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'''Thomas Daniel Smith''' ([[May 11]], [[1915]] - [[July 27]], [[1993]]) was a [[United Kingdom|British]] [[politician]] who was Leader of [[Newcastle upon Tyne]] City Council from [[1960]] to [[1965]] and a prominent figure in the [[Labour Party (UK)|Labour Party]] in the north-east of England, such that he was nicknamed 'Mr Newcastle' (although his opponents called him "The Mouth of the Tyne").<ref name="Guardian">Robert Waterhouse, "T. Dan Smith" (Obituary), ''The Guardian'', [[July 28]], [[1993]].</ref><ref name="Times">"Southern Discomfort" (leading article), ''The Times'', [[August 3]], [[1993]].</ref> While leading the redevelopment of his city, Smith formed business links with architect [[John Poulson]] which led to his trial for accepting bribes in April [[1974]], at which he pleaded guilty and was sentenced to six years' imprisonment. He starred in a film of his life released in [[1987]].
[[Image:Tdansmith63.jpg|right|thumbnail|300px|T. Dan Smith in 1963, inspecting progress on slum clearance at Scotswood Road]]
==Early
Smith was born in [[Wallsend]], the son of a miner. Both his parents held strong left-wing views and Smith adopted these. He was unemployed during the [[1930s]] but founded his own painting and decorating business in [[1937]] which was known for being somewhat economical (its local nickname was 'One-Coat Smith'). During [[World War II]], Smith registered as a [[conscientious objector]] and was initially active in opposing the war and organising strikes against it; he supported the war after the German invasion of the [[Soviet Union]].
During the war, Smith joined several left-wing organisations. He was a regional representative for the [[Independent Labour Party]] in 1943, and later joined the [[Revolutionary Communist Party (1944-1949)|Revolutionary Communist Party]] where he led a shipyard strike. By [[1945]], he was a member of the [[Labour Party (UK)|Labour Party]]. In [[1950]] he was elected to Newcastle City Council as a Labour member, and became Chairman of the Labour Group in [[1953]]. It was at this stage that he adopted his unusual formulation of name, after an embarrassing incident at [[Newcastle Airport]] when he was confused with another Dan Smith.
==Takes charge of Newcastle==
When the Labour Party won the [[1958]] local elections and took control of Newcastle, Smith was appointed Chairman of the Housing Committee. His success in launching new housing schemes led to his promotion to be the Leader of the Council in [[1960]]. As Leader he instituted a personality-based leadership, creating an 'inner Cabinet' of his own supporters and excluding all other parties, as well as those Labour members who disagreed with him{{Fact|date=March 2007}}, from any share of power. Smith had an intimidating physical presence and loud voice which helped him get his way{{Fact|date=March 2007}}.
Smith believed strongly in the need to clear Newcastle of slum housing and put a great deal of effort into regeneration plans, such that the city was nicknamed (at his suggestion) "The [[Brasilia]] of the North". He also pumped money into local arts institutions. Smith's council authorised the demolition of a large section of [[Grainger Town]] for a money-making shopping centre. So influential did Smith become that [[Quintin Hogg, Baron Hailsham of St Marylebone|Lord Hailsham]] was sent up to Newcastle by the Conservative cabinet to try to counter him.
However, Smith's personal desire to make money began to get linked with his political desires. Already it had been spotted that Smith's painting and decorating firm received more than half of the contracts for council housing. In [[1962]] he established a [[public relations]] firm to support redevelopment of other urban centres in the north-east, and later nationwide. This company formed links with [[John Poulson]], an architect keen for the business and known for paying those who could supply it. Smith eventually received £156,000 from Poulson for his work, which typically involved signing up local councillors on to the payroll of his companies and getting them to push their councils to accept Poulson's prepackaged redevelopment schemes. Poulson earned more than £1,000,000 through Smith.
Smith was a political contemporary and ally of North East Labour stalwart [[Andrew Cunningham|Andy Cunningham]], who was also brought down by the Poulson scandal and served a jail sentence.
==Political advancement==
On the day after the [[United Kingdom general election, 1964|1964 general election]], Smith hired a hotel room in central [[London]] to await what he thought a certain phone call to invite him to become a Minister in [[Harold Wilson]]'s government. However, Wilson had a vague suspicion of Smith, and Smith's alliance with the more moderate side of the Labour Party meant that no such invitation was made. In early [[1965]], [[George Brown, Baron George-Brown|George Brown]] appointed Smith as Chairman of the Northern Economic Planning Council.
Smith was also to serve on the Buchanan Committee on traffic management and the [[Redcliffe-Maud Report|Redcliffe-Maud Commission]] on local government. On the latter he promoted a scheme whereby England would be divided into five provinces with wide devolution, making [[Manchester]] the capital of the North province with 17,000,001 people.
==Corruption trials==
[[Image:Tdan_close200.jpg|right|frame|T. Dan Smith in 1987, defending his reputation]]
Smith's PR firm was involved with [[London Borough of Wandsworth|Wandsworth Borough Council]] in pushing a redevelopment scheme, where its contact was Alderman Sidney Sporle. Sporle fell under police suspicion of corruption in the late [[1960s]] and an inquiry led to Smith being charged with bribery in January [[1970]]. Although acquitted at trial in July [[1971]], Smith was forced to resign all his political offices. Subsequently, Poulson's [[1972]] bankruptcy hearings disclosed extensive bribery and in October [[1973]] Smith was again arrested on corruption charges. He pleaded guilty in [[1974]] and was sentenced to six years' imprisonment; despite his plea he continued to assert his innocence.
==Post prison==
While in prison, Smith was involved in amateur dramatics and encouraged [[Leslie Grantham]] to pursue this career as a professional; Grantham was later to star in the [[BBC]] [[soap opera]] ''[[Eastenders]]''. On release from Leyhill Open Prison in [[1977]] Smith attempted to rebuild a political career, but was refused readmission to the Labour Party. He worked for the Howard League for Penal Reform and campaigned for the rights of released prisoners, and occasionally commented on municipal housing issues. In 1985 he wrote that "[[Thatcherism]], in an odd sort of way, could reasonably be described as legalised Poulsonism. Contributions to Tory Party funds will be repaid by the handing over of public assets for private gain."<ref name="Guardian" />
In [[1987]] (the year he was finally readmitted to the Labour Party), Smith starred in a [http://www.amber-online.com/html/t_dan_smith.html drama-documentary] about his story and the regeneration of Newcastle. This was based on his autobiography, ''A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to Utopia'' (Amber Films, Newcastle. 1987)
By 1990 he was on the executive of the Newcastle Tenants Association, and living on the 14th floor of a tower block in the Spital Tongues area of the City, and not Cruddas Park as is sometimes erroneously reported.
==Assessment==
Smith's story was also the basis of the character Austin Donohue, first played by Jim Broadbent in the RSC production, and then by [[Alun Armstrong (English actor)|Alun Armstrong]] in the [[1996]] [[BBC]] television drama serial ''[[Our Friends in the North]]''. Smith is regarded with mixed emotions by the people of the city he ran. While he was involved in extensive corruption, his desire to improve life for the working-class people was undeniable and he did much to improve housing conditions. A year before he died he suggested that he was happy to have as his [[epitaph]] the description of him spoken by Poulson from the dock: 'He seems to have an obsession to create a better world.'
While Smith did make many mistakes, including destroying much of the historical fabric of the city centre, some of his projects are now appreciated. These include the [[A167 road|A167 Central Motorway]], without which the city centre would now almost certainly face [[gridlock]], and the [[Eldon Square Shopping Centre]], which has helped to keep the city's retail offering competitive in the face of stiff competition from Gateshead [[MetroCentre]]. It would be stretching things to say that history will judge him kindly, but fair to say that more people now appreciate the good things he did, alongside the negative aspects of his tenure.
==References==
<references />
{{DEFAULTSORT:Smith, T. Dan}}
[[Category:1915 births]]
[[Category:1993 deaths]]
[[Category:UK Labour Party politicians]]
[[Category:British political scandals]]
[[Category:People from Wallsend]]
[[Category:Councillors in North East England]]
[[Category:Revolutionary Communist Party (UK, 1944) members]]
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