Rise of Neville Chamberlain in January 1924, and Ramsay MacDonald became the first Labour Prime Minister. Chamberlain's majority in Birmingham Ladywood was cut yet again, this time to 1,500 votes. With the Unionists in opposition, Chamberlain managed to broker a reconciliation between his brother (and the other Coalitionists) and the new leadership, and Austen Chamberlain resumed his place on the front benches. The Labour government fell within months, necessitating another general election. Neville Chamberlain was challenged by Labour candidate Oswald Mosley, who later led the British Union of Fascists. Mosley campaigned aggressively in Ladywood; and accused Chamberlain of being a "landlords' hireling". The outraged
Rise of Neville Chamberlain of the business. In November 1897, he purchased (with assistance from his family) Hoskins & Company, a manufacturer of metal ship berths. Chamberlain served as managing director of Hoskins for 17 years, during which time the company prospered. Chamberlain introduced a profit-sharing scheme at Hoskins which he credited with ensuring industrial peace, and opened a medical clinic for the workers. His business acumen raised him in the eyes of his father, who told a friend that of his two sons, "Neville is really the clever one" and but for his lack of interest in politics, "I would back him to