col Ltd in 1947 as a draughtsman specialising in lubrication and became engineer-in-charge of their department two years ago.