ABSTRACT
The power of the political transformation of the Yorkshire Area (N.U.M.) is emphasised by Alec Woodall, the former Member of Parliament for Hemsworth, who believes that, due to the large numbers of mining M.P.s, the miners were, for most of the post-war period, in a relatively powerful position within the House of Commons. Likewise, the strong links with the mining industry and the extent to which Hemsworth has, been a coalfield constituency mean that the N.U.M. has had a tremendous amount of influence over Yorkshire particular area. Ken Capstick, the N.U.M.’s choice in 1991 and its vice-chairman in Yorkshire, was regarded by the Labour Party at national level as a political, if not an electoral liability. The politics of Hemsworth then, whilst remaining mundane in comparison with other constituencies, has been sparked by two major events which occurred in the post-Strike scenario.
