Mine Strike Betrayal: Labor Party Leaders Ditch Miners in Backroom Deal

LONDON, June 24, 1926 – In a shocking move, the Labor Party’s parliamentary group appears to have cut a secret deal with Premier Baldwin, bypassing the miners’ union leaders and leaving the industry’s workforce reeling. The government’s bill to reorganize the mines passed its second reading in the House of Commons with a vote of 336 to 147. Labor Party spokesman Vernon Hartshorn called for a conference between mine owners and miners, but his plea fell on deaf ears.