Brian Donohoe
Encyclopedia
Brian Harold Donohoe is a British
Labour Party
politician
and former trade union
official, who has been the Member of Parliament
(MP) for Central Ayrshire
since 2005
, and was first elected in 1992
.
and educated at the Patna
and Loudoun
Montgomery Primary School
s, and the Irvine Royal Academy
, Donohoe later attended the Kilmarnock Technical College, where he received a national certificate
in Engineering in 1972. He was an apprentice fitter and turner at the Ailsa Shipyard
in Troon from 1965, before becoming a draughtsman
in 1969. In 1977 he spent a few months as an engineer at the Hunterston nuclear power plant
, before joining ICI
Organics Division as a draughtsman later in the year.
In 1981 Donohoe became a district officer for the National Association of Local Government Officers
(NALGO), where he remained until his election to Westminster
.
An active trade unionist, he was a convenor for the Technical, Administrative and Supervisory Section
(TASS) 1969-81. He was elected as the treasurer of the Cunninghame South
Constituency Labour Party
for eight years in 1983.
at the 1992 General Election
for the Cunninghame South seat on the retirement of the sitting Labour MP David Lambie
. Donohoe held the seat with a majority of 10,680, and has been an MP since. He made his maiden speech
on 13 May 1992. In parliament he served as a member of the Transport
Select Committee, in its various forms, from 1993 until 2005. He has been a member of the Administration Select Committee since the 2005 General Election
.
In November 2008, Donohoe was one of 18 MPs who signed a Commons motion backing a Team GB football team at the 2012 Olympics, saying football "should not be any different from other competing sports and our young talent should be allowed to show their skills on the world stage". The football governing bodies of Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland are all opposed to a Great Britain team, fearing it would stop them competing as individual nations in future tournaments.
. Donohoe is a serving Special Constable
with the British Transport Police
. He is also a devoted fan of the television soap opera
Coronation Street
. Donohoe's seat of Cunninghame South was abolished, and since 2005 he has represented the redrawn seat of Ayrshire Central.
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...
and former trade union
Trade union
A trade union, trades union or labor union is an organization of workers that have banded together to achieve common goals such as better working conditions. The trade union, through its leadership, bargains with the employer on behalf of union members and negotiates labour contracts with...
official, 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 Central Ayrshire
Central Ayrshire (UK Parliament constituency)
Central Ayrshire is a constituency of the British House of Commons, located in the south-west of Scotland within the North Ayrshire and South Ayrshire council areas...
since 2005
United Kingdom general election, 2005
The United Kingdom general election of 2005 was held on Thursday, 5 May 2005 to elect 646 members to the British House of Commons. The Labour Party under Tony Blair won its third consecutive victory, but with a majority of 66, reduced from 160....
, and was first elected in 1992
United Kingdom general election, 1992
The United Kingdom general election of 1992 was held on 9 April 1992, and was the fourth consecutive victory for the Conservative Party. This election result was one of the biggest surprises in 20th Century politics, as polling leading up to the day of the election showed Labour under leader Neil...
.
Early life
Born in KilmarnockKilmarnock
Kilmarnock is a large burgh in East Ayrshire, Scotland, with a population of 44,734. It is the second largest town in Ayrshire. The River Irvine runs through its eastern section, and the Kilmarnock Water passes through it, giving rise to the name 'Bank Street'...
and educated at the Patna
Patna, Scotland
Patna, population 2298, is a village in East Ayrshire, Scotland, straddling the traditional districts of Carrick and Kyle.It was established in 1802 by William Fullarton, to provide housing for workers on the coal-fields of his estate...
and Loudoun
Loudoun
Loudoun is an area of East Ayrshire, Scotland, east of Kilmarnock. The word Loudoun is a derivative of the Celtic Pagan God name Lugus.Loudoun is a parish and is named after the former village which stood north of Galston. The area is commonly referred to as the "Irvine Valley", for the River...
Montgomery Primary School
Primary education
A primary school is an institution in which children receive the first stage of compulsory education known as primary or elementary education. Primary school is the preferred term in the United Kingdom and many Commonwealth Nations, and in most publications of the United Nations Educational,...
s, and the Irvine Royal Academy
Irvine Royal Academy
Irvine Royal Academy is a six-year non-denominational secondary school in Kilwinning Road, Irvine, North Ayrshire, Scotland.-History:In 1572, King James VI provided funds to found the King's School of Irvine at Kirkgatehead...
, Donohoe later attended the Kilmarnock Technical College, where he received a national certificate
Higher National Certificate
A Higher National Certificate is a higher education qualification in the United Kingdom.In England, Wales and Northern Ireland, the HNC is a BTEC qualification awarded by Edexcel, and in Scotland, an HNC is a Higher National awarded by the Scottish Qualifications Authority...
in Engineering in 1972. He was an apprentice fitter and turner at the Ailsa Shipyard
Ailsa Shipbuilding Company
-History:The company was founded in 1885 by the 3rd Marquess of Ailsa.In 1902 the Ailsa yard fitted out the polar exploration ship Scotia for the Scottish National Antarctic Expedition of 1902-04...
in Troon from 1965, before becoming a draughtsman
Technical drawing
Technical drawing, also known as drafting or draughting, is the act and discipline of composing plans that visually communicate how something functions or has to be constructed.Drafting is the language of industry....
in 1969. In 1977 he spent a few months as an engineer at the Hunterston nuclear power plant
Hunterston A nuclear power station
Hunterston A nuclear power station was a Magnox power station located at Hunterston in Ayrshire, Scotland, adjacent to Hunterston B and is currently being decommissioned.-History:...
, before joining ICI
Imperial Chemical Industries
Imperial Chemical Industries was a British chemical company, taken over by AkzoNobel, a Dutch conglomerate, one of the largest chemical producers in the world. In its heyday, ICI was the largest manufacturing company in the British Empire, and commonly regarded as a "bellwether of the British...
Organics Division as a draughtsman later in the year.
In 1981 Donohoe became a district officer for the National Association of Local Government Officers
National Association of Local Government Officers
The National and Local Government Officers Association was a British trade union representing mostly local government "white collar" workers. It was formed in 1905 as the National Association of Local Government Officers, and changed its full name in 1952 while retaining its widely-used acronym,...
(NALGO), where he remained until his election to Westminster
Palace of Westminster
The Palace of Westminster, also known as the Houses of Parliament or Westminster Palace, is the meeting place of the two houses of the Parliament of the United Kingdom—the House of Lords and the House of Commons...
.
An active trade unionist, he was a convenor for the Technical, Administrative and Supervisory Section
Technical, Administrative and Supervisory Section
The Technical, Administrative and Supervisory Section was a British trade union.In 1970, the Draughtsmen's and Allied Technicians' Association , Amalgamated Union of Engineering and Foundry Workers and Constructional Engineering Union amalgamated to form the Amalgamated Union of Engineering...
(TASS) 1969-81. He was elected as the treasurer of the Cunninghame South
Cunninghame South (UK Parliament constituency)
Cunninghame South was a constituency of the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom from 1983 until 2005. It was represented by one Member of Parliament elected by the first-past-the-post system of election....
Constituency Labour Party
Constituency Labour Party
A Constituency Labour Party is an organisation of members of the British Labour Party who live in a particular UK parliamentary constituency in England, Scotland and Wales. The Labour Party in Northern Ireland has, since February 2009, been organised as a province-wide Constituency Labour Party...
for eight years in 1983.
Parliamentary career
Donohoe was elected to the House of CommonsBritish House of Commons
The House of Commons is the lower house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, which also comprises the Sovereign and the House of Lords . Both Commons and Lords meet in the Palace of Westminster. The Commons is a democratically elected body, consisting of 650 members , who are known as Members...
at the 1992 General Election
United Kingdom general election, 1992
The United Kingdom general election of 1992 was held on 9 April 1992, and was the fourth consecutive victory for the Conservative Party. This election result was one of the biggest surprises in 20th Century politics, as polling leading up to the day of the election showed Labour under leader Neil...
for the Cunninghame South seat on the retirement of the sitting Labour MP David Lambie
David Lambie
David Lambie is a former Scottish Labour Party politician.Lambie was educated at Ardrossan Academy and at Glasgow University and Geneva University. He became a teacher and was chairman of the Scottish Labour Party 1965-66....
. Donohoe held the seat with a majority of 10,680, and has been an MP since. He made his maiden speech
Maiden speech
A maiden speech is the first speech given by a newly elected or appointed member of a legislature or parliament.Traditions surrounding maiden speeches vary from country to country...
on 13 May 1992. In parliament he served as a member of the Transport
Department for Transport
In the United Kingdom, the Department for Transport is the government department responsible for the English transport network and a limited number of transport matters in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland which are not devolved...
Select Committee, in its various forms, from 1993 until 2005. He has been a member of the Administration Select Committee since the 2005 General Election
United Kingdom general election, 2005
The United Kingdom general election of 2005 was held on Thursday, 5 May 2005 to elect 646 members to the British House of Commons. The Labour Party under Tony Blair won its third consecutive victory, but with a majority of 66, reduced from 160....
.
In November 2008, Donohoe was one of 18 MPs who signed a Commons motion backing a Team GB football team at the 2012 Olympics, saying football "should not be any different from other competing sports and our young talent should be allowed to show their skills on the world stage". The football governing bodies of Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland are all opposed to a Great Britain team, fearing it would stop them competing as individual nations in future tournaments.
Personal life
He has been married to Christine Pawson since 1973 and they have two sons. He takes a particular interest in renationalising the British railway systemRail transport in the United Kingdom
The United Kingdom consists of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, and previously consisted of Great Britain and the whole of Ireland. Rail transport systems developed independently on the two islands of Great Britain and Ireland, and most of the railway construction in the Republic of Ireland was...
. Donohoe is a serving Special Constable
Special constable
A Special Constable is a law enforcement officer who is not a regular member of a police force. Some like the Royal Canadian Mounted Police carry the same law enforcement powers as regular members, but are employed in specific roles, such as explosive disposal technicians, court security, campus...
with the British Transport Police
British Transport Police
The British Transport Police is a special police force that polices those railways and light-rail systems in Great Britain for which it has entered into an agreement to provide such services...
. He is also a devoted fan of the television soap opera
Soap opera
A soap opera, sometimes called "soap" for short, is an ongoing, episodic work of dramatic fiction presented in serial format on radio or as television programming. The name soap opera stems from the original dramatic serials broadcast on radio that had soap manufacturers, such as Procter & Gamble,...
Coronation Street
Coronation Street
Coronation Street is a British soap opera set in Weatherfield, a fictional town in Greater Manchester based on Salford. Created by Tony Warren, Coronation Street was first broadcast on 9 December 1960...
. Donohoe's seat of Cunninghame South was abolished, and since 2005 he has represented the redrawn seat of Ayrshire Central.
External links
- Official site
- Guardian Unlimited Politics - Ask Aristotle: Brian Donohoe MP
- TheyWorkForYou.com - Brian Donohoe MP
- Profile at BBC NewsBBC NewsBBC News is the department of the British Broadcasting Corporation responsible for the gathering and broadcasting of news and current affairs. The department is the world's largest broadcast news organisation and generates about 120 hours of radio and television output each day, as well as online...
Democracy Live