Archibald Gossling

{{Short description|British trade unionist & politician (1878-1950)}}

{{Use dmy dates|date=February 2018}}

{{Use British English|date=February 2018}}

Archibald George Gossling (1878 – 19 May 1950){{Rayment-hc|y|date=March 2012}} was a British trade unionist and Labour politician.{{cite news |title=General Election 1929. Results in Detail |newspaper=The Times |date=1 June 1929 |page=ii }}

Gossling was a joiner by trade, and became a member of the executive of the National Federation of Building Trades Operatives and the Amalgamated Society of Woodworkers. In 1924 he was chosen to contest the parliamentary constituency of Birmingham Yardley for the Labour Party.{{cite news |title=General Election. First List of Candidates |newspaper=The Times |date=15 October 1924 |page=7 }} He failed to unseat the sitting Coalition Conservative MP, Alfred Jephcott, who retained the seat with a majority of nearly 2,000 votes.{{cite news |title=General Election. First Returns. Polling in the Boroughs. |newspaper=The Times |date=30 October 1924 |page=6 }}

At the next general election, five years later, Gossling was again chosen as Labour candidate. This time he faced two opponents, Edward Salt of the Conservatives

and C A Beaumont of the Liberal Party. Gossling benefited from a large rise in support for Labour and the presence of the third candidate. He was elected to the Commons with a majority of 4,366 votes over Salt, while Beaumont secured 5,500 votes.

Two years later another election was held. This followed the collapse of the Labour administration and the formation of a National Government, and Labour's vote dropped sharply. Gossling's Conservative opponent was again Edward Salt, the only other candidate being E J Bartlett of the New Party. Gossling was heavily defeated, with Salt winning the seat for the government by a majority of more than 15,000 votes.{{cite news |title=General Election 1931. Results in Detail |newspaper=The Times |date=29 October 1931 |page=ii }}