Peter Kilfoyle
Encyclopedia
Peter Kilfoyle is a British
Labour Party
politician who was the Member of Parliament
(MP) for Liverpool Walton
from 1991
to 2010.
, Kilfoyle was educated by the Irish Christian Brothers at St. Edward's College
in Liverpool
; his father died when he was 10 years old. Obtaining 4 A-levels he went to the University of Durham, but left after a year becoming a labourer for five years. He qualified as a teacher at Christ's College
in Liverpool. From 1975-1985, he worked as a teacher. From 1986-1991, he was North West Regional Organiser for the Labour Party, often opposing Militant
.
Member of Parliament
for Liverpool Walton
by winning a by-election in 1991
after the death of the incumbent Eric Heffer
. He played a key role in the expulsion of Militant
from the Labour Party during the 1980s and was a key supporter of Tony Blair
in his 1994 leadership campaign.
When Labour came to power in 1997, Kilfoyle was initially appointed to an influential role within the Cabinet Office
, with a licence to speak out in the media on the Government's behalf, and was later appointed a junior minister in the Ministry of Defence
. But in 1999, he suddenly resigned, claiming the Blair Government was failing to pay enough attention to Labour's heartlands. He then became a vocal backbench critic of the Government for the remainder of his period in office.
He spoke against government plans to replace Trident in the debate on 14 March 2007.
On 23 February 2010, Kilfoyle announced that he would stand down at the 2010 General Election.
because it would 'rip the heart out of North Liverpool'. Liverpool City Council
Leader Warren Bradley
stated that Kilfoyle was "completely uninformed". He supported an Early Day Motion that would prevent Royal Bank of Scotland
from reviewing their loan with Liverpool FC potentially forcing the existing owners to sell the club.
when he claimed to have passed information
supposedly detailing then U.S. President George W. Bush's
plan to bomb an Arabic TV station.
In 2008, Kilfoyle declared that there should be a Labour Party leadership challenge.
He is a lifelong supporter of Everton FC.
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 who was 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 Liverpool Walton
Liverpool Walton (UK Parliament constituency)
Liverpool, Walton is a borough constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It elects one Member of Parliament by the first-past-the-post system of election.-Boundaries:...
from 1991
Liverpool Walton by-election, 1991
The Liverpool Walton by-election was held on 4 July 1991, following the death of the Labour Party Member of Parliament Eric Heffer for Liverpool Walton, on 27 May.The constituency had become a safe Labour seat under Heffer, who was known as a left-wing MP...
to 2010.
Early life
The eleventh of fourteen children born to an Irish Catholic family on MerseysideMerseyside
Merseyside is a metropolitan county in North West England, with a population of 1,365,900. It encompasses the metropolitan area centred on both banks of the lower reaches of the Mersey Estuary, and comprises five metropolitan boroughs: Knowsley, St Helens, Sefton, Wirral, and the city of Liverpool...
, Kilfoyle was educated by the Irish Christian Brothers at St. Edward's College
St. Edward's College
St. Edward's College is a voluntary aided, Catholic school in the UK located in the West Derby suburb of Liverpool. The institution was formerly a boys grammar school run by the Congregation of Christian Brothers, known widely as The Irish Christian Brothers...
in Liverpool
Liverpool
Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough of Merseyside, England, along the eastern side of the Mersey Estuary. It was founded as a borough in 1207 and was granted city status in 1880...
; his father died when he was 10 years old. Obtaining 4 A-levels he went to the University of Durham, but left after a year becoming a labourer for five years. He qualified as a teacher at Christ's College
Liverpool Hope University
Liverpool Hope University is a university in Liverpool, England. Two of its three founding colleges were established in 1844 and 1856, the third opening in the 1960s. It is the only ecumenical university in Europe. Based on two campuses, the main campus is located in Childwall and the second...
in Liverpool. From 1975-1985, he worked as a teacher. From 1986-1991, he was North West Regional Organiser for the Labour Party, often opposing Militant
Militant Tendency
The Militant tendency was an entrist group within the British Labour Party based around the Militant newspaper that was first published in 1964...
.
Parliamentary career
Kilfoyle became the LabourLabour 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...
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,...
for Liverpool Walton
Liverpool Walton (UK Parliament constituency)
Liverpool, Walton is a borough constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It elects one Member of Parliament by the first-past-the-post system of election.-Boundaries:...
by winning a by-election in 1991
Liverpool Walton by-election, 1991
The Liverpool Walton by-election was held on 4 July 1991, following the death of the Labour Party Member of Parliament Eric Heffer for Liverpool Walton, on 27 May.The constituency had become a safe Labour seat under Heffer, who was known as a left-wing MP...
after the death of the incumbent Eric Heffer
Eric Heffer
Eric Samuel Heffer was a British socialist politician. He was Labour Member of Parliament for Liverpool Walton from 1964 until his death. His working-class background and consciousness fed in to his left-wing politics, but to an extent disguised the depth of his knowledge: with 12,000 books in...
. He played a key role in the expulsion of Militant
Militant Tendency
The Militant tendency was an entrist group within the British Labour Party based around the Militant newspaper that was first published in 1964...
from the Labour Party during the 1980s and was a key supporter of 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...
in his 1994 leadership campaign.
When Labour came to power in 1997, Kilfoyle was initially appointed to an influential role within the Cabinet Office
Cabinet Office
The Cabinet Office is a department of the Government of the United Kingdom responsible for supporting the Prime Minister and Cabinet of the United Kingdom....
, with a licence to speak out in the media on the Government's behalf, and was later appointed a junior minister in the Ministry of Defence
Ministry of Defence (United Kingdom)
The Ministry of Defence is the United Kingdom government department responsible for implementation of government defence policy and is the headquarters of the British Armed Forces....
. But in 1999, he suddenly resigned, claiming the Blair Government was failing to pay enough attention to Labour's heartlands. He then became a vocal backbench critic of the Government for the remainder of his period in office.
He spoke against government plans to replace Trident in the debate on 14 March 2007.
On 23 February 2010, Kilfoyle announced that he would stand down at the 2010 General Election.
Local
Kilfoyle received round criticism for actively attempting to relocate Everton Football Club out of his constituency and into a neighbouring borough. He later wrote to Baroness Andrews in 2008 outlining his support for Everton Football Club to relocate, four years prior to this he had been critical of Everton relocating to the Kings Dock, LiverpoolLiverpool
Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough of Merseyside, England, along the eastern side of the Mersey Estuary. It was founded as a borough in 1207 and was granted city status in 1880...
because it would 'rip the heart out of North Liverpool'. Liverpool City Council
Liverpool City Council
Liverpool City Council is the governing body for the city of Liverpool in Merseyside, England. It consists of 90 councillors, three for each of the city's 30 wards. The council is currently controlled by the Labour Party and is led by Joe Anderson.-Domain:...
Leader Warren Bradley
Warren Bradley (politician)
Warren Bradley is a British firefighter, politician and a former Liberal Democrat . He is a councillor for the Wavertree ward as well as the former Leader of Liverpool City Council, Before taking over as leader of the council from former Liverpool Liberal Democrats leader, Mike Storey, he was the...
stated that Kilfoyle was "completely uninformed". He supported an Early Day Motion that would prevent Royal Bank of Scotland
Royal Bank of Scotland
The Royal Bank of Scotland Group is a British banking and insurance holding company in which the UK Government holds an 84% stake. This stake is held and managed through UK Financial Investments Limited, whose voting rights are limited to 75% in order for the bank to retain its listing on the...
from reviewing their loan with Liverpool FC potentially forcing the existing owners to sell the club.
International
In 2005, Kilfoyle allegedly defied the British Official Secrets ActOfficial Secrets Act
The Official Secrets Act is a stock short title used in the United Kingdom, Ireland, India and Malaysia and formerly in New Zealand for legislation that provides for the protection of state secrets and official information, mainly related to national security.-United Kingdom:*The Official Secrets...
when he claimed to have passed information
Al Jazeera bombing memo
The Al Jazeera bombing memo is an unpublished memorandum made within the British government which purports to be the minutes of a discussion between United States President George W. Bush and Prime Minister Tony Blair. The Daily Mirror published a story on its front page on 22 November 2005...
supposedly detailing then U.S. President George W. Bush's
George W. Bush
George Walker Bush is an American politician who served as the 43rd President of the United States, from 2001 to 2009. Before that, he was the 46th Governor of Texas, having served from 1995 to 2000....
plan to bomb an Arabic TV station.
In 2008, Kilfoyle declared that there should be a Labour Party leadership challenge.
Personal life
He married Bernadette Slater on 27 July 1968, and they have five children. He is the only MP in the country to have two Premier League football teams in his constituency. He is a patron of the British Heart Foundation following a heart attack in 2006 and Quadruple bypass surgery.He is a lifelong supporter of Everton FC.