1536 James White

Constituency : Dunbartonshire  1906-10, Glasgow  Tradeston  1911-18

James  took  Dunbartonshire  from  the  Tories.

James  was  the  nephew  of  Lord  Overtoun. He  was  educated  at  Rugby  and  Cambridge  and  became  a  barrister.

James  was  comfortably  re-elected  in  January  1910  and  he  was  appointed  Parliamentary  Private  Secretary  to  the  Scottish  Secretary. Strangely, he  decided  to  step  down  in  December.

However  James  soon  changed  his  mind  and  was  returned  for  Glasgow  Tradeston  in  a  by-election  in  1911.

James  became  associated  with  a  group  of  radical  MPs  known  as  Single Taxers  who  upheld  the  views  of  the  American  economist  Henry  George  on  land  value  taxation. They  had  some  influence  on  Lloyd  George's  land  campaign. James  wrote  books  and  pamphlets  on  the  subject.

In  1912  James  resumed  his  old  post  this  time  under  Thomas  McKinnon  Wood  and  followed  him  when  he  changed  roles  including  going  out  of  office  in  1916  and  hence  breaking  with  Lloyd  George's  Corn  Production  Act  during  the  war  which  the  Asquithians  did  not  adequately  oppose. This  meant  he did  not  receive  the  coupon  in  1918  and  came  third.

The  following  year  James  and  other  defeated  Single  Taxers  crossed  over  to  the  ILP.  He  cited  disappointment  with  the  Liberal  government's  measures  before  1914  and  anger  at   He  didn't  stand  in  1922  but  challenged  for  his  old  party's  seat  of  Middlesbrough  West  in  1923  where  he  was  soundly  beaten  by  Walter  Thomson  in  a  two  cornered  contest.  He  returned to  Glasgow  in  1924  and  contested  Glasgow  Central  but  he  was   soundly  beaten  by  the Tory  incumbent.

James  was  disappointed  by  Labour's  lack  of  interest  in  land  reform  and  quit  the  party  in  1926.

He  died  in  1951  aged  84.