Kenneth Robinson

Infobox Officeholder
name = Rt. Hon. Kenneth Robinson


imagesize =
small

caption =
order = Member of Parliament for St. Pancras North
term_start = 1949
term_end = 1970
vicepresident =
viceprimeminister =
deputy =
president =
primeminister =
predecessor = George House
successor = Albert Stallard
order2 = Minister of Health
term_start2 = 1964
term_end2 = 1968
vicepresident2 =
viceprimeminister2 =
deputy2 =
president2 =
primeminister2 = Harold Wilson
predecessor2 = Anthony Barber
successor2 = Richard Crossman
order3 = Chair of the Arts Council of Great Britain
term_start3 = 1977
term_end3 = 1982
vicepresident3 =
viceprimeminister3 =
deputy3 =
president3 =
primeminister3 = James Callaghan,
Margaret Thatcher
predecessor3 = Lord Gibson
successor3 = William Rees-Mogg
order4 =
term_start4 =
term_end4 =
vicepresident4 =
viceprimeminister4 =
deputy4 =
president4 =
primeminister4 =
predecessor4 =
successor4 =
birth_date = 19 March 1911
birth_place = UK
death_date = 16 February 1996
death_place = UK
constituency =
party = Labour
spouse =
profession =
religion =


footnotes = The Rt. Hon. Kenneth Robinson (19 March 1911-16 February 1996) was a British Labour politician who served as Minister of Health in Harold Wilson's first government, from 1964 to 1968, when the position was merged into the new title of Secretary of State for Social Services.

Early life

The son of a doctor, Robinson was educated at Oundle School and worked as a writer, insurance broker and company secretary. He joined the Royal Navy during World War II as an ordinary seaman, commissioned in 1942 and promoted to lieutenant-commander in 1944. He served on the HMS King George V.

Political career

Robinson was a St Pancras borough councillor 1945-1949. He was elected to the House of Commons for St. Pancras North in a by-election in 1949. He was a government whip from 1950 until 1951. He joined the cabinet and was made a Privy Counsellor in 1964. Reforms he oversaw include the banning on cigarette television advertising and the reintroduction of prescription charges. When his position of Minister of Health was abolished in 1968, Robinson was appointed Minister for Planning and Land, only for this position to be abolished a year later. Robinson left Parliament in 1970.

Robinson was probably one of the UK's most respected Health Ministers. He was always willing to listen, and indeed took informal advice from his local GPs during difficult negotiations over the GP Charter in 1965. John Horder stated of Robinson's role as Minister of Health: "Kenneth brought to this crisis a mind that was well prepared and the calmness, consideration and personality which we all have known."cite book
last = Loudon
first = Irving
authorlink =
coauthors = Charles Webster, John Horder
title = General Practice Under the National Health Service 1948-1997
publisher = Oxford University Press
date = 1998
location =
pages = 7, 210, 232, 281
url =
doi =
id = ISBN 0198206755] Robinson noticed problems with Britain's approach to General Practice Medicine, and quickly sought to reach agreement with practitioners and change the organization, funding, and nature of practice in the system [cite book
last = Webster
first = Charles
authorlink =
coauthors =
title = The National Health Service: A Political History
publisher = Oxford University Press
date = 2002
location =
pages = 87, 90
url =
doi =
id = ISBN 019925110X] . Robinson published the first consultative document on reorganisation and the need for administrative reform of the National Health Systemcite book
last = Klein
first = Rudolf
authorlink =
coauthors =
title = The New Politics of the NHS: From Creation to Reinvention
publisher = Radcliffe Publishing
date = 2006
location =
pages = 66, 67, 86
url =
doi =
id = ISBN 1846190665] . One compromise he instituted was to reduced the number of hospital beds, under an argument of current under-utilization, and in agreement with the medical profession. In return, the government lifted the limits on fees that medical consultants could charge to patients. These actions helped to form the basis for the "1966 General Practitioner's Charter", which Robinson negotiated with Dr. James Cameron, the General Medical Services Committee chairman [cite book
last = Starey
first = Nigel
authorlink =
coauthors =
title = The Challenge for Primary Care
publisher = Radcliffe Publishing
date = 2003
location =
pages = 10
url =
doi =
id = ISBN 1857755693] . Robinson also placed emphasis on nursing, appointing Sir Brian Salmon to a special committee of management experts and nurses, which looked into ways to advise and prepare senior staff at hospitals for their posts [cite book
last = Baly
first = Monica Eileen
authorlink =
coauthors =
title = Nursing and Social Change
publisher = Routledge
date = 1995
location =
pages = 256, 257, 280
url =
doi =
id = ISBN 0415101972] .

cientology in the 1960s

Robinson had served as the first chairman of the National Association of Mental Health (now known as Mind). His interest in mental health issues brought him into conflict with the Church of Scientology, considered to hold controversial views on mental health: as Minister, he told the House of Commons that he was satisfied that "scientology is socially harmful." Robinson stated that there was a "grave concern" among local government at the time about Scientology, and its potential effects on the town of East Grinstead [cite book
last = Wallis
first = Roy
authorlink =
coauthors =
title = Sectarianism
publisher = John Wiley and Sons Ltd
date = 1975
location =
pages = Page 98
url =
doi =
id = ] . Robinson stated in 1968 in the House of Commons that Scientology was: "a pseudo-philosophical cult."cite book
last = Robbins
first = Thomas
authorlink =
coauthors = Roland Robertson
title = Church-State Relations: Tensions and Transitions
publisher = Transaction Publishers
date = 1987
location =
pages = Page 275
url =
doi =
id = ISBN 0887386512] "Time Magazine" also quoted Robinson as stating: that the Church of Scientology was: "socially harmful ... a potential menace to the personality" and "a serious danger to health."cite news
last = Staff
first =
coauthors =
title = Meddling with Minds
work = Time Magazine
pages = 1-2
language =
publisher = Time Warner
date = August 23, 1968
url = http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,838617,00.html
accessdate = ] In this speech, Robinson referred to the "Anderson Report", cited additional evidence of why the group should be considered a cult, and stated that there was evidence children were being indoctrinated [cite book
last = Williams
first = Ian
authorlink =
coauthors =
title = The Alms Trade: Charities Past, Present and Future
publisher = Unwin Hyman
date = 1989
location =
pages = 124
url =
doi =
id = ] . Robinson announced that a series of measures would be undertaken against Scientology in Britain [cite book
last = National Council for Voluntary Organisations (Great Britain)
first =
authorlink =
coauthors =
title = New Society
publisher = New Society Ltd.
date = 1988
location =
pages = 131
url =
doi =
id = ] .

In 1968, the Church of Scientology started publishing articles that were of defamatory nature toward Robinson. Eventually Robinson sued the Church of Scientology of California and L. Ron Hubbard for libel. The case appeared before Justice Ackner, and was entitled: "Robinson v Church of Scientology of California and Others". This resulted in a settlement between the parties on June 1973, where the Church of Scientology acknowledged that there was no truth to the published allegations, and offered its apologies to Robinson along with a "substantial sum to mark the gravity of the libels."cite news
last = staff
first =
coauthors =
title = Church of Scientology to pay libel damages to former Minister
work = The Times
pages =
language =
publisher =
date = June 6, 1973
accessdate = ]

Homosexual law reform

He was a campaigner for homosexual law reform and a member of the Homosexual Law Reform Society's executive committee. In June 1960, he introduced the first full-scale Commons debate on the Wolfenden Report's proposals to end the law which criminalised consenting sex between men in private. He had also put forward a bill in 1961 to legalise abortion. His bill failed but Robinson was Minister of Health in 1967 when the Abortion Act 1967 came into force [cite book
last = Keown
first = John
authorlink =
coauthors = Charles Rosenberg, Colin Jones
title = Abortion, Doctors and the Law
publisher = Cambridge University Press
date = 2002
location =
pages = 104
url =
doi =
id = ISBN 0521894131] . In 1967, Robinson announced the British government's intentions to limit forms of promotional advertising for cigarettes, and cigarette-coupon schemes [cite book
last = Feldman
first = Eric A.
authorlink =
coauthors = Ronald Bayer
title = Unfiltered: conflicts over tobacco policy and public health
publisher = Harvard University Press
date = 2004
location =
pages = 119
url =
doi =
id = ISBN 0674013344] . Hilton described him as: "a persistent Labour critic of the tobacco industry"cite book
last = Hilton
first = Matthew
authorlink =
coauthors =
title = Smoking in British Popular Culture 1800-2000
publisher = Manchester University Press
date = 2000
location =
pages = 187
url =
doi =
id = ISBN 0719052572] . Robinson helped to put forth the 1968 Health Services and Public Health Act, which made home help service for the elderly a mandate to the government, rather than a permissive dutycite book
last = Means
first = Robin
authorlink =
coauthors = Randall Smith
title = From Poor Law to Community Care: The Development of Welfare Services for Elderly People 1939-1971
publisher = The Policy Press
date = 1998
location =
pages = 224, 232, 267
url =
doi =
id = ISBN 1861340850] . Robinson was supportive of voluntary hospitals and health services [cite book
last = Strang
first = John
authorlink =
coauthors = Michael Gossop
title = Heroin Addiction and 'The British System'
publisher = Routledge
date = 2005
location =
pages = 190
url =
doi =
id = ISBN 0415298156 ] , and voiced his encouragement to these institutions in a speech to the National Association of Leagues of Hospital Friends [cite book
last = Prochaska
first = Frank K.
authorlink =
coauthors = HRH The Prince of Wales
title = Philanthropy and the Hospitals of London: The King's Fund, 1897-1990
publisher = Oxford University Press
date = 1992
location =
pages = 210
url =
doi =
id = ISBN 0198202660 ] .

Robinson wrote a biography of Wilkie Collins and a guide to Parliament, called "Look At Parliament", for young people.

References

;Further reading

See also

*Mind (charity)
* Scientology and psychiatry
*"Enquiry into the Practice and Effects of Scientology"
*""