Member for Pontefract and Castleford since 1997. Committees: Member, Education and Employment Select Committee; Member, Intelligence and Security Committee; Member, All-Party Coalfield Communities Group. Political career: Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellors Department 2002; Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Public Health 1999. Special political interests: Unemployment, energy (coal industry), child poverty. Profession/Trade: Economic Advisor to John Smith; Policy Advisor to Bill Clinton, Presidential Campaign; Policy Advisor to Labour Treasury Team on Public Spending; Economic Columnist and Leader Writer, the Independent. Education: Eggers Comprehensive; Balliol College, Oxford, BA Philosophy, Politics and Economics; Harvard University, Kennedy Scholar; London School of Economics, MSC Economics. Affiliations: GMB. Hobbies: Swimming, painting portraits, watching West Wing and Disney videos.
b. 20 March 1969, Inverness. Married with two children.

2005				2001
LAB HOLD	Votes	%	+/- %	Votes	%
Labour	20,973	63.7	-6.1	21,890	69.7
Conservative	5,727	17.4	-0.2	5,512	17.6
Lib Dem	3,942	12.0	4.6	2,315	7.4
BNP	1,835	5.6	-	-	-
Green Soc	470	1.4	-	-	-
UKIP	-	-	-	739	2.4
Soc Lab	-	-	-	605	1.9
Soc Alliance	-	-	-	330	1.1
Majority	15,246	46.3		16,378	52.2
Turnout	32,947	53.3	3.6	31,390	49.7