This is an old revision of this page, as edited by 217.42.249.31 (talk) at 19:40, 10 December 2005 (Removed reference to double degree - the Cambridge masters is honorary and doesn't reflect a separate degree. Also tidied up a few typos and syntax errors.). The present address (URL) is a permanent link to this revision, which may differ significantly from the current revision.
Revision as of 19:40, 10 December 2005 by 217.42.249.31 (talk) (Removed reference to double degree - the Cambridge masters is honorary and doesn't reflect a separate degree. Also tidied up a few typos and syntax errors.)(diff) ← Previous revision | Latest revision (diff) | Newer revision → (diff)Andrew Murray Burnham (born January 7, 1970) British politician. He is the Labour Member of Parliament for Leigh and is a Parliamentary Under Secretary of State at the Home Office.
Andy Burnham was born in Liverpool the son of a telephone engineer, and raised in Culcheth in Warrington, close to the Village of Lowton (which itself is the Southern end of Leigh Parliamentary Constituency). He was educated at the St Aelred's Roman Catholic High School in Newton-le-Willows and Fitzwilliam College, Cambridge from where he has a degree in English. He joined the Labour Party aged just 14 in 1984 during the miners strike, and was a researcher to Tessa Jowell MP from 1994 until after the 1997 General Election. He joined the Transport and General Workers Union in 1995. After the 1997 election he was briefly a parliamentary officer for the National Health Service Confederation, before taking up the post as an administrator with the Football Task Force for a year. In 1998 he became a special advisor to the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport Chris Smith, where he remained to his election to parliament, he also joined UNISON in 2000. Andy Burnham contested the safe Labour seat of Leigh at the 2001 General Election following the retirement of Lawrence Cunliffe. Burnham was elected with a majority of 16,362. He gave his maiden speech on July 4, 2001 .
Following his election to parliament, Andy Burnham became a Member of the Health Select Committee from 2001 until 2003, when he was appointed the Parliamentary Private Secretary (PPS) to the Home Secretary David Blunkett and following Blunkett's first resignation in 2004 became the PPS to the Secretary of State for Education and Skills Ruth Kelly. He was promoted to serve in Tony Blair's government after the 2005 General Election as the Parliamentary Under Secretary of State with resposibility for identity cards legislation. This has proved unpopular amongst some of his constituents. He has been married to Marie-France Van Heel since 2000 and they have a son together.
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