Robert Palmer, 1st Baron Rusholme

Infobox Officeholder
honorific-prefix =
name = Robert Palmer, Baron Rusholme
honorific-suffix =


imagesize =
small

caption =
order =
office = General Secretary of the Co-operative Union
term_start = 1929
term_end = 1947
predecessor = Alfred Whitehead
office2 = President of ICA
term_start2 =
term_end2 =
predecessor2 =

Robert Alexander Palmer, 1st Baron Rusholme (1890–1977) was a senior official of the British co-operative movement and a Labour Co-operative member of the House of Lords.

Palmer left school at the age of 14. By the age of 21 he was a director of the Manchester and Salford Co-operative Society, the largest consumer co-operative in Manchester. During the First World War he served with the Manchester Regiment in Egypt, Belgium and France, becoming a commissioned officer in 1918.

At the age of 30, Palmer was appointed Cashier and Financial Adviser of the Co-operative Union, the trade body of the consumer co-operative movement. In 1929 he became the body's general secretary. He continued in the role until 1947. He also became President of the International Co-operative Alliance.

In 1947, Clement Attlee made Palmer the 1st Baron Rusholme and he became the first Co-operative peer among the Labour ranks.

Palmer joined the British Transport Commission in 1947, serving until 1959, and chaired the London Midland Area Board of British Railways from 1955 to 1960.

References

*Lord Graham of Edmonton, 'A proud legacy', "The Co-operative News", 29 April-13 May 2008