Harold Gurden

{{Short description|British politician (1903–1989)}} {{Use dmy dates|date=February 2025}} {{Use British English|date=February 2015}} '''Sir Harold Edward Gurden''' (28 June 1903 – 27 April 1989) was a British Conservative Party politician.

Gurden was educated in Birmingham at Lyttelton School and Birmingham University. He married Lucy Isabella, ''née'' Izon, on 16 April 1929. He became a technician in the dairy and food industries, and was founder-president of the Birmingham and District Dairymen's Association (1947–1950) and chairman of the Society of Dairy Technology (Midland Division). He was sometime President of the RSPCA.

== Professional life == Gurden served as a councillor on Birmingham City Council from 1946 to 1956, representing the ward of Selly Oak.

He was member of parliament for Birmingham Selly Oak from May 1955 to September 1974, before he lost the seat to Labour's Thomas Litterick.

Gurden was a strong proponent of the right to buy and a key figure in the campaign to compel local authorities to sell their council homes. In January 1972, he tabled a Private Members Bill that proposed "to extend to the tenants of dwellings owned by local authorities and other housing bodies the right to acquire the ownership or leasehold of their home".<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Davies|first=Aled|date=2013|title='Right to Buy': The Development of a Conservative Housing Policy, 1945–1980|journal=Contemporary British History|language=en|volume=27|issue=4|pages=421–444|doi=10.1080/13619462.2013.824660|s2cid=153511890|issn=1361-9462|url=https://research-information.bristol.ac.uk/en/publications/right-to-buy(fc4cfac3-c403-4252-80cc-f0e6a1de9922).html|hdl=1983/fc4cfac3-c403-4252-80cc-f0e6a1de9922|hdl-access=free}}</ref>

Gurden was one of the first MPs to join the Conservative Monday Club.

He was knighted in the 1983 Birthday Honours.

== References == {{Reflist}} *''Times Guide to the House of Commons October 1974'' *{{Rayment-hc|date=March 2012}}

== External links == * {{Hansard-contribs | mr-harold-gurden| Harold Gurden }}

{{s-start}} {{s-par|uk}} {{s-new | constituency}} {{s-ttl | title = Member of Parliament for Birmingham Selly Oak | years = 1955–Oct 1974 }} {{s-aft | after = Tom Litterick }} {{s-end}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Gurden, Harold}} Category:Conservative Party (UK) MPs for English constituencies Category:Knights Bachelor Category:UK MPs 1955–1959 Category:UK MPs 1959–1964 Category:UK MPs 1964–1966 Category:UK MPs 1966–1970 Category:UK MPs 1970–1974 Category:UK MPs 1974 Category:Councillors in Birmingham, West Midlands Category:Alumni of the University of Birmingham Category:1903 births Category:1989 deaths Category:RSPCA workers