John Murray

John Murray (28 February 1879 – 28 December 1964) was a Scottish civil servant, university administrator and Liberal Party politician.

Family and education Murray was born in Fraserburgh in Aberdeenshire, the eldest son of Francis Robert Murray, a Fraserburgh fish curer, and his wife Isabella (née Watt). He was educated at Robert Gordon's College in Aberdeen. He then attended the University of Aberdeen where he obtained an MA degree in Greek and Latin. He also studied at Christ Church, Oxford and was a Prize Fellow of Merton College, Oxford in 1905. In 1908 he was Student and Keeper of Christ Church. In 1921 he married Ellen, the widow of George Harwood formerly Liberal MP for Bolton.

Career From 1910 to 1915, Murray was Censor of Christ Church, Oxford – that is an assistant to the Dean with responsibility for undergraduate discipline.

After his Parliamentary career, Murray entered a new area of public life. He was Principal of the University College of the South West of England from 1926 to 1951. He also served on the Consultative Committee for Independent Education.

1922 At the 1922 general election, Murray, again selected as the Liberal candidate, had a straight fight against the Labour candidate Thomas Stamford. In a much tighter contest, Murray narrowly held on to his seat by the margin of 904 votes. he trailed by a majority of 2,284 votes.

Ripon Murray made a final effort to re-enter the House of Commons in 1925 when he was chosen to contest the Ripon by-election. This by-election was caused by the resignation of the sitting Tory MP, Edward Wood who had been selected to become Viceroy of India on the personal invitation of the King and Prime Minister Stanley Baldwin, albeit after the post had been turned down by Earl Haig amongst others. In a straight fight with the new Conservative candidate John Waller Hills, Murray was defeated by a majority of 5,011 votes.

Political views Murray seems to have followed a well-worn path from radical opinion in his early political career to more conservative views in later life. He took a sympathetic line in Parliament towards the treatment of the unemployed and became an early supporter of family allowances, a policy he championed throughout his life. At the time of Liberal reunion in 1923, Murray stated that the "true place for Liberalism is on the left." However he later appears to have lost his faith in the role of the state. He was associated with Ernest Benn and his Society for Individual Freedom. During the Ripon by-election Murray openly disagreed with Lloyd George's plans for nationalisation of land and the coal industry.

Death Murray died in London on 28 December 1964 at the age of 85 years.