Kenneth Sydney Vaus CBE (30 September 1928 – 1982) was a British Liberal Party activist.

Vaus attended Haberdashers' Aske's Boys' School and the University of Sheffield, where he qualified as a dentist.[1] He was active in the National League of Young Liberals, and was serving on its executive in 1954/55.[2]

At the 1959 United Kingdom general election, Vaus contested East Surrey; he took second place, with 18.3% of the vote. Herbert Harris, the party's general director, praised his performance as "one of the more remarkable results for us".[3] He stood in Hereford at the 1964 and 1966 United Kingdom general elections, and then Reigate in 1970.[4] By this time, Vaus was serving on the Liberal Party's Executive, and he stood unsuccessfully to become the party's chair in 1970.[5]

Vaus again contested East Surrey in the February and October 1974 United Kingdom general elections, taking 33.8% and 29.2% of the vote and second place to Geoffrey Howe.[6] He was finally elected as the party's chair in 1973, and was still in office in 1976,[7] when party leader Jeremy Thorpe resigned in controversial circumstances. Vaus tried to push through a rule change to allow any MP to stand for the leadership with just a single nomination, hoping that this would get his preferred candidate, Russell Johnston, onto the ballot. His proposal was heavily defeated.[8]

In 1978, Vaus was a founder member of "Liberals Against the Pact", a group opposing the party's pact with the Labour government.[9] He spent some time chairing the party's Finance and Administration Board, a role in which he replaced Clement Freud.[10] In the 1981 Birthday Honours, he was made a Commander of the Order of the British Empire.[11]

Vaus died in 1982, at the age of 54.[12]

References

  1. ↑ The Times Guide to the House of Commons: 1970, p.186
  2. ↑ "Young liberals", Manchester Guardian, 2 October 1954
  3. ↑ "Liberals' night of gladness", The Guardian, 9 October 1959
  4. ↑ F. W. S. Craig, British Parliamentary Election Results 1950–1973
  5. ↑ "3 to seek Liberal Party chair", The Guardian, 14 November 1970
  6. ↑ F. W. S. Craig, British Parliamentary Election Results, 1974–1983
  7. ↑ Chris Cook, A Short History of the Liberal Party, 1900-2001, pp.268-269
  8. ↑ "Liberal MPs lost right to choose leader", The Observer, 13 June 1976
  9. ↑ Simon Hoggart, "New Liberal group steps up the anti-pact pressure", The Guardian, 10 January 1978
  10. ↑ Wynn Hugh-Jones, Campaigning Face to Face, pp.109, 128
  11. ↑ UK list: "No. 48639". The London Gazette (Supplement). 12 June 1981. pp. 1–32.
  12. ↑ "Kenneth Sydney Vaus". England & Wales, Civil Registration Death Index, 1916–2007. Retrieved 5 April 2023.
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