Labour Research June 2003

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Frank Allaun: 1913 - 2002 - A tribute

Hyman Davies, Working Class Movement Library, 51 The Crescent, Salford M5 4WX, 37 pages, paperback, £2.50

Born in Manchester in 1913, Frank Allaun early on developed a hatred of war and, at the age of 19, joined a local anti-war council.

In 1939 he got a job as a manager of Collett's left-wing bookshop and after the war became a journalist for the Daily Herald newspaper.

In 1955 Allaun was elected Labour MP for the Salford East constituency and pushed the issue of the appalling housing conditions of his constituents. He became chairman of the Labour Party in 1978.

In 1958 he helped the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament organise its first Aldermaston march.

After leaving Parliament in 1983 he continued with his activities for peace until his death.