Ray Collins (trade unionist)
Encyclopedia
Ray Edward Harry Collins, Baron Collins of Highbury (born ca. 1955) is a British
life peer
and trade union
ist who was appointed General Secretary
of the Labour Party
on 12 June 2008.
Collins was appointed Central Office Manager of the Transport and General Workers' Union
in 1984 and held essentially the same post until 2008, being redesignated Head of Administration in the 1990s and Assistant General Secretary in 1999. He has been a member of the Labour Party for over thirty years and has campaigned for the party in every General Election since 1970. He is TGWU representative on the Labour Party National Policy Forum and a member of Labour's National Constitutional Committee.
In December 2007, he was named the 27th most influential LGBT
person in British politics by Pink News
. He helped steer the TGWU into a merger with Amicus
, creating Unite
, one of the largest trade unions in the country.
Collins took the helm because the party was reportedly close to bankruptcy. In May 2008, Electoral Commission
figures showed the party was £17.8 million in debt.
On 20 January 2011, Collins was created a life peer
as Baron Collins of Highbury, of Highbury in the London Borough of Islington, and was introduced
in the House of Lords
on 24 January 2011, where he sits on the Labour benches. He was appointed a whip
in 2011.
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
life peer
Life peer
In the United Kingdom, life peers are appointed members of the Peerage whose titles cannot be inherited. Nowadays life peerages, always of baronial rank, are created under the Life Peerages Act 1958 and entitle the holders to seats in the House of Lords, presuming they meet qualifications such as...
and trade union
Trade union
A trade union, trades union or labor union is an organization of workers that have banded together to achieve common goals such as better working conditions. The trade union, through its leadership, bargains with the employer on behalf of union members and negotiates labour contracts with...
ist who was appointed General Secretary
General Secretary of the Labour Party
The General Secretary is the most senior employee of the British Labour Party, and acts as the non-voting secretary to the National Executive Committee...
of 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...
on 12 June 2008.
Collins was appointed Central Office Manager of the Transport and General Workers' Union
Transport and General Workers' Union
The Transport and General Workers' Union, also known as the TGWU and the T&G, was one of the largest general trade unions in the United Kingdom and Ireland - where it was known as the Amalgamated Transport and General Workers' Union - with 900,000 members...
in 1984 and held essentially the same post until 2008, being redesignated Head of Administration in the 1990s and Assistant General Secretary in 1999. He has been a member of the Labour Party for over thirty years and has campaigned for the party in every General Election since 1970. He is TGWU representative on the Labour Party National Policy Forum and a member of Labour's National Constitutional Committee.
In December 2007, he was named the 27th most influential LGBT
LGBT
LGBT is an initialism that collectively refers to "lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender" people. In use since the 1990s, the term "LGBT" is an adaptation of the initialism "LGB", which itself started replacing the phrase "gay community" beginning in the mid-to-late 1980s, which many within the...
person in British politics by Pink News
Pink News
Pink News is a United Kingdom-based online gay newspaper.The paper version, The Pink News, officially launched at the Law Society on 28 June 2006 by Francis Maude, Chairman of the Conservative Party, Meg Munn, Minister for Equality, Simon Hughes, President of the Liberal Democrats and Meg Hillier,...
. He helped steer the TGWU into a merger with Amicus
Amicus
Amicus was the United Kingdom's second-largest trade union, and the largest private sector union, formed by the merger of Manufacturing Science and Finance, the AEEU agreed in 2001, and two smaller unions, UNIFI and the GPMU...
, creating Unite
Unite the Union
Unite – the Union, known as Unite, is a British and Irish trade union, formed on 1 May 2007, by the merger of Amicus and the Transport and General Workers' Union...
, one of the largest trade unions in the country.
Collins took the helm because the party was reportedly close to bankruptcy. In May 2008, Electoral Commission
Electoral Commission (United Kingdom)
The Electoral Commission is an independent body set up by the UK Parliament. It regulates party and election finance and sets standards for well-run elections...
figures showed the party was £17.8 million in debt.
On 20 January 2011, Collins was created a life peer
Life peer
In the United Kingdom, life peers are appointed members of the Peerage whose titles cannot be inherited. Nowadays life peerages, always of baronial rank, are created under the Life Peerages Act 1958 and entitle the holders to seats in the House of Lords, presuming they meet qualifications such as...
as Baron Collins of Highbury, of Highbury in the London Borough of Islington, and was introduced
Introduction (House of Lords)
Introduction is a ceremony in the House of Lords whereby new members are "introduced" to the existing membership. Introductions in the Lords are more elaborate than those in the House of Commons.-Origins:...
in the House of Lords
House of Lords
The House of Lords is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Like the House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminster....
on 24 January 2011, where he sits on the Labour benches. He was appointed a whip
Whip (politics)
A whip is an official in a political party whose primary purpose is to ensure party discipline in a legislature. Whips are a party's "enforcers", who typically offer inducements and threaten punishments for party members to ensure that they vote according to the official party policy...
in 2011.