1067 John Brunner

Constituency  : Northwich  1885-6,  1887-1910

John  took  the  new  seat  of  Northwich.

John  was  the  son  of  a  Unitarian  schoolmaster  originally  from  Switzerland. He  was  educated  at  his  father's  school  in  Liverpool.He  started  work  in  a  shipping  house  in  Liverpool. in  1861  he  moved  to  a  clerical  position  at  an  alkali  works  in  Widnes  where  his  brother  was  technical  manager. He  himself  rose  to  general  manager. In  1873  he  formed  a  partnership  with  a  work  colleague, the  German  born  chemist  Ludwig  Mond. Their  idea  was  to produce  soda  ash  more  cheaply  using  the  Solvay  process  and  they  negotiated  with  Solvay  for  the  rights  to use  it  in  Britain  and  America. It  took  a  while  for  the  venture  to  become  profitable  but  in  1881 they  converted  to  a  limited  company  with  them  becoming  managing  directors. John  became  chairman  in  1891. He  was  a  paternalistic  employer  who  introduced  paid  holidays, sickness  insurance  and  shorter  hours. His  political  career  started  with  joining  the  National  Education  League  in  1872.

John  supported  disestablishment  of  the  church, Home  Rule,  old  age  pensions, graduated  tax  and  state  intervention . He  also  supported  compensation  for  those  whose  properties  had  been  damaged  by  the  salt  mines  in  the  area.

John  was  defeated  by  a  Liberal  Unionist  in  1886  and  went  on  a  world  tour. Three  weeks  after  his  return  his  rival  died  and  John  swept  back  in  at  the  by-election.

John  was  created  a  baronet  in  1895.

John  opposed  the  Boer  War  and  saw  his  majority  slip  in  the  1900  election.

John  stood  down  on  health  grounds  before  the  January  1910  election. He  moved  to  Surrey  and  became  a  county  councillor  there. He  was  President  of  the National  Liberal  Association  from  1911  to  1918  when  he  resigned  in  protest  at  Lloyd  George's  rush  to  the  polls. He  was  a  leading  party  donor.

John  supported  better  relations  with  Germany  leading  to  naval  disarmament  but  supported  the  war  effort  once  it  started  and  used  his  factories  to  produce  explosives.

John  was  a  noted  philanthropist  donating  libraries, chapels  and community  halls  and  funded  a  number  of  chairs  at  Liverpool  University. He  also  funded  a  museum  in  Zurich. He  was  a  major  contributor  to  the  Runcorn  and  Widnes  Transporter  Bridge  and  opened  it  himself  in  1905  when  the  King  was  too  ill  to attend.

In  the  1918  election  John  financed  the  campaign of  a  Labour  candidate  in  Chertsey  although  his  son  was  standing  for  the  Asquithians  in  Northwich.  He  declared  that  he  would  "cheerfully  vote  for  every  part  of  the  Labour  Party  programme. He  saw  Asquith  as  an  impediment  to  a  Lib-Lab  progressive  alliance.

John  died  in  1919  aged  77. He  is  the  great-grandfather  of the Duchess  of  Kent.