Adam Paterson Ingram (born in
GlasgowGlasgow is the largest city in Scotland and third most populous in the United Kingdom. The city is situated on the River Clyde in the country's west central lowlands...
on 1 February 1947) is a British politician, and
Member of ParliamentA Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a parliament. In many countries the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a unique title, such as senate, and thus also have unique titles for its members, such as senators. Members of...
for
East Kilbride, Strathaven and LesmahagowEast Kilbride, Strathaven and Lesmahagow is a county constituency of the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, which was first used in the general election of 2005...
. He is a member of the
Labour PartyThe Labour Party is a centre-left political party in the United Kingdom. Founded at the start of the 20th century, it has been seen since 1920 as the principal party of the Left in England, Scotland and Wales, but not Northern Ireland, where it has only recently begun to organise again...
.
Early life
He went to Cranhill Senior Secondary School in
CranhillCranhill is a housing estate in the east end of Glasgow.-History:Like many similar publicly-funded 'schemes', it was built in the early 1950s on the outskirts of the city to alleviate the post-war housing shortage...
, Glasgow in the year below
Archy Kirkwood, Baron Kirkwood of KirkhopeArchibald Johnstone Kirkwood, Baron Kirkwood of Kirkhope, PC is a politician in the United Kingdom.-Early life:He went to Cranhill School in Cranhill, Glasgow and studied Pharmacy at Heriot-Watt University, gaining a BSc in 1971...
. He is a graduate of the
Open UniversityThe Open University is the distance learning university founded and funded by the UK Government. It is notable for having an open entry policy, i.e. students' previous academic achievements are not taken into account for entry to most undergraduate courses...
. He became a trade union official with
NALGOThe National and Local Government Officers Association was a British trade union representing mostly local government "white collar" workers. It was formed in 1905 as the National Association of Local Government Officers, and changed its full name in 1952 while retaining its widely-used acronym,...
from 1977-87 after several years working as a computer programmer/analyst from 1967-77. A Justice of the Peace and former chairman of East Kilbride Constituency Labour Party, Ingram was East Kilbride District Councillor from 1980-7 and leader of the District Council from 1984-7.
Parliamentary career
He contested
Strathkelvin and BearsdenStrathkelvin and Bearsden was a parliamentary constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom from 1983...
in 1983.
Ingram entered the Commons in the
1987 electionThe United Kingdom general election of 1987 was held on 11 June 1987 and was the third consecutive victory for the Conservative Party under the leadership of Margaret Thatcher...
and during this parliamentary term acted as Parliamentary Private Secretary to
Neil KinnockNeil Gordon Kinnock, Baron Kinnock of Bedwellty is a Welsh Labour politician, who was a Member of Parliament from 1970 to 1995, and was the Leader of the Opposition from 1983 to 1992, when he resigned after being defeated in the 1992 general election...
. Upon Labour's landslide election victory in 1997 he was appointed Minister of State at the
Northern Ireland OfficeThe Northern Ireland Office is a United Kingdom government department responsible for Northern Ireland affairs. The NIO is led by the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, currently The Rt. Hon. Shaun Woodward, M.P., supported by the Minister of State for Northern Ireland, currently Paul...
with responsibilities including Security. In 2001 he became Armed Forces Minister at the
Ministry of DefenceThe Ministry of Defence is the United Kingdom government department responsible for implementation of government defence policy and is the headquarters of the British Armed Forces....
, a position he held until
Gordon BrownJames Gordon Brown is the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Labour Party. Brown became Prime Minister in June 2007, after the resignation of Tony Blair and three days after becoming leader of the governing Labour Party...
became Prime Minister in 2007. He was the longest serving Defence Minister in British history. He is a member of the
Privy CouncilHer Majesty's Most Honourable Privy Council is a body of advisors to the British Sovereign. Its members are largely senior politicians, who were or are members of either the House of Commons or House of Lords of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.The Privy Council, the...
.
On 27 March 2009, Ingram announced that he would not stand again at the
next electionThe next United Kingdom general election will take place in all constituencies of the United Kingdom for seats in the House of Commons due on or before Thursday 3 June 2010....
.
Controversies
Ingram sued
George GallowayGeorge Galloway is a British politician, author and broadcaster, who has been a Member of Parliament since 1987, and is particularly known for his anti-war views...
and his publisher for alleged defamation regarding remarks Galloway made in his autobiography about Ingram's youthful membership of the Orange Order. Ingram lost the case and was ordered to pay costs.
External links