Duncan McNeil
Encyclopedia
Duncan McNeil is a Scottish Labour Party
Member of the Scottish Parliament
for Greenock and Inverclyde
.
, initially as an apprentice. After working as a co-ordinator for the Unemployed Workers Centres in Glasgow
he became a full-time official in the GMB Union
in 1981 and later a Regional Organiser.
For six years prior to his election from his current constituency, in May 1999, he was on the Labour Party's
Scottish Executive Committee.
Mr McNeil served on the Enterprise and Lifelong Learning Committee for 15 months and went on to became Labour's Chief Whip
. He was elected to the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body
in December 2001.
Following re-election in May 2003, Mr McNeil departed the Whips' Office to be Chair of the Scottish Parliamentary Labour Party. Additionally, he is now Convener of the Local Government and Communities Committee.
He caused controversy in 2006 when suggesting in a parliamentary debate that oral contraceptives should be added to prescribed methadone for drug addicts in order to limit the number of children born to parents with a history of substance abuse.
He has been a vocal campaigner for tougher penalties for knife crime and for better support and protection for vulnerable children.
Scottish Labour Party
The Scottish Labour Party is the section of the British Labour Party which operates in Scotland....
Member of the Scottish Parliament
Scottish Parliament
The Scottish Parliament is the devolved national, unicameral legislature of Scotland, located in the Holyrood area of the capital, Edinburgh. The Parliament, informally referred to as "Holyrood", is a democratically elected body comprising 129 members known as Members of the Scottish Parliament...
for Greenock and Inverclyde
Greenock and Inverclyde (Scottish Parliament constituency)
Greenock and Inverclyde is a constituency of the Scottish Parliament . It elects one Member of the Scottish Parliament by the first past the post method of election...
.
Career
From 1965 to 1979 he worked as a boilermaker at Scott LithgowScott Lithgow
-History:The Company was formed in 1967 by the merger of Scotts Shipbuilding and Engineering Company and Lithgows. Scott Lithgow was based in Port Glasgow and Greenock on the lower Clyde in Scotland. Scott Lithgow was nationalised and subsumed into British Shipbuilders in 1977...
, initially as an apprentice. After working as a co-ordinator for the Unemployed Workers Centres in Glasgow
Glasgow
Glasgow 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...
he became a full-time official in the GMB Union
GMB Union
The GMB is a general trade union in the United Kingdom, and has more than 600,000 members. Its members are drawn from many sectors, with particular strength amongst manual workers in local government and the health service...
in 1981 and later a Regional Organiser.
For six years prior to his election from his current constituency, in May 1999, he was on the Labour Party's
Labour Party (UK)
The Labour Party is a centre-left democratic socialist party in the United Kingdom. It surpassed the Liberal Party in general elections during the early 1920s, forming minority governments under Ramsay MacDonald in 1924 and 1929-1931. The party was in a wartime coalition from 1940 to 1945, after...
Scottish Executive Committee.
Mr McNeil served on the Enterprise and Lifelong Learning Committee for 15 months and went on to became Labour's Chief Whip
Chief Whip
The Chief Whip is a political office in some legislatures assigned to an elected member whose task is to administer the whipping system that ensures that members of the party attend and vote as the party leadership desires.-The Whips Office:...
. He was elected to the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body
Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body
The Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body is a body of the Scottish Parliament responsible for the administration of the Parliament. It also has a role in provision of services to Commissioners and other statutory appointments made by the Parliament....
in December 2001.
Following re-election in May 2003, Mr McNeil departed the Whips' Office to be Chair of the Scottish Parliamentary Labour Party. Additionally, he is now Convener of the Local Government and Communities Committee.
He caused controversy in 2006 when suggesting in a parliamentary debate that oral contraceptives should be added to prescribed methadone for drug addicts in order to limit the number of children born to parents with a history of substance abuse.
He has been a vocal campaigner for tougher penalties for knife crime and for better support and protection for vulnerable children.
External links
- Duncan McNeil's Website
- http://www.theyworkforyou.com/msp/duncan_mcneil
- http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/msp/memberspages/duncan_mcneil/index.htm
- http://www.publicwhip.org.uk/mp.php?mpc=Greenock+and+Inverclyde&house=scotland
- http://www.scottishlabour.org.uk/msp/duncan_mcneil/764/
- http://news.bbc.co.uk/democracylive/hi/representatives/profiles/32616.stm