Brigadier Frank Medlicott (10 November 1903 – 9 January 1972) was a National Liberal Party and later Conservative Party politician in the United Kingdom.

He was elected as a National Liberal Member of Parliament (MP) for East Norfolk at a by-election in 1939 after the National Liberal MP Viscount Elmley had succeeded to the peerage as the 8th Earl Beauchamp.

The National Liberals formally merged with the Conservative Party in 1947, after many years of working closely together. However, many candidates, including Medlicott, continued to describe themselves as "Conservative and National Liberal", or other permuations of the two names.

When the East Norfolk constituency was abolished for the 1950 general election, Medlicott was elected as Conservative and National Liberal MP for Central Norfolk. In November 1956 Medlicott was a firm opponent of the Eden government's decision to invade the Suez canal zone, but his stance was not supported by the Central Norfolk Conservative and National Liberal Association which passed a resolution dissociating themselves from the views of their MP.

On 1 May 1957 Medlicott announced that he would not contest the next election, writing to the association to tell them that he rejected their view that the Member of Parliament should do what party leaders tell him. In November 1957, Medlicott resigned the Conservative whip. He was invited to be the Liberal Party candidate for the constituency but declined, and in November 1958 he applied to receive the Conservative whip again (which was granted). Medlicott duly retired from the House of Commons at the 1959 election.

See also

• East Norfolk by-election, 1939

References

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Further reading

Sir Frank Medlicott, The life and political career of a Liberal and Liberal National MP and activist by David Dutton: Journal of Liberal History, Issue 51, Summer 2006

External links