David Miliband
Encyclopedia
David Wright Miliband (born 15 July 1965) is a British Labour Party
politician who has been the Member of Parliament
(MP) for South Shields
since 2001
, and was the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs
from 2007 to 2010. He is the elder son of the late Marxist theorist Ralph Miliband
. He and his brother, current Labour Leader Ed Miliband
, were the first siblings to sit in the Cabinet simultaneously since Edward, Lord Stanley
, and Oliver Stanley
in 1938.
Born in London, Miliband studied at Oxford University and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology
, and started his career at the Institute for Public Policy Research
. At 29, Miliband became Tony Blair
's Head of Policy whilst the Labour Party
was in opposition and was a major contributor to Labour's manifesto for the 1997 general election
which brought the party to power. Blair made him head of the Prime Minister's Policy Unit from 1997 to 2001, following which Miliband was elected to parliament for the North East England
seat of South Shields
.
Miliband spent the next few years in various junior ministerial posts, including at the Department for Education and Skills, before becoming Environment Secretary
. His tenure in this post saw climate change
consolidated as a priority for UK policymakers. On the succession of Gordon Brown
as Prime Minister (2007), Miliband was promoted to Foreign Secretary
, at 41, the youngest person to hold the post since David Owen
30 years earlier. In September 2010 Miliband narrowly lost the Labour leadership election
to his brother Ed. On 29 September 2010, he announced that to avoid "constant comparison" with his brother Ed, and because of the "perpetual, distracting and destructive attempts to find division where there is none, and splits where they don't exist, all to the detriment of the party's cause", he would not stand for the shadow cabinet.
and Marion Kozak from Poland. He has said "I am the child of Jewish immigrants and that is a very important part of my identity." Both his Polish Jewish
paternal grandparents lived in the Jewish quarter of Warsaw. His paternal grandfather, Samuel, a trained leather worker, fought for the Red Army
in the Polish–Soviet War of 1919-1921 before moving to Belgium. His paternal grandmother, Renia (later known as Renée), also moved to Belgium, where she first met Sam, and the couple married in 1923. The German invasion of Belgium
in May 1940 split the Miliband family in half: Ralph and father Samuel fled to England, while Ralph's mother Renée and baby sister Nan stayed behind for the duration of the war. They were not reunited until 1950. During his visit to Poland in June 2009, Miliband went to his family tomb in the Jewish Cemetery in Warsaw. He said of Poland, 'My mother was born here, her life was saved by those who risked theirs sheltering her from Nazi oppression,' and that he is 'one of the million Britons who have Polish blood'
.
Primary School, Camden
and then Haverstock Comprehensive School in North London
from 1978 to 1983. He obtained four A-level
s, and won admission to the University of Oxford
with the assistance of an Inner London Education Authority
scheme intended to enable comprehensive school pupils to attend the university. Miliband studied at Corpus Christi College, Oxford
and obtained a first class honours degree in Philosophy, Politics and Economics. From 1988 to 1989 he took an S.M. degree in Political Science
at MIT, where he was a Kennedy Scholar.
. From 1989 to 1994, he worked as a Research Fellow and policy analyst
at the Institute for Public Policy Research
(IPPR). He was appointed Secretary of the IPPR's Commission on Social Justice upon its foundation in 1992 by the then leader of the Labour Party, John Smith
.
In 1994 Miliband became Tony Blair
's Head of Policy and was a major contributor to Labour's manifesto for the 1997 general election
. After Labour's victory in that election, Blair made him the de facto Head of the Prime Minister's Policy Unit, a position which he held until the 2001 election
. He was given the nickname "Brains
" by Alastair Campbell
, after the Thunderbirds
character. In the 2001 general election he was elected to Parliament for the Labour stronghold of South Shields
, succeeding David Clark
. After a year as a backbench MP he was appointed Schools Minister, a junior minister in the Department for Education and Skills in June 2002. On 15 December 2004, in the reshuffle following the resignation of David Blunkett
, he replaced Ruth Kelly
as a Cabinet Office Minister.
Following Labour's third consecutive election victory in May 2005
, he was promoted to the Cabinet
as Minister of State for Communities and Local Government
within the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister. This was a newly created cabinet-level post with responsibility for housing, planning, regeneration and local government
. Because the Deputy Prime Minister
, John Prescott
, was the Departmental Minister
officially in charge of these portfolios, Miliband was not given the title Secretary of State
but he was appointed a Privy Councillor and became a full member of the Cabinet.
Tony Blair made a major cabinet reshuffle in which Miliband replaced Margaret Beckett
as Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
. Miliband has said he believes agriculture is important for the UK’s cultural heritage, economy and society and also for the environment. He has said disease control should be balanced with animal welfare
. He attaches importance to reaching a “fair balance” among consumers, farmers, manufacturers and retailers. Miliband also believes the European Union
and the World Trade Organisation affect power relations between British and foreign farmers.
He was the first British cabinet member to have a blog
, though claims of excessive cost to the taxpayer provoked some controversy. In January 2007 Miliband sparked minor controversy by saying there was no evidence organic food
was better than conventionally grown
produce, though he later clarified that he was referring specifically to health benefits.
Miliband is an advocate for international awareness of climate change
and believes the cooperation of all nations is needed for environmental reform. Miliband's focuses include food retail waste management and greenhouse gas
emissions in agricultural industries. He believes that the EU should go further in two areas: a low carbon global economy and global action on climate change. He also wants Europe to increase its economic competitiveness. By switching over to a low carbon economy, he plans to tackle climate change. He hopes to ensure a stable price on energy by securing an energy source and announced the Government's plans to legislate for carbon reductions at the United Nations General Assembly
.
In August 2006, in an effort to put environmental reform into action, Miliband developed a place for a collaborative "environmental contract" to be developed on a Defra Wiki site. It was subsequently linked to by blogger Paul Staines
, and mocked, after which further edits by guest users were temporarily prevented. Miliband's emphasis on the necessity of an entirely cooperative effort to effectively instigate a low carbon lifestyle worldwide has led him to advocate an open dialogue among citizens about environmental issues through web-based blogging. Whilst Environment Secretary, Miliband called for all 27 nations of the European Union
to unify in backing proposals to cut harmful emissions by 30% by 2020.
Miliband has floated the idea of every citizen being issued with a "Carbon Credit Card" to improve personal carbon thrift. Miliband claims individuals have to be empowered to tackle global warming
— "the mass mobilising movement of our age".
. He was Britain's third youngest Foreign Secretary and the youngest person to be appointed to the post since David Owen
(in office 21 February 1977 – 4 May 1979). Anthony Eden
assumed office at the age of 37 in 1935. David's younger brother, the economist Ed Miliband
, was the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change
, making them the first siblings to serve together in Cabinet
since Edward, Lord Stanley
and his brother Oliver
in 1938.
Miliband's first Foreign Office
questions session as Foreign Secretary in the House of Commons was on 3 July 2007.
On the morning of 13 December 2007, Miliband stood in for Prime Minister, Gordon Brown
at the official signing ceremony in Lisbon
of the EU Reform Treaty, which was attended by all other European heads of government. Brown was otherwise engaged at the House of Commons, appearing before the Liaison Committee
, and travelled to Portugal to sign the treaty in the afternoon.
On 5 February 2009, Miliband made a statement to the House of Commons concerning Guantanamo Bay detainee and former British resident Benyam Mohammed
. A week later Mohamed’s American lawyer Yvonne Bradley flew to Britain to urge the Foreign Office to press harder for his release. On 23 February 2009, Benyam Mohammed returned to Britain and was granted temporary residence.
would help deny extremists in the region one of their main calls to arms, and allow Pakistan
i authorities to focus more effectively on tackling the threat on their western borders". This sparked an angry response from the Indian government, whose long standing policy had been not to accept any third party involvement in the dispute of Kashmir. An Indian analyst suggested that his tone implied that India must shoulder some of the responsibility because of its policies in Kashmir. Some reports also said that Miliband's tone towards the Indian Prime Minister and the Finance Minister had been aggressive, and that he had been excused for being a "young man".
's 2008/09 offensive against the LTTE, Miliband travelled to Sri Lanka
to press the government to call a ceasefire with the Tamil Tigers, citing concerns for civilians caught in the crossfire. Miliband's visit was met with protests by Sri Lankan nationalists, who accused Miliband of attempting to save the lives of Tamil Tiger militants. During the victory celebrations that took place a few weeks later, a burning effigy of Miliband was reported to have been tossed over the gate of the British High Commission in Colombo
.
In December 2010 articles published in the British newspapers The Guardian and The Daily Telegraph highlighted that Miliband spent two thirds of his time focusing on Sri Lankan civil war largely due to domestic political calculations, the source of the articles was a leaked US diplomatic cable published by Wiki Leaks. The articles further elaborate, Tim Waite a foreign office official had said
Richard Mills further wrote on his cable,
's Great Lives
programme, choosing South African Communist Party
leader and anti-apartheid activist Joe Slovo
. Miliband stated during the programme, in a response to a question about terrorism, that "yes there are circumstances in which it is justifiable and yes there are circumstances in which it is effective, but it is never effective on its own". These comments were criticised by Menzies Campbell
and William Hague
.
creates the post of High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy for the European Union
, a post commonly known as the European Foreign Minister. In autumn 2009, as the treaty came close to coming into force, Miliband was named as being under consideration for the post as EU officials regarded him as "ideal material". Miliband publicly insisted that he was not available to fill the post, as he was committed to remaining in the British cabinet. Baroness Ashton, a fellow British Labour politician and then European Commissioner for Trade
, was ultimately appointed to the post instead.
i diplomat owing to claims that an embassy official from that country forged passports, and Miliband gave a public warning against travel to Israel
because of identity theft concerns.
, Alan Milburn
, Stephen Byers
, John Hutton
and Peter Mandelson
. Miliband is one of the "Primrose Hill Gang", a loose network of younger Labour politicians and advisers who supposedly look beyond Tony Blair and Gordon Brown for the future of the Labour Party. Other members of the group include Miliband's brother Ed Miliband
, Douglas Alexander
, Pat McFadden
, James Purnell
, Jim Murphy
, Andy Burnham, Matthew Taylor
, Geoff Mulgan
and Patrick Diamond
.
Miliband could be seen as a leader of a different set of "next generation" Blairite Ministers - a "Blairites for Brown" group - whom political commentators usually identify as David Miliband, Andy Burnham, James Purnell
and Liam Byrne
, several of whom prospered under Brown. There is reported to be little difference between this group and Brownites
of the same generation, notably Ed Miliband, and the husband and wife ministerial couple of Ed Balls
and Yvette Cooper
.
Miliband's support for Brown was seen as part of an effort by his generation to end the Blairite/Brownite division, which they saw as a product more of personal rivalries arising from the 1994 leadership deal than of policy differences. Political commentator Andrew Rawnsley
of The Observer
wrote in 2002 that "He is on the Left of the New Labour spectrum. He is a believer—in a way that Blair is not entirely—in Continental social democracy
".
that outlined his vision of a future of the Labour Party but made no mention of Gordon Brown. The piece was widely interpreted as a leadership challenge to the then Prime Minister, not least because the timing of its publication – just after Brown's departure on holiday at the start of the parliamentary summer recess, and while there was intense speculation about his continuing leadership following Labour's defeat in the Glasgow East by-election
the previous week – seemed designed to produce a large political impact. In the following days two Labour MPs called on Brown to sack Miliband for his perceived disloyalty. Miliband, while denying claims by his detractors that he was seeking to provoke an early leadership election, did not rule himself out of eventually running for the leadership of the party. Many grassroots supporters believed a David Miliband-led Labour Party would tackle the Conservatives more effectively, reaching out to voters in marginal seats as well as securing Labour's core support.
. The other contenders for the leadership were Ed Balls
, Andy Burnham, Diane Abbott
and David’s brother Ed Miliband
, with David Miliband gaining the most nominations. The result of the contest was announced on 25 September 2010, the day before the start of the 2010 Labour Party Conference
in Manchester. While David Miliband led the share of the electoral college votes in the first three rounds, he lost in the final round (50.65% to 49.35%) to his brother Ed. He announced on 29 September 2010 that he would be quitting frontline politics and would not be a part of his brother Ed's shadow cabinet.
The Daily Mirror, a Labour supporting newspaper which had backed Miliband in his leadership campaign, lamented his failure to win as a "sad waste of a huge talent".
. He has become the non-executive vice-chairman for Sunderland A.F.C.
and is also a part-time voluntary teacher at Haverstock School, teaching A-Level Politics and Government. In 2011, he became Senior Global Advisor for Oxford Analytica
.
s investigation of expenses claims by Members of Parliament reported that Miliband had claimed for gardening
expenses and approximately £30,000 in repairs, decorations, and furnishings for his constituency home in South Shields
. A spokesperson said: "At every stage, David Miliband followed the procedures and rules as laid out by the parliamentary authorities".
. Shackelton and Miliband have adopted two newborn sons from the United States, the first in December 2004 and the second in October 2007.
In an interview with CNN
in 2009, Miliband stated that he grew up in a secular setting, and describes himself as an atheist with a "huge respect" for people of faith.
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 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 South Shields
South Shields (UK Parliament constituency)
South Shields 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:...
since 2001
United Kingdom general election, 2001
The United Kingdom general election, 2001 was held on Thursday 7 June 2001 to elect 659 members to the British House of Commons. It was dubbed "the quiet landslide" by the media, as the Labour Party was re-elected with another landslide result and only suffered a net loss of 6 seats...
, and was the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs
Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs
The Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, commonly referred to as the Foreign Secretary, is a senior member of Her Majesty's Government heading the Foreign and Commonwealth Office and regarded as one of the Great Offices of State...
from 2007 to 2010. He is the elder son of the late Marxist theorist Ralph Miliband
Ralph Miliband
Ralph Miliband , born Adolphe Miliband, was a Belgian-born British sociologist known as a prominent Marxist thinker...
. He and his brother, current Labour Leader Ed Miliband
Ed Miliband
Edward Samuel Miliband is a British Labour Party politician, currently the Leader of the Labour Party and Leader of the Opposition...
, were the first siblings to sit in the Cabinet simultaneously since Edward, Lord Stanley
Edward Stanley, Lord Stanley (1894-1938)
Edward Montagu Cavendish Stanley, Lord Stanley PC, MC was a British Conservative politician. The eldest son of the 17th Earl of Derby, he held minor political office before being appointed Secretary of State for Dominion Affairs in 1938, sitting in the cabinet alongside his brother Oliver Stanley...
, and Oliver Stanley
Oliver Stanley
Oliver Frederick George Stanley MC, PC was a prominent British Conservative politician who held many ministerial posts before his early death when it was expected he would soon assume higher office....
in 1938.
Born in London, Miliband studied at Oxford University and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
The Massachusetts Institute of Technology is a private research university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts. MIT has five schools and one college, containing a total of 32 academic departments, with a strong emphasis on scientific and technological education and research.Founded in 1861 in...
, and started his career at the Institute for Public Policy Research
Institute for Public Policy Research
The IPPR is the leading progressive think-tank in the UK. It produces research and policy ideas committed to upholding values of social justice, democratic reform and environmental sustainability. IPPR is based in London and IPPR North has branches in Newcastle and Manchester.It was founded in...
. At 29, Miliband became 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 Head of Policy whilst the 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...
was in opposition and was a major contributor to Labour's manifesto for the 1997 general election
United Kingdom general election, 1997
The United Kingdom general election, 1997 was held on 1 May 1997, more than five years after the previous election on 9 April 1992, to elect 659 members to the British House of Commons. The Labour Party ended its 18 years in opposition under the leadership of Tony Blair, and won the general...
which brought the party to power. Blair made him head of the Prime Minister's Policy Unit from 1997 to 2001, following which Miliband was elected to parliament for the North East England
North East England
North East England is one of the nine official regions of England. It covers Northumberland, County Durham, Tyne and Wear, and Teesside . The only cities in the region are Durham, Newcastle upon Tyne and Sunderland...
seat of South Shields
South Shields (UK Parliament constituency)
South Shields 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:...
.
Miliband spent the next few years in various junior ministerial posts, including at the Department for Education and Skills, before becoming Environment Secretary
Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
The Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs is a UK cabinet-level position in charge of the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, and the successor to the positions of Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food and Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport...
. His tenure in this post saw climate change
Climate change
Climate change is a significant and lasting change in the statistical distribution of weather patterns over periods ranging from decades to millions of years. It may be a change in average weather conditions or the distribution of events around that average...
consolidated as a priority for UK policymakers. On the succession of Gordon Brown
Gordon Brown
James Gordon Brown is a British Labour Party politician who was the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Labour Party from 2007 until 2010. He previously served as Chancellor of the Exchequer in the Labour Government from 1997 to 2007...
as Prime Minister (2007), Miliband was promoted to Foreign Secretary
Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs
The Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, commonly referred to as the Foreign Secretary, is a senior member of Her Majesty's Government heading the Foreign and Commonwealth Office and regarded as one of the Great Offices of State...
, at 41, the youngest person to hold the post since David Owen
David Owen
David Anthony Llewellyn Owen, Baron Owen CH PC FRCP is a British politician.Owen served as British Foreign Secretary from 1977 to 1979, the youngest person in over forty years to hold the post; he co-authored the failed Vance-Owen and Owen-Stoltenberg peace plans offered during the Bosnian War...
30 years earlier. In September 2010 Miliband narrowly lost the Labour leadership election
Labour Party (UK) leadership election, 2010
The 2010 Labour Party leadership election was triggered by a general election which resulted in a hung parliament. On 10 May, Gordon Brown resigned as Leader of the Labour Party. The following day, he stepped down as Prime Minister....
to his brother Ed. On 29 September 2010, he announced that to avoid "constant comparison" with his brother Ed, and because of the "perpetual, distracting and destructive attempts to find division where there is none, and splits where they don't exist, all to the detriment of the party's cause", he would not stand for the shadow cabinet.
Early life
Born in London, Miliband is the elder son of Jewish immigrants, Belgian-born Marxist Ralph MilibandRalph Miliband
Ralph Miliband , born Adolphe Miliband, was a Belgian-born British sociologist known as a prominent Marxist thinker...
and Marion Kozak from Poland. He has said "I am the child of Jewish immigrants and that is a very important part of my identity." Both his Polish Jewish
History of the Jews in Poland
The history of the Jews in Poland dates back over a millennium. For centuries, Poland was home to the largest and most significant Jewish community in the world. Poland was the centre of Jewish culture thanks to a long period of statutory religious tolerance and social autonomy. This ended with the...
paternal grandparents lived in the Jewish quarter of Warsaw. His paternal grandfather, Samuel, a trained leather worker, fought for the Red Army
Red Army
The Workers' and Peasants' Red Army started out as the Soviet Union's revolutionary communist combat groups during the Russian Civil War of 1918-1922. It grew into the national army of the Soviet Union. By the 1930s the Red Army was among the largest armies in history.The "Red Army" name refers to...
in the Polish–Soviet War of 1919-1921 before moving to Belgium. His paternal grandmother, Renia (later known as Renée), also moved to Belgium, where she first met Sam, and the couple married in 1923. The German invasion of Belgium
Battle of France
In the Second World War, the Battle of France was the German invasion of France and the Low Countries, beginning on 10 May 1940, which ended the Phoney War. The battle consisted of two main operations. In the first, Fall Gelb , German armoured units pushed through the Ardennes, to cut off and...
in May 1940 split the Miliband family in half: Ralph and father Samuel fled to England, while Ralph's mother Renée and baby sister Nan stayed behind for the duration of the war. They were not reunited until 1950. During his visit to Poland in June 2009, Miliband went to his family tomb in the Jewish Cemetery in Warsaw. He said of Poland, 'My mother was born here, her life was saved by those who risked theirs sheltering her from Nazi oppression,' and that he is 'one of the million Britons who have Polish blood'
Polish British
Polish migration to the United Kingdom describes the temporary or permanent migration of Poles to the United Kingdom . Most Polish migrants to the UK emigrated after two major events, the Polish Resettlement Act 1947 and the 2004 enlargement of the European Union...
.
Education
David Miliband was educated at Primrose HillPrimrose Hill
Primrose Hill is a hill of located on the north side of Regent's Park in London, England, and also the name for the surrounding district. The hill has a clear view of central London to the south-east, as well as Belsize Park and Hampstead to the north...
Primary School, Camden
London Borough of Camden
In 1801, the civil parishes that form the modern borough were already developed and had a total population of 96,795. This continued to rise swiftly throughout the 19th century, as the district became built up; reaching 270,197 in the middle of the century...
and then Haverstock Comprehensive School in North London
North London
North London is the northern part of London, England. It is an imprecise description and the area it covers is defined differently for a range of purposes. Common to these definitions is that it includes districts located north of the River Thames and is used in comparison with South...
from 1978 to 1983. He obtained four A-level
GCE Advanced Level
The Advanced Level General Certificate of Education, commonly referred to as an A-level, is a qualification offered by education institutions in England, Northern Ireland, Wales, Cameroon, and the Cayman Islands...
s, and won admission to the University of Oxford
University of Oxford
The University of Oxford is a university located in Oxford, United Kingdom. It is the second-oldest surviving university in the world and the oldest in the English-speaking world. Although its exact date of foundation is unclear, there is evidence of teaching as far back as 1096...
with the assistance of an Inner London Education Authority
Inner London Education Authority
The Inner London Education Authority was the education authority for the 12 inner London boroughs from 1965 until its abolition in 1990.-History:...
scheme intended to enable comprehensive school pupils to attend the university. Miliband studied at Corpus Christi College, Oxford
Corpus Christi College, Oxford
Corpus Christi College is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom...
and obtained a first class honours degree in Philosophy, Politics and Economics. From 1988 to 1989 he took an S.M. degree in Political Science
Political science
Political Science is a social science discipline concerned with the study of the state, government and politics. Aristotle defined it as the study of the state. It deals extensively with the theory and practice of politics, and the analysis of political systems and political behavior...
at MIT, where he was a Kennedy Scholar.
Political biography
Miliband's first job was for the National Council for Voluntary OrganisationsNational Council for Voluntary Organisations
The National Council for Voluntary Organisations is the umbrella body for the voluntary and community sector in England. NCVO works to support the voluntary and community sector and to create an environment in which an independent civil society can flourish...
. From 1989 to 1994, he worked as a Research Fellow and policy analyst
Policy analysis
Policy analysis is "determining which of various alternative policies will most achieve a given set of goals in light of the relations between the policies and the goals". However, policy analysis can be divided into two major fields. Analysis of policy is analytical and descriptive—i.e., it...
at the Institute for Public Policy Research
Institute for Public Policy Research
The IPPR is the leading progressive think-tank in the UK. It produces research and policy ideas committed to upholding values of social justice, democratic reform and environmental sustainability. IPPR is based in London and IPPR North has branches in Newcastle and Manchester.It was founded in...
(IPPR). He was appointed Secretary of the IPPR's Commission on Social Justice upon its foundation in 1992 by the then leader of the Labour Party, John Smith
John Smith (UK politician)
John Smith was a British Labour Party politician who served as Leader of the Labour Party from July 1992 until his sudden death from a heart attack in May 1994...
.
In 1994 Miliband became 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 Head of Policy and was a major contributor to Labour's manifesto for the 1997 general election
United Kingdom general election, 1997
The United Kingdom general election, 1997 was held on 1 May 1997, more than five years after the previous election on 9 April 1992, to elect 659 members to the British House of Commons. The Labour Party ended its 18 years in opposition under the leadership of Tony Blair, and won the general...
. After Labour's victory in that election, Blair made him the de facto Head of the Prime Minister's Policy Unit, a position which he held until the 2001 election
United Kingdom general election, 2001
The United Kingdom general election, 2001 was held on Thursday 7 June 2001 to elect 659 members to the British House of Commons. It was dubbed "the quiet landslide" by the media, as the Labour Party was re-elected with another landslide result and only suffered a net loss of 6 seats...
. He was given the nickname "Brains
Brains (Thunderbirds)
Brains is a fictional character in the 1960s British Supermarionation television series Thunderbirds, its sequel films Thunderbirds Are Go and Thunderbird 6 , and the 2004 live-action remake film Thunderbirds. Brains was born 14 November 2040 and was orphaned when a hurricane struck his family's...
" by Alastair Campbell
Alastair Campbell
Alastair John Campbell is a British journalist, broadcaster, political aide and author, best known for his work as Director of Communications and Strategy for Prime Minister Tony Blair between 1997 and 2003, having first started working for Blair in 1994...
, after the Thunderbirds
Thunderbirds (TV series)
Thunderbirds is a British mid-1960s science fiction television show devised by Gerry and Sylvia Anderson and made by AP Films using a form of marionette puppetry dubbed "Supermarionation"...
character. In the 2001 general election he was elected to Parliament for the Labour stronghold of South Shields
South Shields (UK Parliament constituency)
South Shields 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:...
, succeeding David Clark
David Clark, Baron Clark of Windermere
David George Clark, Baron Clark of Windermere PC DL is a British Labour politician, former cabinet minister and author.-Education and early career:...
. After a year as a backbench MP he was appointed Schools Minister, a junior minister in the Department for Education and Skills in June 2002. On 15 December 2004, in the reshuffle following the resignation of David Blunkett
David Blunkett
David Blunkett is a British Labour Party politician and the Member of Parliament for Sheffield Brightside and Hillsborough, having represented Sheffield Brightside from 1987 to 2010...
, he replaced Ruth Kelly
Ruth Kelly
Ruth Maria Kelly is a British Labour Party politician of Irish descent who was the Member of Parliament for Bolton West from 1997 until she stood down in 2010...
as a Cabinet Office Minister.
Following Labour's third consecutive election victory in May 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....
, he was promoted to the Cabinet
Cabinet of the United Kingdom
The Cabinet of the United Kingdom is the collective decision-making body of Her Majesty's Government in the United Kingdom, composed of the Prime Minister and some 22 Cabinet Ministers, the most senior of the government ministers....
as Minister of State for Communities and Local Government
Minister of State for Communities and Local Government
The position of Minister of State for Communities and Local Government was a cabinet-level position in the United Kingdom Government. It was created by Tony Blair in 2005 following his victory in the general election of that year...
within the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister. This was a newly created cabinet-level post with responsibility for housing, planning, regeneration and local government
Local government
Local government refers collectively to administrative authorities over areas that are smaller than a state.The term is used to contrast with offices at nation-state level, which are referred to as the central government, national government, or federal government...
. Because the Deputy Prime Minister
Deputy Prime Minister
A deputy prime minister or vice prime minister is, in some counties, a government minister who can take the position of acting prime minister when the prime minister is temporarily absent. The position is often likened to that of a vice president, but is significantly different, though both...
, John Prescott
John Prescott
John Leslie Prescott, Baron Prescott is a British politician who was Deputy Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1997 to 2007. Born in Prestatyn, Wales, he represented Hull East as the Labour Member of Parliament from 1970 to 2010...
, was the Departmental Minister
Departments of the United Kingdom Government
Her Majesty's Government of the United Kingdom contains a number of Cabinet ministers who are usually called secretaries of state when they are in charge of Government departments called ministerial departments...
officially in charge of these portfolios, Miliband was not given the title Secretary of State
Secretary of State
Secretary of State or State Secretary is a commonly used title for a senior or mid-level post in governments around the world. The role varies between countries, and in some cases there are multiple Secretaries of State in the Government....
but he was appointed a Privy Councillor and became a full member of the Cabinet.
Secretary of State at Defra
On 5 May 2006 following the local electionsUnited Kingdom local elections, 2006
Local government elections took place in England on Thursday 4 May 2006. Polling stations were open between 7:00 and 22:00.All London borough council seats were up for election, as well as a third of the seats on each of the metropolitan borough councils, and a third of some unitary authorities...
Tony Blair made a major cabinet reshuffle in which Miliband replaced Margaret Beckett
Margaret Beckett
Margaret Mary Beckett is a British Labour Party politician who has been the Member of Parliament for Derby South since 1983, rising to become the Deputy Leader of the Labour Party under John Smith, from 18 July 1992 to 12 May 1994, and briefly serving as Leader of the Party following Smith's death...
as Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
The Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs is a UK cabinet-level position in charge of the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, and the successor to the positions of Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food and Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport...
. Miliband has said he believes agriculture is important for the UK’s cultural heritage, economy and society and also for the environment. He has said disease control should be balanced with animal welfare
Animal welfare
Animal welfare is the physical and psychological well-being of animals.The term animal welfare can also mean human concern for animal welfare or a position in a debate on animal ethics and animal rights...
. He attaches importance to reaching a “fair balance” among consumers, farmers, manufacturers and retailers. Miliband also believes the European Union
European Union
The European Union is an economic and political union of 27 independent member states which are located primarily in Europe. The EU traces its origins from the European Coal and Steel Community and the European Economic Community , formed by six countries in 1958...
and the World Trade Organisation affect power relations between British and foreign farmers.
He was the first British cabinet member to have a blog
Blog
A blog is a type of website or part of a website supposed to be updated with new content from time to time. Blogs are usually maintained by an individual with regular entries of commentary, descriptions of events, or other material such as graphics or video. Entries are commonly displayed in...
, though claims of excessive cost to the taxpayer provoked some controversy. In January 2007 Miliband sparked minor controversy by saying there was no evidence organic food
Organic food
Organic foods are foods that are produced using methods that do not involve modern synthetic inputs such as synthetic pesticides and chemical fertilizers, do not contain genetically modified organisms, and are not processed using irradiation, industrial solvents, or chemical food additives.For the...
was better than conventionally grown
Conventionally grown
Conventionally grown is an agriculture term referring to a method of growing edible plants and other products. It is opposite to organic growing methods which attempt to produce without synthetic chemicals or genetically modified organisms...
produce, though he later clarified that he was referring specifically to health benefits.
Miliband is an advocate for international awareness of climate change
Climate change
Climate change is a significant and lasting change in the statistical distribution of weather patterns over periods ranging from decades to millions of years. It may be a change in average weather conditions or the distribution of events around that average...
and believes the cooperation of all nations is needed for environmental reform. Miliband's focuses include food retail waste management and greenhouse gas
Greenhouse gas
A greenhouse gas is a gas in an atmosphere that absorbs and emits radiation within the thermal infrared range. This process is the fundamental cause of the greenhouse effect. The primary greenhouse gases in the Earth's atmosphere are water vapor, carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide, and ozone...
emissions in agricultural industries. He believes that the EU should go further in two areas: a low carbon global economy and global action on climate change. He also wants Europe to increase its economic competitiveness. By switching over to a low carbon economy, he plans to tackle climate change. He hopes to ensure a stable price on energy by securing an energy source and announced the Government's plans to legislate for carbon reductions at the United Nations General Assembly
United Nations General Assembly
For two articles dealing with membership in the General Assembly, see:* General Assembly members* General Assembly observersThe United Nations General Assembly is one of the five principal organs of the United Nations and the only one in which all member nations have equal representation...
.
In August 2006, in an effort to put environmental reform into action, Miliband developed a place for a collaborative "environmental contract" to be developed on a Defra Wiki site. It was subsequently linked to by blogger Paul Staines
Paul Staines
Paul Staines is an English-born Irish right-wing political blogger. Writer of the pseudonymous "Guido Fawkes' blog of parliamentary plots, rumours & conspiracy", which had as of February 2009, 118,000 visitors per month, his political blog has been described as "one of Britain's leading political...
, and mocked, after which further edits by guest users were temporarily prevented. Miliband's emphasis on the necessity of an entirely cooperative effort to effectively instigate a low carbon lifestyle worldwide has led him to advocate an open dialogue among citizens about environmental issues through web-based blogging. Whilst Environment Secretary, Miliband called for all 27 nations of the European Union
European Union
The European Union is an economic and political union of 27 independent member states which are located primarily in Europe. The EU traces its origins from the European Coal and Steel Community and the European Economic Community , formed by six countries in 1958...
to unify in backing proposals to cut harmful emissions by 30% by 2020.
Miliband has floated the idea of every citizen being issued with a "Carbon Credit Card" to improve personal carbon thrift. Miliband claims individuals have to be empowered to tackle global warming
Global warming
Global warming refers to the rising average temperature of Earth's atmosphere and oceans and its projected continuation. In the last 100 years, Earth's average surface temperature increased by about with about two thirds of the increase occurring over just the last three decades...
— "the mass mobilising movement of our age".
Foreign Secretary
On 28 June 2007, the day after Gordon Brown became Prime Minister, Miliband was appointed Foreign SecretarySecretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs
The Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, commonly referred to as the Foreign Secretary, is a senior member of Her Majesty's Government heading the Foreign and Commonwealth Office and regarded as one of the Great Offices of State...
. He was Britain's third youngest Foreign Secretary and the youngest person to be appointed to the post since David Owen
David Owen
David Anthony Llewellyn Owen, Baron Owen CH PC FRCP is a British politician.Owen served as British Foreign Secretary from 1977 to 1979, the youngest person in over forty years to hold the post; he co-authored the failed Vance-Owen and Owen-Stoltenberg peace plans offered during the Bosnian War...
(in office 21 February 1977 – 4 May 1979). Anthony Eden
Anthony Eden
Robert Anthony Eden, 1st Earl of Avon, KG, MC, PC was a British Conservative politician, who was Prime Minister from 1955 to 1957...
assumed office at the age of 37 in 1935. David's younger brother, the economist Ed Miliband
Ed Miliband
Edward Samuel Miliband is a British Labour Party politician, currently the Leader of the Labour Party and Leader of the Opposition...
, was the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change
Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change
The Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change is a British government cabinet position currently held by Chris Huhne. The government department was created on 3 October 2008 when former Prime Minister Gordon Brown reshuffled his cabinet....
, making them the first siblings to serve together in Cabinet
Cabinet of the United Kingdom
The Cabinet of the United Kingdom is the collective decision-making body of Her Majesty's Government in the United Kingdom, composed of the Prime Minister and some 22 Cabinet Ministers, the most senior of the government ministers....
since Edward, Lord Stanley
Edward Stanley, Lord Stanley (1894-1938)
Edward Montagu Cavendish Stanley, Lord Stanley PC, MC was a British Conservative politician. The eldest son of the 17th Earl of Derby, he held minor political office before being appointed Secretary of State for Dominion Affairs in 1938, sitting in the cabinet alongside his brother Oliver Stanley...
and his brother Oliver
Oliver Stanley
Oliver Frederick George Stanley MC, PC was a prominent British Conservative politician who held many ministerial posts before his early death when it was expected he would soon assume higher office....
in 1938.
Foreign and Commonwealth Office
The Foreign and Commonwealth Office, commonly called the Foreign Office or the FCO is a British government department responsible for promoting the interests of the United Kingdom overseas, created in 1968 by merging the Foreign Office and the Commonwealth Office.The head of the FCO is the...
questions session as Foreign Secretary in the House of Commons was on 3 July 2007.
On the morning of 13 December 2007, Miliband stood in for Prime Minister, Gordon Brown
Gordon Brown
James Gordon Brown is a British Labour Party politician who was the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Labour Party from 2007 until 2010. He previously served as Chancellor of the Exchequer in the Labour Government from 1997 to 2007...
at the official signing ceremony in Lisbon
Lisbon
Lisbon is the capital city and largest city of Portugal with a population of 545,245 within its administrative limits on a land area of . The urban area of Lisbon extends beyond the administrative city limits with a population of 3 million on an area of , making it the 9th most populous urban...
of the EU Reform Treaty, which was attended by all other European heads of government. Brown was otherwise engaged at the House of Commons, appearing before the Liaison Committee
Liaison Committee
The Liaison Committee is a topical committee of the British House of Commons, the lower house of the United Kingdom Parliament. The committee consists of the Chairmen of the 32 Commons Select Committees and the chairman of the Joint Committee on Human Rights....
, and travelled to Portugal to sign the treaty in the afternoon.
On 5 February 2009, Miliband made a statement to the House of Commons concerning Guantanamo Bay detainee and former British resident Benyam Mohammed
Benyam Mohammed
Binyam Ahmed Mohamed is an Ethiopian national, who was detained in Guantanamo Bay prison between 2004 and 2009....
. A week later Mohamed’s American lawyer Yvonne Bradley flew to Britain to urge the Foreign Office to press harder for his release. On 23 February 2009, Benyam Mohammed returned to Britain and was granted temporary residence.
India trip
After his trip to India in 2008 following the Mumbai attacks, Miliband wrote in an article that "resolution of the dispute over KashmirKashmir
Kashmir is the northwestern region of the Indian subcontinent. Until the mid-19th century, the term Kashmir geographically denoted only the valley between the Great Himalayas and the Pir Panjal mountain range...
would help deny extremists in the region one of their main calls to arms, and allow Pakistan
Pakistan
Pakistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is a sovereign state in South Asia. It has a coastline along the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, India in the east and China in the far northeast. In the north, Tajikistan...
i authorities to focus more effectively on tackling the threat on their western borders". This sparked an angry response from the Indian government, whose long standing policy had been not to accept any third party involvement in the dispute of Kashmir. An Indian analyst suggested that his tone implied that India must shoulder some of the responsibility because of its policies in Kashmir. Some reports also said that Miliband's tone towards the Indian Prime Minister and the Finance Minister had been aggressive, and that he had been excused for being a "young man".
Sri Lanka ceasefire
During the latter stages of the Sri Lankan ArmySri Lankan Army
The Sri Lanka Army is the oldest and largest of the Sri Lanka Armed Forces and is responsible for land-based military and humanitarian operations. Established as the Ceylon Army in 1949, it was renamed when Sri Lanka became a republic in 1972...
's 2008/09 offensive against the LTTE, Miliband travelled to Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka is a country off the southern coast of the Indian subcontinent. Known until 1972 as Ceylon , Sri Lanka is an island surrounded by the Indian Ocean, the Gulf of Mannar and the Palk Strait, and lies in the vicinity of India and the...
to press the government to call a ceasefire with the Tamil Tigers, citing concerns for civilians caught in the crossfire. Miliband's visit was met with protests by Sri Lankan nationalists, who accused Miliband of attempting to save the lives of Tamil Tiger militants. During the victory celebrations that took place a few weeks later, a burning effigy of Miliband was reported to have been tossed over the gate of the British High Commission in Colombo
Colombo
Colombo is the largest city of Sri Lanka. It is located on the west coast of the island and adjacent to Sri Jayawardenapura Kotte, the capital of Sri Lanka. Colombo is often referred to as the capital of the country, since Sri Jayawardenapura Kotte is a satellite city of Colombo...
.
In December 2010 articles published in the British newspapers The Guardian and The Daily Telegraph highlighted that Miliband spent two thirds of his time focusing on Sri Lankan civil war largely due to domestic political calculations, the source of the articles was a leaked US diplomatic cable published by Wiki Leaks. The articles further elaborate, Tim Waite a foreign office official had said
that much of [Her Majesty's government] and ministerial attention to Sri Lanka is due to the 'very vocal' Tamil diaspora in the UK, numbering over 300,000, who have been protesting in front of parliament since 6 April,as per the wiki leak site, this was reported by Richard Mills a United States Embassy worker in UK.
Richard Mills further wrote on his cable,
"He said that with UK elections on the horizon and many Tamils living in Labour constituencies with slim majorities, the government is paying particular attention to Sri Lanka, with Miliband recently remarking to Waite that he was spending 60 per cent of his time at the moment on Sri Lanka."
Comments over terrorism
In August 2009, Miliband was a guest on BBC Radio 4BBC Radio 4
BBC Radio 4 is a British domestic radio station, operated and owned by the BBC, that broadcasts a wide variety of spoken-word programmes, including news, drama, comedy, science and history. It replaced the BBC Home Service in 1967. The station controller is currently Gwyneth Williams, and the...
's Great Lives
Great Lives
Great Lives is a BBC Radio 4 biography series, produced in Bristol. It is presented by Matthew Parris. A distinguished guest is asked to nominate the person they feel is truly deserving of the title "Great Life". Matthew and a recognised expert are on hand to discuss the life...
programme, choosing South African Communist Party
South African Communist Party
South African Communist Party is a political party in South Africa. It was founded in 1921 as the Communist Party of South Africa by the joining together of the International Socialist League and others under the leadership of Willam H...
leader and anti-apartheid activist Joe Slovo
Joe Slovo
For Joe Slovo Informal Settlement in Cape Town, see: Joe Slovo .Joe Slovo was a South African politician, long-time leader of the South African Communist Party , and leading member of the African National Congress.-Life:Slovo was born in Obeliai, Lithuania to a Jewish family who emigrated to South...
. Miliband stated during the programme, in a response to a question about terrorism, that "yes there are circumstances in which it is justifiable and yes there are circumstances in which it is effective, but it is never effective on its own". These comments were criticised by Menzies Campbell
Menzies Campbell
Sir Walter Menzies "Ming" Campbell, CBE, QC, MP is a British Liberal Democrat politician and advocate, and a retired sprinter. He is the Member of Parliament for North East Fife, and was the Leader of the Liberal Democrats from 2 March 2006 until 15 October 2007.Campbell held the British record...
and William Hague
William Hague
William Jefferson Hague is the British Foreign Secretary and First Secretary of State. He served as Leader of the Conservative Party from June 1997 to September 2001...
.
European Foreign Minister
The Treaty of LisbonTreaty of Lisbon
The Treaty of Lisbon of 1668 was a peace treaty between Portugal and Spain, concluded at Lisbon on 13 February 1668, through the mediation of England, in which Spain recognized the sovereignty of Portugal's new ruling dynasty, the House of Braganza....
creates the post of High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy for the European Union
European Union
The European Union is an economic and political union of 27 independent member states which are located primarily in Europe. The EU traces its origins from the European Coal and Steel Community and the European Economic Community , formed by six countries in 1958...
, a post commonly known as the European Foreign Minister. In autumn 2009, as the treaty came close to coming into force, Miliband was named as being under consideration for the post as EU officials regarded him as "ideal material". Miliband publicly insisted that he was not available to fill the post, as he was committed to remaining in the British cabinet. Baroness Ashton, a fellow British Labour politician and then European Commissioner for Trade
European Commissioner for Trade
The European Commissioner for Trade is the member of the European Commission responsible for the European Union's common commercial policy...
, was ultimately appointed to the post instead.
Relations with Israel
On 23 March 2010, the UK expelled an IsraelIsrael
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
i diplomat owing to claims that an embassy official from that country forged passports, and Miliband gave a public warning against travel to Israel
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
because of identity theft concerns.
Labour Party
Miliband has emphasised a generational division between himself and Blairites such as John ReidJohn Reid (politician)
John Reid, Baron Reid of Cardowan, PC is a British politician, who served as a Labour Party Member of Parliament and cabinet minister under Tony Blair, most notably as Defence Secretary and then Home Secretary...
, Alan Milburn
Alan Milburn
Alan Milburn is a British Labour Party politician, who was the Member of Parliament for Darlington from 1992 until 2010...
, Stephen Byers
Stephen Byers
Stephen John Byers is a British Labour Party politician who was the Member of Parliament for North Tyneside from 1997 to 2010; in the previous parliament, from 1992, he represented Wallsend...
, John Hutton
John Hutton (Labour MP)
John Matthew Patrick Hutton, Baron Hutton of Furness is a British Labour Party politician who was the Member of Parliament for Barrow and Furness in Cumbria from 1992 to 2010, and has served in a number of Cabinet offices, including Defence Secretary and Business Secretary...
and Peter Mandelson
Peter Mandelson
Peter Benjamin Mandelson, Baron Mandelson, PC is a British Labour Party politician, who was the Member of Parliament for Hartlepool from 1992 to 2004, served in a number of Cabinet positions under both Tony Blair and Gordon Brown, and was a European Commissioner...
. Miliband is one of the "Primrose Hill Gang", a loose network of younger Labour politicians and advisers who supposedly look beyond Tony Blair and Gordon Brown for the future of the Labour Party. Other members of the group include Miliband's brother Ed Miliband
Ed Miliband
Edward Samuel Miliband is a British Labour Party politician, currently the Leader of the Labour Party and Leader of the Opposition...
, Douglas Alexander
Douglas Alexander
Douglas Garven Alexander is a British Labour Party politician, who is currently the Shadow Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs in the shadow cabinet of Ed Miliband. He has held cabinet posts under Tony Blair and Gordon Brown, including Secretary of State for Scotland and...
, Pat McFadden
Pat McFadden (British politician)
Patrick Bosco McFadden is a British Labour Party politician, who has been the Member of Parliament for Wolverhampton South East since 2005...
, James Purnell
James Purnell
James Mark Dakin Purnell is a British Labour Party politician, who was the Member of Parliament for Stalybridge and Hyde from 2001 to 2010. He is currently the Head of the Open Left project at the left leaning think tank Demos...
, Jim Murphy
Jim Murphy
James Francis "Jim" Murphy is a British Labour Party politician and is the Member of Parliament for East Renfrewshire....
, Andy Burnham, Matthew Taylor
Matthew Taylor (Labour politician)
Matthew Taylor is Chief Executive of the Royal Society for the encouragement of Arts, Manufactures and Commerce in the United Kingdom.-Background:...
, Geoff Mulgan
Geoff Mulgan
Geoff Mulgan is Chief Executive of the National Endowment for Science Technology and the Arts and Visiting Professor at University College, London, the London School of Economics and the University of Melbourne...
and Patrick Diamond
Patrick Diamond
Patrick Diamond worked as a policy advisor under the Labour Party government of the United Kingdom in a role covering policy and strategy. He was previously a Senior Research Fellow at the International Think Tank Policy Network, where he had been previously the Director. He has previously worked...
.
Miliband could be seen as a leader of a different set of "next generation" Blairite Ministers - a "Blairites for Brown" group - whom political commentators usually identify as David Miliband, Andy Burnham, James Purnell
James Purnell
James Mark Dakin Purnell is a British Labour Party politician, who was the Member of Parliament for Stalybridge and Hyde from 2001 to 2010. He is currently the Head of the Open Left project at the left leaning think tank Demos...
and Liam Byrne
Liam Byrne
Liam Dominic Byrne is a British Labour Party politician who has been the Member of Parliament for Birmingham Hodge Hill since 2004, and was the Chief Secretary to the Treasury from 2009 to 2010 before being appointed Shadow Secretary of State for Work and Pensions on 20 January 2011.-Early...
, several of whom prospered under Brown. There is reported to be little difference between this group and Brownites
Brownism
In British politics Brownism describes the political ideology of former Labour leader and former prime minister Gordon Brown. Supporters are considered to be Brownite....
of the same generation, notably Ed Miliband, and the husband and wife ministerial couple of Ed Balls
Ed Balls
Edward Michael Balls, known as Ed Balls, is a British Labour politician, who has been a Member of Parliament since 2005, currently for Morley and Outwood, and is the current Shadow Chancellor of the Exchequer....
and Yvette Cooper
Yvette Cooper
Yvette Cooper is a British Labour Party politician who has been the Member of Parliament for Normanton, Pontefract and Castleford since 2010, having previously been MP for Pontefract and Castleford since 1997. She served in the Cabinet between 2008 and 2010. She is the Shadow Home Secretary...
.
Miliband's support for Brown was seen as part of an effort by his generation to end the Blairite/Brownite division, which they saw as a product more of personal rivalries arising from the 1994 leadership deal than of policy differences. Political commentator Andrew Rawnsley
Andrew Rawnsley
Andrew Nicholas James Rawnsley is a British political journalist, notably for The Observer, and broadcaster.-Early life:...
of The Observer
The Observer
The Observer is a British newspaper, published on Sundays. In the same place on the political spectrum as its daily sister paper The Guardian, which acquired it in 1993, it takes a liberal or social democratic line on most issues. It is the world's oldest Sunday newspaper.-Origins:The first issue,...
wrote in 2002 that "He is on the Left of the New Labour spectrum. He is a believer—in a way that Blair is not entirely—in Continental social democracy
Social democracy
Social democracy is a political ideology of the center-left on the political spectrum. Social democracy is officially a form of evolutionary reformist socialism. It supports class collaboration as the course to achieve socialism...
".
Background
On 29 July 2008, Miliband wrote an article in The GuardianThe Guardian
The Guardian, formerly known as The Manchester Guardian , is a British national daily newspaper in the Berliner format...
that outlined his vision of a future of the Labour Party but made no mention of Gordon Brown. The piece was widely interpreted as a leadership challenge to the then Prime Minister, not least because the timing of its publication – just after Brown's departure on holiday at the start of the parliamentary summer recess, and while there was intense speculation about his continuing leadership following Labour's defeat in the Glasgow East by-election
Glasgow East by-election, 2008
The 2008 Glasgow East by-election was a by-election for the UK Parliamentary constituency of Glasgow East which was held on 24 July 2008. The election was triggered when, on 30 June 2008, the sitting MP David Marshall stood down due to ill health....
the previous week – seemed designed to produce a large political impact. In the following days two Labour MPs called on Brown to sack Miliband for his perceived disloyalty. Miliband, while denying claims by his detractors that he was seeking to provoke an early leadership election, did not rule himself out of eventually running for the leadership of the party. Many grassroots supporters believed a David Miliband-led Labour Party would tackle the Conservatives more effectively, reaching out to voters in marginal seats as well as securing Labour's core support.
Campaign
On 12 May 2010, flanked by 15 supportive MPs outside the House of Commons, Miliband announced he would stand for the leadership election of the Labour PartyLabour Party (UK) leadership election, 2010
The 2010 Labour Party leadership election was triggered by a general election which resulted in a hung parliament. On 10 May, Gordon Brown resigned as Leader of the Labour Party. The following day, he stepped down as Prime Minister....
. The other contenders for the leadership were Ed Balls
Ed Balls
Edward Michael Balls, known as Ed Balls, is a British Labour politician, who has been a Member of Parliament since 2005, currently for Morley and Outwood, and is the current Shadow Chancellor of the Exchequer....
, Andy Burnham, Diane Abbott
Diane Abbott
Diane Julie Abbott is a British Labour Party politician who has been the Member of Parliament for Hackney North and Stoke Newington since 1987, when she became the first black woman to be elected to the House of Commons...
and David’s brother Ed Miliband
Ed Miliband
Edward Samuel Miliband is a British Labour Party politician, currently the Leader of the Labour Party and Leader of the Opposition...
, with David Miliband gaining the most nominations. The result of the contest was announced on 25 September 2010, the day before the start of the 2010 Labour Party Conference
Labour Party (UK) Conference
The Labour Party Conference, or annual national conference of the Labour Party, is formally the supreme decision-making body of the Party.-Conference decisions:...
in Manchester. While David Miliband led the share of the electoral college votes in the first three rounds, he lost in the final round (50.65% to 49.35%) to his brother Ed. He announced on 29 September 2010 that he would be quitting frontline politics and would not be a part of his brother Ed's shadow cabinet.
The Daily Mirror, a Labour supporting newspaper which had backed Miliband in his leadership campaign, lamented his failure to win as a "sad waste of a huge talent".
Retirement from frontline politics
Miliband resigned from the shadow cabinet in October 2010, and since has been serving as the MP for South ShieldsSouth Shields
South Shields is a coastal town in Tyne and Wear, England, located at the mouth of the River Tyne to Tyne Dock, and about downstream from Newcastle upon Tyne...
. He has become the non-executive vice-chairman for Sunderland A.F.C.
Sunderland A.F.C.
Sunderland Association Football Club is an English association football club based in Sunderland, Tyne and Wear who currently play in the Premier League...
and is also a part-time voluntary teacher at Haverstock School, teaching A-Level Politics and Government. In 2011, he became Senior Global Advisor for Oxford Analytica
Oxford Analytica
Oxford Analytica is an international consulting firm providing strategic analysis of world events. It was founded in 1975 by David Young, an American employee of the National Security Council during the Nixon administration and one of the four in the Watergate scandal.Clients of Oxford Analytica...
.
Expenses claims
The Daily TelegraphThe Daily Telegraph
The Daily Telegraph is a daily morning broadsheet newspaper distributed throughout the United Kingdom and internationally. The newspaper was founded by Arthur B...
s investigation of expenses claims by Members of Parliament reported that Miliband had claimed for gardening
Gardening
Gardening is the practice of growing and cultivating plants. Ornamental plants are normally grown for their flowers, foliage, or overall appearance; useful plants are grown for consumption , for their dyes, or for medicinal or cosmetic use...
expenses and approximately £30,000 in repairs, decorations, and furnishings for his constituency home in South Shields
South Shields
South Shields is a coastal town in Tyne and Wear, England, located at the mouth of the River Tyne to Tyne Dock, and about downstream from Newcastle upon Tyne...
. A spokesperson said: "At every stage, David Miliband followed the procedures and rules as laid out by the parliamentary authorities".
Personal life
Miliband is married to United States-born Louise Shackelton, a professional violinist currently with the London Symphony OrchestraLondon Symphony Orchestra
The London Symphony Orchestra is a major orchestra of the United Kingdom, as well as one of the best-known orchestras in the world. Since 1982, the LSO has been based in London's Barbican Centre.-History:...
. Shackelton and Miliband have adopted two newborn sons from the United States, the first in December 2004 and the second in October 2007.
In an interview with CNN
CNN
Cable News Network is a U.S. cable news channel founded in 1980 by Ted Turner. Upon its launch, CNN was the first channel to provide 24-hour television news coverage, and the first all-news television channel in the United States...
in 2009, Miliband stated that he grew up in a secular setting, and describes himself as an atheist with a "huge respect" for people of faith.
Business interests
On 21 December 2010, The Office of David Miliband Limited was formed with Miliband and his wife Louise as directors.External links
- David Miliband MP Official Website
- Blog archive at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office