David Winnick
Encyclopedia
David Julian Winnick is a British
Labour Party
politician
who has been the Member of Parliament
(MP) for Walsall North since 1979
.
Winnick, who was born to a British Jewish
family, was an advertising manager and a branch chairman of the Clerical and Administrative Workers Union.
He was a councillor from 1959 on Willesden
Borough Council, then the London Borough of Brent
.
Winnick was first elected as an MP in 1966
, for Croydon South
(now the area roughly covered by Croydon Central constituency
), defeating incumbent Richard Thompson
. He lost his seat to Thompson in 1970
. After completing a diploma in social administration at the London School of Economics
, he stood again in Croydon in October 1974
and was returned for Walsall North in 1979
.
Winnick is generally regarded as on the left of the Labour Party and has a strong commitment to human rights. That commitment made him a strong voice in the House of Commons against both the Taliban and Saddam Hussein
and he supported the 2003 invasion of Iraq.
On 9 November 2005, Winnick's amendment to a government bill on detention of terrorist suspects without trial - proposing that the maximum period of detention should be 28 days, rather than 90 - passed in the House of Commons by 323 votes to 290, shortly after the government's 90-day proposal was defeated by 322 to 291. This was Tony Blair
's first Commons defeat on a whipped vote, after nearly nine years as Prime Minister, and may come to be seen as a critical moment of his term in office.
In January 2009, he urged the communities minister to deplore the fact that Richard Williamson, a British born bishop and Holocaust denier, had been brought back into the fold by the Vatican.
Winnick played a prominent role in the campaign to force the resignation of the Speaker
of the House of Commons, Michael Martin
. This followed controversy from May 2009 concerning MPs' alleged misuse of permitted allowances and expenses.
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
Labour Party
Labour Party (UK)
The Labour Party is a centre-left democratic socialist party in the United Kingdom. It surpassed the Liberal Party in general elections during the early 1920s, forming minority governments under Ramsay MacDonald in 1924 and 1929-1931. The party was in a wartime coalition from 1940 to 1945, after...
politician
Politician
A politician, political leader, or political figure is an individual who is involved in influencing public policy and decision making...
who has been the Member of Parliament
Member of Parliament
A Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...
(MP) for Walsall North since 1979
United Kingdom general election, 1979
The United Kingdom general election of 1979 was held on 3 May 1979 to elect 635 members to the British House of Commons. The Conservative Party, led by Margaret Thatcher ousted the incumbent Labour government of James Callaghan with a parliamentary majority of 43 seats...
.
Winnick, who was born to a British Jewish
British Jews
British Jews are Jews who live in, or are citizens of, the United Kingdom. In the 2001 Census, 266,740 people listed their religion as Jewish. The UK is home to the second largest Jewish population in Europe, and has the fifth largest Jewish community worldwide...
family, was an advertising manager and a branch chairman of the Clerical and Administrative Workers Union.
He was a councillor from 1959 on Willesden
Willesden
Willesden is an area in North West London which forms part of the London Borough of Brent. It is situated 5 miles north west of Charing Cross...
Borough Council, then the London Borough of Brent
London Borough of Brent
In 1801, the civil parishes that form the modern borough had a total population of 2,022. This rose slowly throughout the 19th century, as the district became built up; reaching 5,646 in the middle of the century. When the railways arrived the rate of population growth increased...
.
Winnick was first elected as an MP in 1966
United Kingdom general election, 1966
The 1966 United Kingdom general election on 31 March 1966 was called by sitting Labour Prime Minister Harold Wilson. Wilson's decision to call an election turned on the fact that his government, elected a mere 17 months previously in 1964 had an unworkably small majority of only 4 MPs...
, for Croydon South
Croydon South (historic UK Parliament constituency)
-Politics and history of the constituency:The seat was created in 1918 and the first MP was Ian Malcolm who had been the MP for all of Croydon. H.T. Muggeridge, father of Malcolm Muggeridge, fought the seat for Labour four times from 1918, later becoming MP for Romford...
(now the area roughly covered by Croydon Central constituency
Croydon Central (UK Parliament constituency)
The comparison is with the notional 2005 result for the new boundaries which made Croydon Central a Labour defence.-Elections in the 2000s:-Elections in the 1990s:- Notes and references :...
), defeating incumbent Richard Thompson
Sir Richard Thompson, 1st Baronet
Sir Richard Hilton Marler Thompson, 1st Baronet was a British Conservative politician.Thompson was educated at Malvern College and in India, Burma and Sri Lanka and worked in Calcutta and the Far East in business. In World War II, he served in the Royal Navy as an ordinary seaman and became...
. He lost his seat to Thompson in 1970
United Kingdom general election, 1970
The United Kingdom general election of 1970 was held on 18 June 1970, and resulted in a surprise victory for the Conservative Party under leader Edward Heath, who defeated the Labour Party under Harold Wilson. The election also saw the Liberal Party and its new leader Jeremy Thorpe lose half their...
. After completing a diploma in social administration at the London School of Economics
London School of Economics
The London School of Economics and Political Science is a public research university specialised in the social sciences located in London, United Kingdom, and a constituent college of the federal University of London...
, he stood again in Croydon in October 1974
United Kingdom general election, October 1974
The United Kingdom general election of October 1974 took place on 10 October 1974 to elect 635 members to the British House of Commons. It was the second general election of that year and resulted in the Labour Party led by Harold Wilson, winning by a tiny majority of 3 seats.The election of...
and was returned for Walsall North in 1979
United Kingdom general election, 1979
The United Kingdom general election of 1979 was held on 3 May 1979 to elect 635 members to the British House of Commons. The Conservative Party, led by Margaret Thatcher ousted the incumbent Labour government of James Callaghan with a parliamentary majority of 43 seats...
.
Winnick is generally regarded as on the left of the Labour Party and has a strong commitment to human rights. That commitment made him a strong voice in the House of Commons against both the Taliban and Saddam Hussein
Saddam Hussein
Saddam Hussein Abd al-Majid al-Tikriti was the fifth President of Iraq, serving in this capacity from 16 July 1979 until 9 April 2003...
and he supported the 2003 invasion of Iraq.
On 9 November 2005, Winnick's amendment to a government bill on detention of terrorist suspects without trial - proposing that the maximum period of detention should be 28 days, rather than 90 - passed in the House of Commons by 323 votes to 290, shortly after the government's 90-day proposal was defeated by 322 to 291. This was Tony Blair
Tony Blair
Anthony Charles Lynton Blair is a former British Labour Party politician who served as the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 2 May 1997 to 27 June 2007. He was the Member of Parliament for Sedgefield from 1983 to 2007 and Leader of the Labour Party from 1994 to 2007...
's first Commons defeat on a whipped vote, after nearly nine years as Prime Minister, and may come to be seen as a critical moment of his term in office.
In January 2009, he urged the communities minister to deplore the fact that Richard Williamson, a British born bishop and Holocaust denier, had been brought back into the fold by the Vatican.
Winnick played a prominent role in the campaign to force the resignation of the Speaker
Speaker of the British House of Commons
The Speaker of the House of Commons is the presiding officer of the House of Commons, the United Kingdom's lower chamber of Parliament. The current Speaker is John Bercow, who was elected on 22 June 2009, following the resignation of Michael Martin...
of the House of Commons, Michael Martin
Michael Martin (politician)
Michael John Martin, Baron Martin of Springburn, PC is a British politician, who was the Member of Parliament for Glasgow Springburn from 1979 to 2005, and then for Glasgow North East until 2009...
. This followed controversy from May 2009 concerning MPs' alleged misuse of permitted allowances and expenses.