Ian McCartney

Infobox Minister


name=The Rt Hon Ian McCartney
| office = Minister of State for Trade
term_start = May 5, 2006
term_end = 29 June, 2007
primeminister =Tony Blair
predecessor = Ian Pearson
successor = Lord Jones of Birmingham
office2 = Minister without Portfolio
term_start2 = 4 April 2003
term_end2 = May 5, 2006
primeminister2 =Tony Blair
predecessor2 = John Reid
successor2 = Hazel Blears
constituency_MP3=Makerfield
majority3= 17,750 (50.9%)
term_start3 = 11 June 1987
term_end3 =
predecessor3 = Michael McGuire
successor3 = Incumbent
birth_date = Birth date and age|1951|04|25|df=yes
birth_place = Lennoxtown, East Dunbartonshire
death_date =
death_place =
nationality = British
spouse =
party = Labour
relations =
children =
residence =
alma_mater =
occupation =
profession =
religion =


website = [http://www.ianmccartney.com www.ianmccartney.com]
footnotes =

Ian McCartney (born 25 April 1951) is a British Labour politician. He is the current member of Parliament for Makerfield.

Early life

He was born in Lennoxtown, East Dunbartonshire, the son of Labour MP Hugh McCartney and trade unionist Margaret. Educated at Lenzie Academy, he was the leader of a paper-boys' strike at the age of fifteenFact|date=September 2008, and had a number of jobs after leaving school including working as a seaman and a local Government manual worker. He was a councillor for Wigan Borough 1982-1987.

Parliamentary career

Ian McCartney became the MP for Makerfield following the 1987 general election. He was one of the founders of the All-Party Parliamentary Rugby League Group the same year, and was its first chairman.

McCartney held a number of positions in during Labour's period in Opposition, and was variously a spokesperson on Health, Employment, Education and Social Services. In 1994 he ran John Prescott's successful campaign to become Deputy Leader.

McCartney is one of the shortest MPs, at just five feet and one inch tall. He describes himself on his parliamentary notepaper as the 'Socialist MP for Makerfield.'

Ministerial career

McCartney was made Minister of State at the Department of Trade and Industry following the 1997 general election when Labour came to power. While at the DTI he introduced a major package of new employment rights which including the first ever right to paid holidays, whistleblowing protection and the National Minimum Wage, and steered the Competition Act through Parliament. During this time he was also responsible for employment relations, the Post Office, Company Law and inward investment.

In 1999 he was moved to Minister of State at the Cabinet Office where he was responsible for modernising Government and E-Government. In 2001 he became Minister of State for Pensions at the Department for Work and Pensions, and he was promoted to Cabinet as Minister Without Portfolio and Party Chair in April 2003.

From October 2004 to October 2005, he was Chairman of the Labour Party in two capacities - as the Party Chair (appointed by the party's leader) with a seat in the Cabinet, and as the Chair of the National Executive Committee (elected by the members of the NEC). He was also chair of the party's National Policy Forum, which formulates Labour Party policy. The NPF also oversaw the 'Big Conversation' project, which saw the Labour Government try to consult the general public on the future direction of party and government policy.

Trusted by both leadership and membership, he was seen as a key link between the Government and the wider Labour movement. He has worked to make the role of Party Chair a voice for Labour Party members within the Labour Government. Architect of the Warwick Agreement by Labour's National Policy Forum, he was a key figure in co-ordinating the election manifesto for Labour's third term General Election campaign.

In 2006 he took a leave of absence following heart surgery, and publicly told of his fight to lose weight for the sake of his health. His return to frontline politics was marked by his speech to the Labour Party 2006 Spring Conference in Blackpool in which he shed a tear while celebrating 100 years of the Parliamentary Labour Party. He returned to government as Minister of State for Trade in May 2006, attending Cabinet but not voting at it, but stepped down in 2007 when Gordon Brown became Prime Minister.

Since October 2007 Mr McCartney has worked with the construction, engineering and energy company Fluor, providing them with advice in anti-corruption and business ethics policies; political, economic, environmental and regulatory issues; and outside relations including working with trade unions. McCartney has stated unequivocally that he personally receives none of the renumeration for this role, instead using part of the fee to employ someone in the House of Commons from his Makerfield constituency. The remainder is used to support the Women's Interlink Foundation [http://www.womensinterlinkfoundation.org/] , a charity based in India which rescues street children and disadvantaged women who are exposed to horrific poverty and sometimes at the risk of rape and murder, providing them with clean drinking water, health treatments, housing and education.

References

External links

* [http://politics.guardian.co.uk/person/0,9290,-3821,00.html Guardian Unlimited Politics - Ask Aristotle: Ian McCartney MP]
* [http://www.theyworkforyou.com/mp/ian_mccartney/makerfield TheyWorkForYou.com - Ian McCartney MP]
* [http://www.publicwhip.org.uk/mp.php?mpn=Ian_McCartney&mpc=Makerfield The Public Whip - Ian McCartney] voting record