Editing Reg Prentice (section)

==Early politics==
Prentice joined the staff of the [[Transport and General Workers Union]] (TGWU) in 1950.

He was a councillor for [[Selhurst|Whitehorse Manor]] in the then-[[County Borough of Croydon]] from 1949, having stood unsuccessfully in [[Thornton Heath]] ward in 1947. He served on the Housing, Libraries, Planning & Development, Water and Reconstruction Committees.

He first stood, unsuccessfully, for parliament in [[Croydon North (UK Parliament constituency)|Croydon North]] in 1950 and 1951, then [[Streatham (UK Parliament constituency)|Streatham]] in 1955. As Labour Member of Parliament from 1957 for [[East Ham North]], later [[Newham North East]], he was a minister of state in [[Harold Wilson]]'s first government at Education and Science (1964–66), then as [[Minister of Public Buildings and Works]] (1966–67), and finally was put in charge of the still-new [[Ministry of Overseas Development]] (1967–69).

In the [[1971 Labour Party Shadow Cabinet election|1971 Shadow Cabinet election]], Prentice just missed out on being elected, finishing in 13th place in the ballot for 12 available places. However, in April 1972 the resignations from the shadow cabinet of [[Harold Lever]] and [[George Thomson, Baron Thomson of Monifieth|George Thomson]] saw Prentice and 14th placed candidate [[John Silkin]] join the body in their place. At the [[1972 Labour Party Shadow Cabinet election|next shadow cabinet election]], Prentice topped the poll and he was again re-elected in [[1973 Labour Party Shadow Cabinet election|1973]], this time finishing in third place.<ref name="ButlersBPF">{{cite book |last1=Mortimer |first1=Roger |last2=Blick |first2=Andrew |title=Butler's British Political Facts |date=2018 |publisher=Palgrave Macmillan |location=London |isbn=978-1-137-56708-6 |pages=255–256}}</ref>

When Labour regained power, he was [[Secretary of State for Education and Science]] between 1974 and 1975, subsequently becoming Minister for Overseas Development with a seat in the cabinet until 1976.

In 1975, after his [[Constituency Labour Party]] had been infiltrated by [[Trotsky]]ist [[Militant tendency|Militants]], he was [[Deselection of Labour MPs|deselected]].<ref name="White">{{cite news |last=White |first=Michael |date=22 January 2001 |title=Lord Prentice of Daventry |url=https://www.theguardian.com/news/2001/jan/22/guardianobituaries.obituaries |work=The Guardian |access-date=26 May 2012}}</ref><ref name=HornCross/> He appealed unsuccessfully from the rostrum of the [[Labour Party Conference]] for the [[National Executive Committee of the Labour Party|National Executive Committee]] to overturn their endorsement of his deselection.<ref name="White" />