Neil Gerrard
Encyclopedia
Neil Francis Gerrard is a British
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...

 Labour Party
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...

 politician, who was the Member of Parliament
Member of Parliament
A Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...

 (MP) for Walthamstow
Walthamstow (UK Parliament constituency)
Walthamstow is a borough constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It elects one Member of Parliament by the first past the post system of election.- 1885–1918 :...

 from 1992
United Kingdom general election, 1992
The United Kingdom general election of 1992 was held on 9 April 1992, and was the fourth consecutive victory for the Conservative Party. This election result was one of the biggest surprises in 20th Century politics, as polling leading up to the day of the election showed Labour under leader Neil...

 until 2010.

Early life

Gerrard was born in Farnworth
Farnworth
Farnworth is within the Metropolitan Borough of Bolton in Greater Manchester, England. It is located southeast of Bolton, 6 miles south-west of Bury , and northwest of Manchester....

, Lancashire
Lancashire
Lancashire is a non-metropolitan county of historic origin in the North West of England. It takes its name from the city of Lancaster, and is sometimes known as the County of Lancaster. Although Lancaster is still considered to be the county town, Lancashire County Council is based in Preston...

 and educated at Manchester Grammar School
Manchester Grammar School
The Manchester Grammar School is the largest independent day school for boys in the UK . It is based in Manchester, England...

 and Wadham College, Oxford
Wadham College, Oxford
Wadham College is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom, located at the southern end of Parks Road in central Oxford. It was founded by Nicholas and Dorothy Wadham, wealthy Somerset landowners, during the reign of King James I...

 where he was awarded a BA
Bachelor of Arts
A Bachelor of Arts , from the Latin artium baccalaureus, is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate course or program in either the liberal arts, the sciences, or both...

 degree in natural science
Natural science
The natural sciences are branches of science that seek to elucidate the rules that govern the natural world by using empirical and scientific methods...

 in 1964. He later studied at the Chelsea College of Science and Technology
Chelsea College of Science and Technology
Chelsea College of Science and Technology was established as a College of Advanced Technology on a single site on the corner of Manresa Road and King's Road, Chelsea, London as part of the University of London in 1966 and was granted its Royal Charter in 1971....

 where he received a MEd
Master of Education
The Master of Education is a postgraduate academic master's degree awarded by universities in a large number of countries. This degree in education often includes the following majors: curriculum and instruction, counseling, and administration. It is often conferred for educators advancing in...

 in Education in 1973. He received a Diploma in Professional Studies in Education (DPSE) from the Polytechnic of the South Bank
London South Bank University
London South Bank University is a university in south London. With over 25,000 students and 1,700 staff, it is based in the London Borough of Southwark, near the South Bank of the River Thames, from which it takes its name...

 in 1983.

From 1965 he taught
Teacher
A teacher or schoolteacher is a person who provides education for pupils and students . The role of teacher is often formal and ongoing, carried out at a school or other place of formal education. In many countries, a person who wishes to become a teacher must first obtain specified professional...

 at the Queen Elizabeth's Grammar School for Boys
Queen Elizabeth's Grammar School for Boys
Queen Elizabeth's School, Barnet is a boys' grammar school in Barnet, North London, which was founded in 1573 by Edward Underne, Robert Dudley, 1st Earl of Leicester and others, in the name of Queen Elizabeth I..-Admissions:...

, Barnet
Barnet
High Barnet or Chipping Barnet is a place in the London Borough of Barnet, North London, England. It is a suburban development built around a twelfth-century settlement and is located north north-west of Charing Cross. Its name is often abbreviated to Barnet, which is also the name of the London...

, leaving in 1968 to take up the position of lecturer in computing
Computing
Computing is usually defined as the activity of using and improving computer hardware and software. It is the computer-specific part of information technology...

 at the Hackney College
Hackney College
Hackney College is sometimes used to refer to Hackney Community College, a popular further education college in London Borough of Hackney...

, where he remained until his election to parliament
Palace of Westminster
The Palace of Westminster, also known as the Houses of Parliament or Westminster Palace, is the meeting place of the two houses of the Parliament of the United Kingdom—the House of Lords and the House of Commons...

 24 years later.

He was elected as a councillor in the London Borough of Waltham Forest
London Borough of Waltham Forest
The London Borough of Waltham Forest is in northeast London, England. Officially, it forms part of Outer London as it borders Essex. However, it can be seen that the NE London boundary does not extend far compared to elsewhere in the city...

 in 1973; he was the leader of the Labour group from 1983, and the leader of the Council from 1986 until he left the council in 1990.

Parliamentary career

He was selected to contest the Chingford constituency
Chingford (UK Parliament constituency)
Chingford was a parliamentary constituency centred on the town of Chingford in the London Borough of Waltham Forest. It returned one Member of Parliament to the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom by the first past the post system....

 at the 1979 general election
United Kingdom general election, 1979
The United Kingdom general election of 1979 was held on 3 May 1979 to elect 635 members to the British House of Commons. The Conservative Party, led by Margaret Thatcher ousted the incumbent Labour government of James Callaghan with a parliamentary majority of 43 seats...

 but was defeated by the sitting Conservative
Conservative Party (UK)
The Conservative Party, formally the Conservative and Unionist Party, is a centre-right political party in the United Kingdom that adheres to the philosophies of conservatism and British unionism. It is the largest political party in the UK, and is currently the largest single party in the House...

 MP Norman Tebbit
Norman Tebbit
Norman Beresford Tebbit, Baron Tebbit, CH, PC , is a British politician. A member of the Conservative Party, he served in the Cabinet from 1981 to 1987 as Secretary of State for Employment...

 by 12,383 votes. He was elected to the House of Commons at the 1992 general election
United Kingdom general election, 1992
The United Kingdom general election of 1992 was held on 9 April 1992, and was the fourth consecutive victory for the Conservative Party. This election result was one of the biggest surprises in 20th Century politics, as polling leading up to the day of the election showed Labour under leader Neil...

 for Walthamstow, when he unseated the one-term Tory Hugo Summerson
Hugo Summerson
Hugo Hawksley Fitzthomas Summerson is a British Conservative politician.At the 1987 general election, Summerson was elected Member of Parliament for Walthamstow, gaining 39% of the vote and ousting the Labour incumbent Eric Deakins...

 by 3,022 votes. He received 45.7% of the vote, compared to his Conservative opponent who received 37.2% of the vote.

He made his maiden speech
Maiden speech
A maiden speech is the first speech given by a newly elected or appointed member of a legislature or parliament.Traditions surrounding maiden speeches vary from country to country...

 on 12 May 1992.

In Parliament he served on the environment
Secretary of State for the Environment
The Secretary of State for the Environment was a UK cabinet position, responsible for the Department of the Environment . This was created by Edward Heath as a combination of the Ministry of Housing and Local Government, the Ministry of Transport and the Ministry of Public Building and Works on 15...

 select committee from 1995 until he was made a Parliamentary Private Secretary
Parliamentary Private Secretary
A Parliamentary Private Secretary is a role given to a United Kingdom Member of Parliament by a senior minister in government or shadow minister to act as their contact for the House of Commons; this role is junior to that of Parliamentary Under-Secretary, which is a ministerial post, salaried by...

 (PPS) to the Financial Secretary to the Treasury Dawn Primarolo
Dawn Primarolo
Dawn Primarolo is a British Labour Party politician who has been the Member of Parliament for Bristol South since 1987. She was Minister of State for Children, Young People and Families at the Department for Children, Schools and Families from June 2009 to May 2010 and is now a Deputy Speaker of...

 following the 1997 General Election
United Kingdom general election, 1997
The United Kingdom general election, 1997 was held on 1 May 1997, more than five years after the previous election on 9 April 1992, to elect 659 members to the British House of Commons. The Labour Party ended its 18 years in opposition under the leadership of Tony Blair, and won the general...

. He resigned as Primarolo's PPS just a few months later in 1997 over lone-parent
Single parent
Single parent is a term that is mostly used to suggest that one parent has most of the day to day responsibilities in the raising of the child or children, which would categorize them as the dominant caregiver...

 benefits cuts introduced by the Secretary of State for Social Security Harriet Harman
Harriet Harman
Harriet Ruth Harman QC is a British Labour Party politician, who is the Member of Parliament for Camberwell and Peckham, and was MP for the predecessorPeckham constituency from 1982 to 1997...

. He served on several select committees and was a member of the administration committee since the 2005 general election
United Kingdom general election, 2005
The United Kingdom general election of 2005 was held on Thursday, 5 May 2005 to elect 646 members to the British House of Commons. The Labour Party under Tony Blair won its third consecutive victory, but with a majority of 66, reduced from 160....

. He was the chairman of the all-party groups on AIDS
AIDS
Acquired immune deficiency syndrome or acquired immunodeficiency syndrome is a disease of the human immune system caused by the human immunodeficiency virus...

 and on refugee
Refugee
A refugee is a person who outside her country of origin or habitual residence because she has suffered persecution on account of race, religion, nationality, political opinion, or because she is a member of a persecuted 'social group'. Such a person may be referred to as an 'asylum seeker' until...

s.

He is a left-winger
Left-wing politics
In politics, Left, left-wing and leftist generally refer to support for social change to create a more egalitarian society...

 within the Labour Party, and was a member of the Socialist Campaign Group
Socialist Campaign Group
The Socialist Campaign Group is a left-wing democratic socialist grouping of Labour Party Members of Parliament in the House of Commons of the United Kingdom. It was formed in December 1982 as an alternative Parliamentary left-wing group to the Tribune Group...

 and formerly a member of Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament
Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament
The Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament is an anti-nuclear organisation that advocates unilateral nuclear disarmament by the United Kingdom, international nuclear disarmament and tighter international arms regulation through agreements such as the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty...

's national council. He is a director of the Theatre Royal, Stratford East.

Gerrard announced on 23 February 2007 that he would be standing down as an MP at the next general election. http://www.walthamforestguardian.co.uk/display.var.1215249.0.mp_neil_gerrard_to_stand_down_at_next_election.php

Personal life

He married Marion Fitzgerald in 1968; the couple had two sons, but they divorced in 1983. Gerrard has lived in Walthamstow
Walthamstow
Walthamstow is a district of northeast London, England, located in the London Borough of Waltham Forest. It is situated north-east of Charing Cross...

 for the past thirty years, and he used to own a racing greyhound
Greyhound racing
Greyhound racing is the sport of racing greyhounds. The dogs chase a lure on a track until they arrive at the finish line. The one that arrives first is the winner....

 with fellow MP Harry Cohen
Harry Cohen
Harry Michael Cohen is a British Labour Party politician, who was the Member of Parliament for Leyton and Wanstead from 1983 to 2010.-Early life:...

 which, although now retired, raced at the Walthamstow Dog Track.

External links

The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.  The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.
 
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