Minister of Supply

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The Minister of Supply was the minister in the British Government responsible for the Ministry of Supply, which existed to co-ordinate the supply of equipment to the national armed forces. The position was campaigned for by many sceptics of the foreign policy of the National Government in the 1930s before ultimately being created in 1939.

During World War II there was a separate Ministry of Aircraft Production; the first minister Beaverbrook later became Minister of Supply. When W. A. Robotham was Chief Engineer of Tank Design in the Ministry of Supply, he demanded sound manganese steel castings for tank tracks, as a broken track could be a death warrant for the crew. The Beaver "rightly" accused him of holding up production, and took a poor view of Robotham's observation "that they had enough unreliable tanks to last us the rest of the war!". In July 1941, 25% of British tanks were immobilised from mechanical failure, although there was no enemy action in the theatres of war! [1]

The Ministry of Aircraft Production was amalgamated into the Ministry of Supply in July 1945.

In the post-war governments, the Ministry became increasingly unpopular with economy-minded Conservatives, who objected to it as a redundant middle-man. This point of view was shared by Reginald Maudling, who served as the Minister under Anthony Eden and refused to continue in office under Harold Macmillan, who had served in a junior role in the Ministry and believed in it. Nevertheless, he agreed to wind it up in 1959.

Minister of Supply 1939–1959[edit]

Portrait Name Term of office Political party Government
Leslie Burgin
MP for Luton
14 July
1939
12 May
1940
Liberal National National IV
(Cons.Lab.Nat.Lib.Nat.)
Chamberlain War
(Cons.Lab.Nat.Lib.Nat.)
Herbert Morrison
MP for Hackney South
12 May
1940
3 October
1940
Labour Churchill War
Sir Andrew Rae Duncan
MP for City of London
3 October
1940
29 June
1941
National
Max Aitken
1st Baron Beaverbrook
29 June
1941
4 February
1942
Conservative
Sir Andrew Rae Duncan
MP for City of London
4 February
1942
26 July
1945
National
Churchill Caretaker
John Wilmot
MP for Deptford
3 August
1945
7 October
1947
Labour Attlee
(I & II)
George Strauss
MP for Lambeth North before 1950
MP for Vauxhall after 1950
7 October
1947
26 October
1951
Labour
Duncan Sandys
MP for Streatham
31 October
1951
18 October
1954
Conservative Churchill III
Selwyn Lloyd
MP for The Wirral
18 October
1954
7 April
1955
Conservative
Reginald Maudling
MP for Barnet
7 April
1955
16 January
1957
Conservative Eden
Aubrey Jones
MP for Birmingham Hall Green
16 January
1957
22 October
1959
Conservative Macmillan I

Further reading[edit]

  • Robotham, William Arthur (1970). Silver Ghosts and Silver Dawn. London: Constable.

References[edit]

  1. ^ Robotham 1970, pp. 143, 178, 179.