Editing Hugh Gaitskell (section)

== Ministry of Fuel and Power ==
Gaitskell was given his first ministerial appointment in May 1946 as Parliamentary Under-Secretary for Fuel and Power, serving under [[Manny Shinwell|Emmanuel "Manny" Shinwell]]. The job had initially been earmarked for [[Harold Wilson]], with Gaitskell pencilled in to succeed Wilson as Parliamentary Under-Secretary at the [[Ministry of Works (United Kingdom)|Ministry of Works]]. Gaitskell believed that Shinwell, who was suspicious of middle class intellectual socialists, may have picked him in preference to Wilson because the latter was already an expert on the mining industry.<ref>Williams 1985, p132</ref>

Gaitskell played an important role steering the [[Coal Industry Nationalisation Act 1946|Coal Nationalisation Bill]] through the House of Commons, bearing the brunt of the committee stage and winding up the final debate. In the [[Winter of 1946–47 in the United Kingdom|fuel crisis of February 1947]] Shinwell, who had ignored Gaitskell's warnings, had to ask the Cabinet for permission to shut down power stations; Gaitskell was put on and ran the key committee which decided where coal should be sent. In 1947 he once again played an important role steering [[Electricity Act 1947|electricity nationalisation]] through the House of Commons, winding up the debate on the [[second reading]].<ref name="Matthew 2004, p.288" />

On 7 October 1947 Gaitskell was promoted to [[Ministry of Power (United Kingdom)|Minister of Fuel and Power]] in Shinwell's place. He was not made a member of the Cabinet,<ref name="Matthew 2004, p.288" /> although he often attended Cabinet meetings when his input was required.<ref>Dell 1997, p.135</ref> He had committed a gaffe during the municipal election campaign in Hastings earlier that year, when he recommended that people save fuel by taking fewer baths, adding that he had never taken all that many himself; in the House of Commons in late October Churchill joked that it was no wonder that the Government were "in bad odour" and asked the Speaker if he might be permitted to describe Labour ministers as "lousey", normally an unparliamentary expression, as it would be a simple statement of fact.<ref>Williams 1985, p151</ref> Gaitskell made himself very unpopular by abolishing the basic petrol ration for private motorists, but encouraged the building of oil refineries, a move little-noticed at the time which would have important repercussions for the future.<ref name="Matthew 2004, p.288" />