Milner Gray (politician)

Milner Gray (1871 – 10 April 1943) was a British Liberal politician.

Gray was born in Luton, Bedfordshire, the son of a Baptist Minister, although he himself was a Methodist in religion. He was educated at Greenwich. In 1902 he married Elizabeth Eleanor Luck of Lewisham. They never had children. In business Gray was chairman of Frank Harden Ltd of Luton (manufacturers of ladies' hats) and a director of the United Match Industries.

Gray first tried to enter Parliament in 1911. At the 1918 general election he contested Wellingborough as a Coalition Liberal, i.e. a supporter of the coalition government between those members of the Liberal Party led by David Lloyd George and the Conservatives but he lost in a straight fight to Labour. He stood as Liberal candidate at then December 1919 by-election in St Albans but he came last, losing his deposit. He was unsuccessful at the 1923 general election at Bedford where he also stood again without success in 1924. However he was finally elected as a Liberal MP for Mid Bedfordshire at the 1929 general election. He was briefly Parliamentary Secretary at the Ministry of Labour in 1931 during the period the Liberal Party supported the National Government of Ramsay Macdonald. Gray had styled himself a Liberal National candidate for the 1931 although he was never a member of the Liberal National group led by Sir John Simon. Initial indications were that the Conservatives would stand aside for him in 1931 and Gray thought they should but his hopes were soon dashed however and he was opposed by a Unionist candidate, Alan Lennox-Boyd who also supported the National Government.

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