The Right Honourable Alfred (Alf) Robens, Baron Robens of Woldingham (18 December 1910 – 27 June 1999) was a British Labour politician and, later, chaired the National Coal Board. The Right Honourable (abbreviated The Rt Hon. ... December 18 is the 352nd day of the year (353rd in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar. ... -1... June 27 is the 178th day of the year (179th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar, with 187 days remaining. ... 1999 (MCMXCIX) was a common year starting on Friday, and was designated the International Year of Older Persons by the United Nations. ... The Labour Party has been the principal left wing political party of the United Kingdom since the early 20th century (see British politics). ... The National Coal Board (NCB) was the nationalised British coal mining company. ...

Robens was an official in the Union of Distributive and Allied Workers from 1935. He served as a councillor on Manchster City Council 1942-47. He was elected Member of Parliament in 1945 to represent the mining constituency of Wansbeck in Northumberland, moving to the adjacent seat of Blyth, later Blyth Valley in 1950. He served as MP for Blyth until 1961, when, unexpectedly, he was created a life peer as Baron Robens on 28 June 1961 and became the chairman of the National Coal Board. The Union of Shop, Distributive and Allied Workers (USDAW) is a trade union in the United Kingdom. ... A Member of Parliament, or MP, is a representative elected by the voters of an electoral district to a parliament; in the Westminster system, specifically to the lower house. ... 1945 (MCMXLV) was a common year starting on Monday (link will take you to calendar). ... The El Chino Mine located near Silver City, New Mexico is an open-pit copper mine This article is about mineral extraction. ... Wansbeck is a constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. ... Northumberland is a traditional, ceremonial and administrative county in northern England. ... Blyth Valley is a constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. ... 1961 (MCMLXI) was a common year starting on Sunday (link will take you to calendar). ... In the United Kingdom, Life Peers are appointed members of the Peerage whose titles may not be inherited (those whose titles are inheritable are known as hereditary peers). ... (Some entries on this page have been duplicated on August 1. ... 1961 (MCMLXI) was a common year starting on Sunday (link will take you to calendar). ...

Amongst those who were less than complimentary about this sudden elevation were his successor Eddie Milne. As Chairman of the NCB, Robens was associated with serious cuts in the mining industry, many of them a reflection of market forces and government policies which originated before he assumed the post, but his reputation undoubtedly suffered. The largest single blow to his reputation arguably came about when he was responsible for the NCB refusing to fund work to remove the remaining spoil heaps from the village of Aberfan after a 1966 disaster which engulfed Pantglas school in a landslide of slurry, killing 116 children and 28 adults. Roben's refusal to postpone his installation as Chancellor of the University of Surrey to attend the scene, so that he did not arrive until the following day, and the insistence that the disaster fund be raised from charitable donations is seen by some as compelling evidence that Robens was either insensitive or an extraordinarily hamfisted politician [1]. Eddie Milne succeeded Alfred Robens as MP for Blyth, later known as Blyth Valley, in 1960. ... Aberfan (in Welsh the f is pronounced like a v in standard English) is a small village 5 miles (8 km) south of Merthyr Tydfil in South Wales. ... Various governments have a Chancellor who serves as some form of junior or senior minister. ... University of Surrey The University of Surrey (UniS) received its charter on September 9, 1966, and was at that time situated near Battersea Park in south-west London. ...

Robens became a director of the Bank of England in 1966. He joined the board of Times Newspapers Ltd in 1967 and became Chairman of Vickers Ltd in 1971. The Bank of England is the central bank of the United Kingdom, sometimes known as The Old Lady of Threadneedle Street or The Old Lady. The nearest London Underground station is Bank station. ... Vickers Armstrong (Aircraft) company logo Vickers, founded as the Vickers Company in 1828, was a British manufacturer, primarily of military equipment, traditionally based in Barrow-in-Furness. ...