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Revision as of 08:31, 5 August 2006 by Tim Ivorson (talk | contribs) (Removed slash or backslash.)(diff) ← Previous revision | Latest revision (diff) | Newer revision → (diff)James Mark Dakin Purnell (born 2 March 1970, London) is a politician in the United Kingdom. He is Labour Party member of Parliament for Stalybridge and Hyde, first being elected at the 2001 general election. He was educated at Balliol College, Oxford, obtaining first class honours.
In 1996 he was one of three Islington councillors who were sued for libel by fellow councillor Liz Davies (later a member of the Labour Party NEC). This led to an out of court settlement, under which the three apologised for the allegations they had made and paid contributions to the general election campaign of Jeremy Corbyn MP. The unfounded allegations had been used by the Labour Party leadership to justify barring Ms Davies from standing as the candidate in Leeds North East.
In 2004, in the government changes following the resignation of David Blunkett, he was appointed an Assistant Government Whip. Following the Labour Party's third successive General Election victory in 2005, he was appointed to the position of Minister (Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State) for Creative Industries and Tourism (covering broadcasting, film, creative industries, tourism and licensing) in the Department for Culture, Media and Sport. He was the minister in charge of seeing through the legislation that liberalised England and Wales' alcohol licensing laws and modernized film industry tax breaks.
In May 2006 he was promoted to be Minister for Pensions (Minister of State) in the Department for Work and Pensions, replacing Stephen Timms.
Before entering Parliament, he had for many years worked as a special advisor to Number 10.
James Purnell is a leading member of the new generation of Labour MPs, often referred to as the "Primrose Hill Gang". Other prominent members include the Miliband brothers, Ed and David, Douglas Alexander, Ed Balls and Pat McFadden. Despite being a leading Blairite, Purnell is popular amongst supporters of Gordon Brown too, and his pre-ministerial CV includes a stint as a PPS at the Treasury.
External links
- James Purnell MP official site
- The Guardian - Purnell's progress
- Guardian Unlimited Politics - Ask Aristotle: James Purnell MP
- TheyWorkForYou.com - James Purnell MP
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