Charles Beattie - Farmers' Union

Farmers' Union

As a strong supporter of the Ulster Farmers' Union, Beattie was appointed by the Tyrone County UFU as its representative on the local appeal tribunal under the National Assistance and National Insurance Acts when they were introduced in Northern Ireland in 1946. Self-employed farmers were in a complicated situation with National Insurance and the appeal tribunal often heard their cases; Beattie later stressed that "I thought .. it was the farmers only I was working for". He was paid 3s. 6d. for attending one meeting in 1948, but early in 1949 Beattie informed the Ministry that he would not seek reappointment.

In 1951 Beattie was chosen as Secretary of the Omagh branch of the UFU. In June 1952, he attended a meeting of the County Tyrone Committee of the Ulster Farmers' Union at which he complained that a consignment of potatoes had been sent to Londonderry and left on the quay for six weeks before the Ministry had rejected them. Beattie's willingness to take up grievances led the UFU to select him to be a new member of its delegation to the Tyrone Committee of Agriculture.

Although he had previously resigned from the National Assistance tribunals, he came under pressure from his friends at the UFU in early 1953 to accept reappointment. He gave in to the pressure and on 9 March was reappointed, receiving with his letter of appointment a document identified as "A/cs.150" which stated "Service on the bodies referred to above is regarded as voluntary and unpaid". He was not to know it, but volunteering for this position would have serious consequences three years later.