Shaun Woodward
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Shaun Anthony Woodward (born October 26, 1958, Bristol) is a British politician, and Labour Member of Parliament for St Helens South. In the May 2006 reshuffle, Tony Blair appointed Woodward Parliamentary Under Secretary of State at the Department for Culture, Media and Sport with responsibilities for the digital handover for TV.
Woodward was educated at Bristol Grammar School and the University of Cambridge. He was selected as Douglas Hurd's successor as Conservative candidate for the safe seat of Witney at the 1997 election, having previously been a senior official of the party. Elected with a large majority, he was a front-bench spokesman on London for the Conservative opposition under William Hague until 1999, when he was sacked for supporting the repeal of Section 28, a regulation which prevented the promotion of homosexual lifestyles in school — seen by its supporters as an important safeguard for young people and by opponents as anti-gay legislation.
Woodward then controversially left the Conservative party for the ruling Labour Party. In the next election he decided not to contest his Witney seat under the Labour banner and instead found a safe Labour seat in St Helens South. His successor in Witney was David Cameron, who subsequently became leader of the Conservatives.
As a Labour MP, Woodward served on the Joint Committee of Human Rights, and was a prominent supporter of the Gender Recognition Act 2004. After his re-election for St. Helens South at the 2005 general election, he was appointed as Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State at the Northern Ireland Office.
He is married to Camilla Sainsbury, daughter of the former Conservative MP Tim Sainsbury of the wealthy supermarket Sainsbury family, and was said in 2001 to be the only Labour MP with a butler.
[edit] Works
- Death by Television by Esther Rantzen, Shaun Woodward (Century, 1999) ISBN 0-7126-2543-7
- Drugwatch: Just Say No! by Sarah Caplin, Shaun Woodward (Corgi, 1986) ISBN 0-552-12820-1
- Ben: Story of Ben Hardwick by Esther Rantzen, Shaun Woodward (Penguin Character Books, 1985) ISBN 0-563-20331-5
- "That's Life" Survey on Tranquillisers by Ron Lacey, Shaun Woodward (BBC, 1985) ISBN 0-563-20294-7
[edit] External links
- Shaun Woodward MP official site
- Northern Ireland Office - Shaun Woodward MP biography and portfolio
- Joint Committee on Human Rights
- Guardian Unlimited Politics - Ask Aristotle: Shaun Woodward MP
- TheyWorkForYou.com - Shaun Woodward MP
- The Public Whip - Shaun Woodward MP voting record
- BBC News - Shaun Woodward profile 24 March, 2005
| Parliament of the United Kingdom | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Douglas Hurd |
Member of Parliament for Witney 1997–2001 |
Succeeded by David Cameron |
| Preceded by Gerald Bermingham |
Member of Parliament for St Helens South 2001 – present |
Incumbent |
