Ex-Unite union baron Tony Woodley turns down seat in the Lords after Jeremy Corbyn offered him a peerage
- Tony Woodley offered position by Mr Corbyn before he stepped down as leader
- He said he was ‘deeply honoured’ by nomination but decided to refuse peerage
- Mr Woodley, 72, was the joint general secretary of trade union Unite until 2011
Former union leader Tony Woodley has turned down a seat in the House of Lords after Jeremy Corbyn offered him a peerage.
Mr Woodley, 72, who was joint general secretary of Unite, was offered the position by Mr Corbyn before he stepped down as leader of the Labour party.
In a statement, Mr Woodley said he was ‘deeply honoured’ to have been asked to join Labour’s team in the House of Lords, but he decided not to accept the peerage.
‘I would like to thank Jeremy and Ian Lavery, then the chair of the party, for their support. However, after the most careful reflection I have decided not to accept the peerage offered,’ he said.
‘The greatest honour of my life was to be elected general secretary of the historic Transport & General Workers’ Union (now part of Unite) by my fellow members.
Former union leader Tony Woodley (pictured) has turned down a seat in the House of Lords after Jeremy Corbyn offered him a peerage
‘So I would prefer to follow the example of my hero and mentor Jack Jones, the greatest man to hold that job, and not accept a peerage.
‘I will do whatever I can to advance Labour’s cause in the future, but I have determined that I will do it best as I did when I was first elected a union representative more than 50 years ago, as plain Tony Woodley.’
Mr Woodley, from Wallasey in Merseyside, first came to national prominence in 2003 when he was elected to succeed Bill Morris as general secretary of the Transport and General Workers’ Union.
He later served as one of two joint general secretaries of Unite, which formed as the result of a merger between the TGWU and trade union Amicus.
Mr Woodley, 72, who was joint general secretary of Unite, was offered the position by Jeremy Corbyn (pictured) before he stepped down as leader of the Labour party
Mr Woodley stepped down from the position in January 2011.
Labour peerages were also offered to former MP for Workington Sue Hayman, ex-North Ayrshire MP Katy Clarke and professor of accounting Prem Sikka earlier this year.
Mr Corbyn also nominated his former deputy Tom Watson, John Bercow and staffer Karie Murphy for peerages ahead of stepping down as leader, but these were rejected by the House of Lords appointment commission.