George Hall (British administrator)

George Hall (1881-1965) was a British Labour politician and colonial administrator. He served in Parliament for Aberdare from 1922 to 1946, and for Colne Valley from 1950 to 1959.

Hall held several ministerial positions, including:

• Civil Lord of the Admiralty (1929-1931): Under Ramsay MacDonald.
• Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for the Colonies (1940-1943): During World War II.
• Financial Secretary to the Admiralty (1943-1945): Towards the end of the war.
• Secretary of State for the Colonies (1945-1946): In Clement Attlee's post-war government.
• First Lord of the Admiralty (1946-1951): Also under Attlee. He was elevated to the peerage as Viscount Hall of Cynon Valley in 1946, requiring him to leave the House of Commons.

As Secretary of State for the Colonies, Hall was responsible for overseeing the early stages of decolonization after World War II. His tenure was marked by the beginning of negotiations regarding independence for India (although India Office business was separate), and managing the post-war situation in other British colonies. He was succeeded by Arthur Creech Jones.

His later role as First Lord of the Admiralty involved overseeing the Royal Navy's transition to peacetime operations and dealing with post-war budget constraints.