... had been MP for Smethwick since 1945, and had served as Commonwealth Secretary under Clement Atlee, from February 1950 until Labour's defeat in the General Election of October 1951. In opposition under Harold Wilson he was Shadow Home Secretary (1957–62) and Shadow Foreign Secretary (from February 1963, until the General Election of October 1964).
By 1964, Smethwick had attracted large numbers of Commonwealth immigrants – many of them Sikhs, from the Punjab region of India. The constituency had also been hit, like many other parts of the UK, by factory closures and a severe housing shortage. In the General Election of that year, the Conservative candidate, Peter Griffiths, ran a campaign that was critical of the immigration policies of both the Conservative government and the Labour opposition. He was accused of exploiting the slogan "If you want a nigger neighbour, vote Labour".
Wikipedia quotes Griffiths (from The Times): "I should think that is a manifestation of the popular feeling. I would not condemn anyone who said that. I would say that is how people see the situation in Smethwick. I fully understand the feelings of the people who say it. I would say it is exasperation, not fascism."
It's not clear from Wikipedia whether this quote refers to the slogan I've mentioned above, or a different one that was claimed by the neo–Nazi British Movement: "Don't vote – a vote for Tory, Labour or Liberal is a vote for more Blacks!"
The 1964 General Election resulted in a swing from the Conservatives to Labour, giving the latter a five–seat majority in the House of Commons. But Smethwick bucked this trend; Griffiths won the seat by a majority of 1,784 (5% of the votes cast).
This was a major setback for Wilson. He appointed Gordon Walker as Foreign Secretary, hoping to find him a way back into Parliament with the least possible delay. He persuaded Reginald Sorensen, the long–serving MP for Leyton in the East End of London, to accept a life peerage, leaving that seat – considered a safe one for Labour – free for Gordon Walker. But the plan backfired; at the by–election on 25 January 1965, Gordon Walker was defeated by the Conservative candidate, Ronald Buxton, with a margin of just 205 votes. This forced him to resign as Foreign Secretary.
In 1966, Wilson called another General Election with the aim of consolidating his majority. Gordon Walker stood against Buxton in Leyton once more, and won the seat by a comfortable majority. He served as Minister Without Portfolio from April to August 1966, and as Education Secretary from August 1966 until April 1968. He then retired from the Cabinet and was made a Companion of Honour. He did not defend his seat at the 1974 General Election, and was awarded a life peerage – as Baron Gordon–Walker of Leyton.
Meanwhile, at the 1966 General Election, Labour had fielded the actor Andrew Faulds as its candidate in Smethwick, and Griffiths was defeated. Faulds continued to serve the constituency (renamed Warley East in 1974) until 1997, when it was replaced by a new Warley constituency. He was a strong critic of the infamous 'Rivers of Blood' speech made in 1968 by Enoch Powell, who was at that time MP for Wolverhampton South West (not a million miles from Smethwick), and was not above using unparliamentary language to describe MPs on the other side of the House.
© Haydn Thompson 2020