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Mark Hunter (politician)
Encyclopedia
Mark James Hunter is a British Liberal Democrat politician who is the current Member of Parliament
(MP) for Cheadle.
and worked as a marketing executive for the Guardian Media Group
until 2002.
candidate in Ashton under Lyne in the 1987 general election
, and as the Liberal Democrat candidate in Stockport
in the 2001 general election
. He was first elected to Stockport Metropolitan Borough Council
in May 1996 for a ward in Marple
, and served as Chair of Education before replacing Patsy Calton
as Deputy Leader and Executive Member for Regeneration in June 2001 when she stood down after becoming the local MP. In May 2002 he became Leader of the Council.
As Leader, Mark Hunter served on the North West Regional Authority. He was also elected to the Liberal Democrat executive on the Local Government Association
.
died from cancer shortly after the 2005 general election
, Mark Hunter was selected to follow her. Stephen Day
who was MP prior to 2001 was selected as the Conservative Party candidate. In a by-election
which saw accusations of 'dirty tricks' from all parties but was fairly low-profile (coming so soon after the general election), he managed to slightly increase the Liberal Democrat percentage of the vote on a lower turnout.
From the election of Nick Clegg
as leader of the Liberal Democrats
in December 2007 to the 2010 General Election, Mark Hunter served as Clegg's Parliamentary Private Secretary (PPS) and the party's Transport Spokesman in the Commons.
Prior to this, Hunter had been a member of the Shadow Foreign Affairs team in 2007, Shadow Home Affairs team in 2006 and Shadow OPDM team in 2005.
Hunter was a member of the Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform Committee which replaced the Trade and Industry Select Committee (of which he was also a member) in November 2007. By virtue of sitting on BERR committee, Hunter was also a member of the Quadripartite Committee on Strategic Export Controls.
In 2009 he tabled an early day motion
to save payments by cheque
which are due to be phased out.
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 Cheadle.
Education and background
Mark Hunter was educated at Audenshaw Grammar School for BoysAudenshaw School
Audenshaw School is a male-only secondary school in Audenshaw, Greater Manchester, England, established in 1932 as Audenshaw Grammar School. An adjoining co-educational sixth form college was opened in 1997, the same year the school was granted foundation school status...
and worked as a marketing executive for the Guardian Media Group
Guardian Media Group
Guardian Media Group plc is a company of the United Kingdom owning various mass media operations including The Guardian and The Observer. The Group is owned by the Scott Trust. It was founded as the Manchester Guardian Ltd in 1907 when C. P. Scott bought the Manchester Guardian from the estate of...
until 2002.
Before Parliament
Mark Hunter ran as the LiberalLiberal Party (UK)
The Liberal Party was one of the two major political parties of the United Kingdom during the 19th and early 20th centuries. It was a third party of negligible importance throughout the latter half of the 20th Century, before merging with the Social Democratic Party in 1988 to form the present day...
candidate in Ashton under Lyne in the 1987 general election
United Kingdom general election, 1987
The United Kingdom general election of 1987 was held on 11 June 1987, to elect 650 members to the British House of Commons. The election was the third consecutive election victory for the Conservative Party under the leadership of Margaret Thatcher, who became the first Prime Minister since the 2nd...
, and as the Liberal Democrat candidate in Stockport
Stockport (UK Parliament constituency)
Stockport 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:...
in the 2001 general 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 first elected to Stockport Metropolitan Borough Council
Stockport Metropolitan Borough Council
Stockport Metropolitan Borough Council is the local authority for the Metropolitan Borough of Stockport, Greater Manchester, England. The council is currently in no overall control since the 2011 local elections when the Liberal Democrats lost their majority. The Liberal Democrats now have 31...
in May 1996 for a ward in Marple
Marple, Greater Manchester
Marple is a small town within the Metropolitan Borough of Stockport, in Greater Manchester, England. It lies on the River Goyt southeast of Stockport.Historically part of Cheshire, Marple has a population of 23,480 .-Toponymy:...
, and served as Chair of Education before replacing Patsy Calton
Patsy Calton
Patsy Calton was a British politician, and was a Liberal Democrat politician, and Member of Parliament for the constituency of Cheadle in Greater Manchester....
as Deputy Leader and Executive Member for Regeneration in June 2001 when she stood down after becoming the local MP. In May 2002 he became Leader of the Council.
As Leader, Mark Hunter served on the North West Regional Authority. He was also elected to the Liberal Democrat executive on the Local Government Association
Local Government Association
The Local Government Association is a voluntary lobbying organisation acting as the voice of the local government sector in England and Wales, which seeks to be an authoritative and effective advocate on its behalf....
.
Election to Parliament
When Patsy CaltonPatsy Calton
Patsy Calton was a British politician, and was a Liberal Democrat politician, and Member of Parliament for the constituency of Cheadle in Greater Manchester....
died from cancer shortly after 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....
, Mark Hunter was selected to follow her. Stephen Day
Stephen Day (MP)
Stephen Richard Day is a Conservative Party politician in the United Kingdom, and a former Member of Parliament .He was the Conservative candidate for Bradford West at the 1983 general election, before being elected as MP for Cheadle from 1987 to 2001, when he lost his seat by 33 votes, the...
who was MP prior to 2001 was selected as the Conservative Party candidate. In a by-election
Cheadle by-election, 2005
The Cheadle by-election, in Greater Manchester, England, was caused by the death of Patsy Calton, the Liberal Democrat Member of Parliament for Cheadle on 29 May 2005. The election was held on 14 July 2005....
which saw accusations of 'dirty tricks' from all parties but was fairly low-profile (coming so soon after the general election), he managed to slightly increase the Liberal Democrat percentage of the vote on a lower turnout.
Parliamentary roles
Mark Hunter is Liberal Democrat Deputy Chief Whip and Assistant Government Whip in the Coalition Government (2010-).He has been accused by members of his consituency of breaking some of the pre-election promises in exchange for this minor promotion.From the election of Nick Clegg
Nick Clegg
Nicholas William Peter "Nick" Clegg is a British Liberal Democrat politician who is currently the Deputy Prime Minister, Lord President of the Council and Minister for Constitutional and Political Reform in the coalition government of which David Cameron is the Prime Minister...
as leader of the Liberal Democrats
Liberal Democrats
The Liberal Democrats are a social liberal political party in the United Kingdom which supports constitutional and electoral reform, progressive taxation, wealth taxation, human rights laws, cultural liberalism, banking reform and civil liberties .The party was formed in 1988 by a merger of the...
in December 2007 to the 2010 General Election, Mark Hunter served as Clegg's Parliamentary Private Secretary (PPS) and the party's Transport Spokesman in the Commons.
Prior to this, Hunter had been a member of the Shadow Foreign Affairs team in 2007, Shadow Home Affairs team in 2006 and Shadow OPDM team in 2005.
Hunter was a member of the Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform Committee which replaced the Trade and Industry Select Committee (of which he was also a member) in November 2007. By virtue of sitting on BERR committee, Hunter was also a member of the Quadripartite Committee on Strategic Export Controls.
In 2009 he tabled an early day motion
Early day motion
An Early Day Motion , in the Westminster system, is a motion, expressed as a single sentence, tabled by Members of Parliament for debate "on an early day" . Controversial EDMs are not signed by Government Ministers, PPS or the Speaker of the House of Commons and very few are debated on the floor...
to save payments by cheque
Cheque
A cheque is a document/instrument See the negotiable cow—itself a fictional story—for discussions of cheques written on unusual surfaces. that orders a payment of money from a bank account...
which are due to be phased out.
External links
- Mark Hunter MP official constituency site
- Profile at the Liberal Democrats
- Cheadle Liberal Democrats