James Winstone (9 February 1863 – 27 July 1921) was a British trade unionist
Born in Risca, Winstone worked from the age of eight, first at a local brickworks, then at Risca United Colliery. He was elected checkweighman, and worked with William Brace to campaign against the sliding pay scale. As a result, he was a prominent founder member of the South Wales Miners' Federation (SWMF) in 1898.Robin Page Arnot, South Wales Miners, p.142
Winstone was also active in the Independent Labour Party, and was a Baptist lay preacher.Kenneth Douglas Brown, The First Labour Party, p.85 He was elected for the Labour Party to Risca Urban District Council, then to Abersychan council, which he chaired in 1911. In 1907, he was elected to Monmouthshire County Council.Justice of the Peace, Vol.85, p.362 He stood at Monmouth Boroughs at the 1906 general election, but received no backing from his union, and was not elected.David Howell, British Workers and the Independent Labour Party, 1888-1906, p.28 In 1912, he was elected as Vice President of the SWMF, the first socialist to such a position.Robin Page Arnot, South Wales Miners, p.333 He was selected as the Labour candidate for the 1915 Merthyr Tydfil by-election, the seat having previously been held by Keir Hardie, but he was defeated by Charles Butt Stanton of the British Workers League, who had resigned as a miners' agent to run with Conservative and Liberal support as a pro-war independent labour candidate.Kenneth O. Morgan, Wales in British Politics, p.276Kenneth O. Morgan, Rebirth of a nation: Wales 1880-1980, p.165 In 1915, he replaced Brace as union president, serving until his death. He also stood in Merthyr at the 1918 general election, but was again unsuccessful. In 1920, he chaired Monmouthshire County Council."Winstone, James", Dictionary of Welsh Biography
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