Paul Scriven
Encyclopedia
Paul James Scriven was the Liberal Democrat
Leader of Sheffield City Council
(2008–2011), on which he represents Broomhill.
Scriven was born in Huddersfield
, West Yorkshire
as the middle of three children. He was educated at Rawthorpe High School
, Huddersfield
, but after working for two years for a road construction firm, he returned to education at 18 to study his "O" and "A" levels at Huddersfield Technical College. He attended Manchester Polytechnic (now Manchester Metropolitan University
) to read for a BA. From 1989 to 1990 he was president of its Students Union.
He started his working life 'fast tracked' as a graduate trainee in the National Health Service
. He worked at a number of hospitals in the UK and later for a number of private companies. In 2005 he set up his own travel company, "Your Asia Holidays", and works as its Managing Director.
Scriven was elected to Sheffield City Council in May 2000, and became Leader of the Council in 2008. He was the Liberal Democrat candidate
for the Sheffield Central constituency at the 2010 general election, losing to Labour's
Paul Blomfield
by 165 votes.
In November 2010 Scriven received a Leader Award from the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe
, awarded annually to "recognise... the work of outstanding local and regional liberal and democrat politicians".
In December 2010, Scriven was criticised by the local press when a promotional music video for a Sheffield hotel starring the council leader appeared on political blogs. The video is a re-worked version of the Lou Reed
song "Perfect Day" but with lyrics changed to tell the story of a tired businessman arriving at the hotel after a "Hectic Day".
In April 2011, The Guardian
newspaper reported that though he was the "closest ally in local government" to Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg
MP, Scriven publicly questioned the UK coalition government
's decision to "front-load" spending cuts, which forced councils to slash services on the eve of the local elections in the following month.
Scriven has sat on a number of national bodies on public sector reforms and local government efficincies, both for the Liberal Democrats and the UK Government.
Liberal Democrats
The Liberal Democrats are a social liberal political party in the United Kingdom which supports constitutional and electoral reform, progressive taxation, wealth taxation, human rights laws, cultural liberalism, banking reform and civil liberties .The party was formed in 1988 by a merger of the...
Leader of Sheffield City Council
Sheffield City Council
Sheffield City Council is the city council for the metropolitan borough of Sheffield in South Yorkshire, England. It consists of 84 councillors, elected to represent 28 wards, each with three councillors...
(2008–2011), on which he represents Broomhill.
Scriven was born in Huddersfield
Huddersfield
Huddersfield is a large market town within the Metropolitan Borough of Kirklees, in West Yorkshire, England, situated halfway between Leeds and Manchester. It lies north of London, and south of Bradford, the nearest city....
, West Yorkshire
West Yorkshire
West Yorkshire is a metropolitan county within the Yorkshire and the Humber region of England with a population of 2.2 million. West Yorkshire came into existence as a metropolitan county in 1974 after the passage of the Local Government Act 1972....
as the middle of three children. He was educated at Rawthorpe High School
Rawthorpe High School
Rawthorpe High School is a comprehensive school in Rawthorpe, Huddersfield, England controlled by Kirklees MBC. It has specialist status as a Arts College. The Headteacher is Joan Young and the Head of the Specialist Status is Helen Turnbull....
, Huddersfield
Huddersfield
Huddersfield is a large market town within the Metropolitan Borough of Kirklees, in West Yorkshire, England, situated halfway between Leeds and Manchester. It lies north of London, and south of Bradford, the nearest city....
, but after working for two years for a road construction firm, he returned to education at 18 to study his "O" and "A" levels at Huddersfield Technical College. He attended Manchester Polytechnic (now Manchester Metropolitan University
Manchester Metropolitan University
Manchester Metropolitan University is a university in North West England. Its headquarters and central campus is in the city of Manchester, but there are outlying facilities in the county of Cheshire. It is the third largest university in the United Kingdom in terms of student numbers, behind the...
) to read for a BA. From 1989 to 1990 he was president of its Students Union.
He started his working life 'fast tracked' as a graduate trainee in the National Health Service
National Health Service
The National Health Service is the shared name of three of the four publicly funded healthcare systems in the United Kingdom. They provide a comprehensive range of health services, the vast majority of which are free at the point of use to residents of the United Kingdom...
. He worked at a number of hospitals in the UK and later for a number of private companies. In 2005 he set up his own travel company, "Your Asia Holidays", and works as its Managing Director.
Scriven was elected to Sheffield City Council in May 2000, and became Leader of the Council in 2008. He was the Liberal Democrat candidate
Prospective parliamentary candidate
Prospective parliamentary candidate is a term used in British politics to refer to candidates selected by political parties to fight individual constituencies in advance of a general election. This terminology was motivated by the strict limits on the amount of expenses incurred by an actual...
for the Sheffield Central constituency at the 2010 general election, losing to Labour'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...
Paul Blomfield
Paul Blomfield
Paul Blomfield is a British Labour Party politician who has been the Member of Parliament for Sheffield Central since 2010. Twice Sabbatical President of the Students' Union at St John's College, York, he was also a member of the National Executive Committees of both the National Union of...
by 165 votes.
In November 2010 Scriven received a Leader Award from the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe
Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe
The Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe is a transnational alliance between two European political parties: the European Liberal Democrat and Reform Party and the European Democratic Party. It has political groups in the European Parliament, the EU Committee of the Regions, the...
, awarded annually to "recognise... the work of outstanding local and regional liberal and democrat politicians".
In December 2010, Scriven was criticised by the local press when a promotional music video for a Sheffield hotel starring the council leader appeared on political blogs. The video is a re-worked version of the Lou Reed
Lou Reed
Lewis Allan "Lou" Reed is an American rock musician, songwriter, and photographer. He is best known as guitarist, vocalist, and principal songwriter of The Velvet Underground, and for his successful solo career, which has spanned several decades...
song "Perfect Day" but with lyrics changed to tell the story of a tired businessman arriving at the hotel after a "Hectic Day".
In April 2011, The Guardian
The Guardian
The Guardian, formerly known as The Manchester Guardian , is a British national daily newspaper in the Berliner format...
newspaper reported that though he was the "closest ally in local government" to Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg
Nick Clegg
Nicholas William Peter "Nick" Clegg is a British Liberal Democrat politician who is currently the Deputy Prime Minister, Lord President of the Council and Minister for Constitutional and Political Reform in the coalition government of which David Cameron is the Prime Minister...
MP, Scriven publicly questioned the UK coalition government
United Kingdom coalition government (2010–present)
The ConservativeLiberal Democrat coalition is the present Government of the United Kingdom, formed after the 2010 general election. The Conservative Party and the Liberal Democrats entered into discussions which culminated in the 2010 coalition agreement, setting out a programme for government...
's decision to "front-load" spending cuts, which forced councils to slash services on the eve of the local elections in the following month.
Scriven has sat on a number of national bodies on public sector reforms and local government efficincies, both for the Liberal Democrats and the UK Government.