- Mike Hall (politician)
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Mike Hall MP Member of Parliament
for Weaver ValeIn office
1 May 1997 – 6 May 2010Preceded by Constituency Created Succeeded by Graham Evans Majority 6,855 (17.4%) Member of Parliament
for Warrington SouthIn office
9 April 1992 – 1 May 1997Preceded by Chris Butler Succeeded by Helen Southworth Majority 191 (0.3%) Personal details Born 20 September 1952
Ashton-under-Lyne, LancashireNationality British Political party Labour Spouse(s) Lesley Evelyn Gosling Alma mater University of Chester, University of Wales, Bangor Michael Thomas Hall (born 20 September 1952) is a British Labour Party politician who was the Member of Parliament (MP) for Weaver Vale from 1997 to 2010.
Contents
Early life
Mike Hall was born in Ashton-under-Lyne, Greater Manchester, and was educated locally at St Mary's RC Primary School (now moved to new premises and re-named "Our Lady of Mount Carmel"[1]) and St Damian's Catholic Secondary Modern School (now St Damian's Science College[2]) on Lees Road, both in Ashton-under-Lyne. He studied at Padgate Training College, Warrington, where he was awarded a Certificate in Education in 1977. He later returned to the college, which had been renamed North Cheshire College, where he received a Bachelor of Education degree in 1987 (the college has since merged with another to become Warrington Collegiate, though its higher education faculty is now part of the University of Chester). He completed his studies at the University of Wales, Bangor, where he earned a Postgraduate diploma in education in 1989.
He joined Imperial Chemical Industries in Blackley, Manchester, in 1969 as a scientific laboratory assistant, leaving to go to university in 1973. He became a history and physical education teacher in 1977 in Bolton, where he remained until he became a support teacher with the Halton community assessment team from 1985 until his election to Parliament.
He joined the Labour Party in 1977 and was elected as a councillor to the Warrington Borough Council in 1979. He became Warrington's deputy leader in 1984, and leader for seven years from 1985, before standing down in 1993. He was also elected to the Great Sankey Parish Council for four years from 1979. He served for four years on the Birchwood and Croft Parish Council from 1983.
Parliamentary career
Hall was elected to the House of Commons for Warrington South at the 1992 general election, defeating the sitting Conservative MP Chris Butler by just 191 votes. He made his maiden speech on 6 May 1992.[3] Following boundary changes, at the 1997 general election, he moved from Warrington South to the newly-created, nearby constituency of Weaver Vale, which covers Northwich and parts of Runcorn. He won this seat with a safe 13,448 majority, and continued to hold the seat comfortably, albeit with reduced majorities at each subsequent election.
In Parliament he served as a member of the Public Accounts Committee (1992–1997), and became the Parliamentary Private Secretary (PPS) to the Leader of the House of Commons Ann Taylor following the 1997 General Election. He became a member of the Labour government, under Prime Minister Tony Blair, in 1998, when he was appointed as an Assistant Government Whip. He was sacked following the 2001 General Election. From 2001 to 2005 he served as PPS to the Secretary of State for Health, initially under Alan Milburn and, from 2003, his successor, John Reid. He has been a member of the Culture, Media and Sport select committee since the 2005 General Election. From October 2008 onwards he was the PPS to Jack Straw, the Justice Secretary.[4]
In May 2009, it was reported by The Daily Telegraph that he claimed expenses in excess of £15,000 over three years for cleaning products.[5]
On 2 February 2010, Hall announced that he was standing down at the next general election for health reasons.[6]
Personal life
He married Lesley Evelyn Gosling on 2 August 1975 in Ashton-under-Lyne and they have a son, Thomas.
References
- ^ http://www.ourlady.co.uk/information.htm
- ^ St Damian's Science College
- ^ Hansard. HMSO. 6 May 1992. column 122. http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm199293/cmhansrd/1992-05-06/Debate-6.html.
- ^ Annual Report to Constituents, 2008/2009
- ^ Sawer, Patrick (17 May 2009). "Mike Hall: expense claims for cleaning products make MP cleanest in Westminster". London: The Daily Telegraph. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/mps-expenses/5336305/Mike-Hall-expense-claims-for-cleaning-products-make-MP-cleanest-in-Westminster.html. Retrieved 12 May 2010.
- ^ "Weaver Vale MP Mike Hall steps down for health reasons". BBC News Online. 2 February 2010. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/england/merseyside/8493259.stm.
External links
Categories:- 1952 births
- Alumni of Bangor University
- Alumni of the University of Chester
- Labour Party (UK) MPs
- Living people
- Members of the United Kingdom Parliament for English constituencies
- People from Ashton-under-Lyne
- UK MPs 1992–1997
- UK MPs 1997–2001
- UK MPs 2001–2005
- UK MPs 2005–2010
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