Hugh Kerr
Encyclopedia
Hugh Kerr is a Scottish
politician and a former lecturer in social policy at the University of East London
. He was elected a Labour Party
Member of the European Parliament
(MEP) in June 1994 to represent the euro-constituency of Essex West & Hertfordshire East
until 1999.
incumbent, Patricia Rawlings
, and was elected as the MEP for Essex West & Hertfordshire East (then comprising the Westminster constituencies of Brentwood and Ongar, Broxbourne
, Epping Forest
, Harlow
, Hertford and Stortford, North East Hertfordshire and Stevenage
). In his speech on election night in June 1994, he chided Rawlings (now Baroness Rawlings of Burnham Westgate) for not attending any of the series of pre-election hustings throughout the euro-constituency where local issues had been debated by the other candidates in her absence.
providing support for the local Labour party and its nominee Bill Rammell
. Kerr fell out with the New Labour government not long after the 5 May 1997 General Election
– when Rammell was elected as Harlow's MP – accusing the Prime Minister, Tony Blair
, of "stalinist tendencies" for planning to abolish all current euro-constituencies and for introducing a party list regional system for future European elections, and to stifle any criticism by Labour MEPs.
In a House of Commons debate on 27 November 1997, Kerr was quoted as saying that the gagging "shows that New Labour is increasingly authoritarian and centralised" (see http://www.parliament.the-stationery-office.co.uk/pa/cm199798/cmhansrd/vo971125/debtext/71125-19.htm).
and later expelled from the Labour Party along with fellow dissident Ken Coates
MEP, with whom he then formed the Independent Labour Network
. He left the Party of European Socialists
and joined forces with The Green Group in the European Parliament
, becoming the first Scottish Socialist Party
(SSP) MEP. At the June 1999 European Parliament election, with voting on the basis of proportional representation
throughout the United Kingdom, Kerr was at the top of the SSP's party list for Scotland's seven European seats but the party's share of the vote was too low to secure his re-election as an MEP.
, Kerr returned to Scotland and worked as press officer to Tommy Sheridan
MSP. In the May 2003 Scottish Parliamentary Elections, Kerr stood as an SSP candidate for the East Lothian
constituency but gained only 1,380 votes (4.42%). The June 2004 European Parliamentary Election was no better for the SSP than five years earlier and Kerr's share of the vote at the Kilmarnock and Loudoun
constituency in the 2005 General Election
slumped to 1.9% (833 votes). Kerr resigned from the SSP in September 2006 to become the Press Officer of Solidarity
, a new party led by Sheridan.
He was a defence witness in HM Advocate v Sheridan and Sheridan
.
In November 2011 he joined the Scottish National Party
.
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
politician and a former lecturer in social policy at the University of East London
University of East London
The University of East London is a university located in the London Borough of Newham, East London, England, based at two campuses in Stratford and Docklands areas...
. He was elected a 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...
Member of the European Parliament
Member of the European Parliament
A Member of the European Parliament is a person who has been elected to the European Parliament. The name of MEPs differ in different languages, with terms such as europarliamentarian or eurodeputy being common in Romance language-speaking areas.When the European Parliament was first established,...
(MEP) in June 1994 to represent the euro-constituency of Essex West & Hertfordshire East
Essex West and Hertfordshire East (European Parliament constituency)
Essex West and Hertfordshire East was a constituency of the European Parliament located in the United Kingdom, electing one Member of the European Parliament by the first-past-the-post electoral system. Created in 1994 from parts of Hertfordshire and Essex South West, it was abolished in 1999 on...
until 1999.
Surprising win
At the 1994 European Parliament election Kerr surprisingly defeated the ConservativeConservative Party (UK)
The Conservative Party, formally the Conservative and Unionist Party, is a centre-right political party in the United Kingdom that adheres to the philosophies of conservatism and British unionism. It is the largest political party in the UK, and is currently the largest single party in the House...
incumbent, Patricia Rawlings
Patricia Rawlings, Baroness Rawlings
Patricia Elizabeth Rawlings, Baroness Rawlings is a Conservative Party politician and frontbencher in the House of Lords. She was a Member of the European Parliament from 1989 to 1994....
, and was elected as the MEP for Essex West & Hertfordshire East (then comprising the Westminster constituencies of Brentwood and Ongar, Broxbourne
Broxbourne (UK Parliament constituency)
-Elections in the 2000s:-Elections in the 1990s:-Elections in the 1980s:-Notes and references:...
, Epping Forest
Epping Forest (UK Parliament constituency)
Epping Forest is a parliamentary 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 :...
, Harlow
Harlow (UK Parliament constituency)
Harlow is a parliamentary 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 :...
, Hertford and Stortford, North East Hertfordshire and Stevenage
Stevenage (UK Parliament constituency)
Stevenage is a county 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:...
). In his speech on election night in June 1994, he chided Rawlings (now Baroness Rawlings of Burnham Westgate) for not attending any of the series of pre-election hustings throughout the euro-constituency where local issues had been debated by the other candidates in her absence.
Old and New Labour
Upon his election in 1994, Kerr based his euro-constituency office in the marginal constituency of HarlowHarlow
Harlow is a new town and local government district in Essex, England. It is located in the west of the county and on the border with Hertfordshire, on the Stort Valley, The town is near the M11 motorway and forms part of the London commuter belt.The district has a current population of 78,889...
providing support for the local Labour party and its nominee Bill Rammell
Bill Rammell
William Ernest Rammell is a British Labour Party politician, who was the Member of Parliament for Harlow from 1997 to 2010, and has served as the Minister of State for the Armed Forces at the Ministry of Defence...
. Kerr fell out with the New Labour government not long after the 5 May 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...
– when Rammell was elected as Harlow's MP – accusing the Prime Minister, 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...
, of "stalinist tendencies" for planning to abolish all current euro-constituencies and for introducing a party list regional system for future European elections, and to stifle any criticism by Labour MEPs.
In a House of Commons debate on 27 November 1997, Kerr was quoted as saying that the gagging "shows that New Labour is increasingly authoritarian and centralised" (see http://www.parliament.the-stationery-office.co.uk/pa/cm199798/cmhansrd/vo971125/debtext/71125-19.htm).
The dissident
Kerr was suspended by the National Executive CommitteeNational Executive Committee
The National Executive Committee or NEC is the chief administrative body of the UK Labour Party. Its composition has changed over the years, and includes representatives of affiliated trade unions, the Parliamentary Labour Party and European Parliamentary Labour Party, Constituency Labour Parties,...
and later expelled from the Labour Party along with fellow dissident Ken Coates
Ken Coates
Kenneth Sidney Coates was a British politician and writer. He chaired the Bertrand Russell Peace Foundation and edited The Spokesman, the BRPF magazine launched in March 1970. He was a Labour Party Member of the European Parliament from 1989 to 1999...
MEP, with whom he then formed the Independent Labour Network
Independent Labour Network
The Independent Labour Network was a left wing political organisation in the United Kingdom.It was founded in 1998 by MEPs Ken Coates and Hugh Kerr following their expulsion from the Labour Party. They stood candidates in the 1999 European Parliament election and were involved in setting up first...
. He left the Party of European Socialists
Party of European Socialists
The Party of European Socialists is a European political party led by Sergei Stanishev, former Prime Minister of Bulgaria. The PES comprises social-democratic national-level political parties primarily from Member state of the European Union, as well as other nations of the European continent. The...
and joined forces with The Green Group in the European Parliament
The Green Group in the European Parliament
The Green Group in the European Parliament was a Green political group with seats in the European Parliament between 1989 and 1999.-History:In 1989 the Rainbow Group split, with the Greens forming a group called "The Green Group in the European Parliament", and the Regionalists remaining within a...
, becoming the first Scottish Socialist Party
Scottish Socialist Party
The Scottish Socialist Party is a left-wing Scottish political party. Positioning itself significantly to the left of Scotland's centre-left parties, the SSP campaigns on a socialist economic platform and for Scottish independence....
(SSP) MEP. At the June 1999 European Parliament election, with voting on the basis of proportional representation
Proportional representation
Proportional representation is a concept in voting systems used to elect an assembly or council. PR means that the number of seats won by a party or group of candidates is proportionate to the number of votes received. For example, under a PR voting system if 30% of voters support a particular...
throughout the United Kingdom, Kerr was at the top of the SSP's party list for Scotland's seven European seats but the party's share of the vote was too low to secure his re-election as an MEP.
Back to Scotland
After a period living in AustraliaAustralia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
, Kerr returned to Scotland and worked as press officer to Tommy Sheridan
Tommy Sheridan
Tommy Sheridan is a Scottish socialist politician. He has had various prominent roles within the socialist movement in Scotland and is currently one of two co-convenors of the left-wing Scottish political party Solidarity....
MSP. In the May 2003 Scottish Parliamentary Elections, Kerr stood as an SSP candidate for the East Lothian
East Lothian (UK Parliament constituency)
East Lothian is a constituency in Scotland which returned one Member of Parliament to the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, elected by the first past the post voting system.-History:...
constituency but gained only 1,380 votes (4.42%). The June 2004 European Parliamentary Election was no better for the SSP than five years earlier and Kerr's share of the vote at the Kilmarnock and Loudoun
Kilmarnock and Loudoun (UK Parliament constituency)
Kilmarnock and Loudoun is a county constituency of the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It elects one Member of Parliament , using the first-past-the-post voting system.-Boundaries:...
constituency in 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....
slumped to 1.9% (833 votes). Kerr resigned from the SSP in September 2006 to become the Press Officer of Solidarity
Solidarity (Scotland)
Solidarity is a political party in Scotland, launched on September 3, 2006 as a breakaway from the Scottish Socialist Party in the aftermath of Tommy Sheridan's libel action...
, a new party led by Sheridan.
He was a defence witness in HM Advocate v Sheridan and Sheridan
HM Advocate v Sheridan and Sheridan
Her Majesty's Advocate v Thomas Sheridan and Gail Sheridan was the 2010 criminal prosecution of Tommy Sheridan, a former Member of the Scottish Parliament and his wife Gail Sheridan for perjury in relation to the earlier civil case Sheridan v News Group Newspapers.In Scotland criminal prosecutions...
.
In November 2011 he joined the Scottish National Party
Scottish National Party
The Scottish National Party is a social-democratic political party in Scotland which campaigns for Scottish independence from the United Kingdom....
.