TODAY would have been the 111th birthday of trailblazing Blackburn MP Barbara Castle - the woman who put the town firmly on the political map.
The holder of five high-profile Labour government posts, she made changes to people’s lives that still endure today.
As transport minister she introduced the breathalyser, confirmed the 70mph maximum speed limit and legislated for seatbelts in new cars and as employment secretary introduced the Equal Pay Act in 1970.
A fiery redhead, she fought for what she believed in and represented Blackburn from 1945 to 1979 and is now seen as an icon for women’s rights campaigners.
Barbara Castle
Her role in securing equal pay for female workers is celebrated in the 2010 film Made in Dagenham.
On Saturday a 6ft high statue of the 5ft tall politician will be unveiled in the town centre’s new Jubilee Square - its size reflecting her reputation as a political giant secured in part by her famous diaries and controversial failed attempt to reform trade unions with the ‘In Place of Strife’ White Paper.
Barbara Castle
After her time representing Blackburn in the House of Commons, she served as a Euro MP for Greater Manchester from 1979 to 1989 and then became Baroness Castle of Blackburn and a member of the House of Lords from June 1990 until her death, aged 91, in May 2002.
Ewood councillor Maureen Bateson, who has spearheaded the campaign for the her statue, said: “Barbara Castle was inspirational. She made her way in a man’s world but brought with her the determination of a very strong woman to make a difference.”
Councillor Maureen Bateson with Barbara Castle at a Millennium lunch
Her former secretary and later Labour MP for Rossendale and Darwen Janet Anderson said: “She was tough and determined, a ferocious fighter for women, unfailingly glamorous, kind and thoughtful and fun.”
Her successor as Blackburn MP and a Labour cabinet minister Jack Straw said: ‘Barbara was a giant among British politicians of her generation. She was a star. She wasn’t just the most prominent woman politician of her time, but of men as well.
“I worked for Barbara. She was relentless in her fights for Blackburn, its economy, and its people. She taught me that there is no such thing as an unimportant constituency issue. For her, Blackburn came first.”
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