Alan Campbell | |
|---|---|
 Official portrait, 2020 | |
| Opposition Chief Whip in the House of Commons | |
| Assumed office 9 May 2021 | |
| Leader | Keir Starmer |
| Preceded by | Nick Brown |
| Opposition Deputy Chief Whip in the House of Commons | |
| In office 8 October 2010 – 9 May 2021 | |
| Leader | Ed Miliband Harriet Harman (Acting) Jeremy Corbyn Keir Starmer |
| Preceded by | John Randall |
| Succeeded by | Lilian Greenwood |
| Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Crime Reduction | |
| In office 5 October 2008 – 11 May 2010 | |
| Prime Minister | Gordon Brown |
| Preceded by | Vernon Coaker |
| Succeeded by | James Brokenshire |
| Lord Commissioner of the Treasury | |
| In office 5 May 2006 – 5 October 2008 | |
| Prime Minister | Tony Blair Gordon Brown |
| Preceded by | Vernon Coaker |
| Succeeded by | Tony Cunningham |
| Member of Parliament for Tynemouth | |
| Assumed office 1 May 1997 | |
| Preceded by | Neville Trotter |
| Majority | 4,857 (8.7%) |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 8 July 1957 Consett, County Durham, England |
| Political party | Labour |
| Spouse | Jayne Lamont |
| Alma mater | Lancaster University University of Leeds Northumbria University |
| Website | Official website |
Sir Alan Campbell (born 8 July 1957) is a British Labour Party politician who has been the Member of Parliament (MP) for Tynemouth since 1997. He was appointed as Chief Whip of the Labour Party in May 2021.
Campbell was born in Consett and went to Blackfyne Grammar School in the town before attending Lancaster University where he was awarded a BA in politics. He then gained a PGCE at the University of Leeds, before finishing his education at Newcastle Polytechnic with an MA in history.[1] He began his career as a history teacher at Whitley Bay High School in 1981; after eight years there became head of the sixth form at Hirst High School, Ashington, then head of department, where he remained until he was elected to the House of Commons.
He contested the Conservative-held marginal constituency of Tynemouth at the 1997 general election where he defeated Martin Callanan by 11,273 votes. He made his maiden speech on 2 June 1997.[2] Following his election, Campbell was a member of the public accounts select committee for the duration of his first parliament. After the 2001 general election he became the Parliamentary Private Secretary (PPS) to the Minister of State at the Cabinet Office Gus Macdonald, and in 2003 became the PPS to Adam Ingram at the Ministry of Defence. He entered the government of Tony Blair after the 2005 general election as an assistant whip, being promoted to a full whip in 2006. On 5 October 2008, Campbell was promoted to the Home Office as a Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State.
At the 2010 general election, Campbell was one of the very few Labour MPs re-elected by an increased majority. After Ed Miliband was appointed party leader, he was appointed Deputy Chief Whip of the Labour Party, serving under Rosie Winterton as Chief Whip.
He became the new Chief Whip of the Labour Party in the May 2021 shadow cabinet reshuffle.[3]
In Parliament, Campbell has not broken the Labour Party whip and voted in favour of committing UK troops to the Iraq war. As a member of the government, he supported proposals for foundation hospitals, top-up fees for students, identity cards, and renewing Trident missiles.[citation needed]
With regard to issues on which there was no whip, Campbell supported equal gay rights, legal restrictions on hunting foxes with hounds, and a partially elected House of Lords.[citation needed]
He opposed raising the tuition fee cap to £9,000 and the government's education proposals on academies and free schools.[4][non-primary source needed]
Campbell was not found to have misappropriated any funds by the Legg inquiry in 2010.[5]
He married Jayne Lamont in August 1991 in Newcastle upon Tyne and they have a son, James (born September 1995), a daughter, Emily (born September 1993).[citation needed]
In May 2000, he had an operation at Newcastle General Hospital to remove a benign tumour from the top of his spine.[citation needed]
He was knighted as Knight Bachelor in the 2019 New Year Honours List. [6]
