| Jim Dobbin MP | |
|---|---|
| Member of Parliament for Heywood and Middleton |
|
| Incumbent | |
| Assumed office 1 May 1997 |
|
| Preceded by | James Callaghan |
| Majority | 5,971 (12.9%) |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 26 May 1941 Kincardine on Forth, Fife, Scotland |
| Nationality | Scottish |
| Political party | Labour Co-operative |
| Spouse(s) | Patricia Russell[1] |
| Alma mater | Napier University |
| Religion | Christian (Roman Catholicism) |
James "Jim" Dobbin (born 26 May 1941) is a British Labour Co-operative politician and microbiologist, who has been the Member of Parliament (MP) for Heywood and Middleton since 1997.
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Jim Dobbin was born in Kincardine on Forth, Fife, Scotland, the son of a coal miner, and educated at the Catholic Saint Columba's High School, Cowdenbeath, and the Catholic St Andrew's High School on Overton Road in Kirkcaldy. He later went to Napier College, Edinburgh where he studied Bacteriology and Virology.
He worked as a microbiologist within the NHS for 33 years until 1994, mainly at the Royal Oldham Hospital. He was elected chairman of the Rochdale Constituency Labour Party for a year in 1980.
In 1983 he was elected as a councillor in the Metropolitan Borough of Rochdale, becoming the Labour group leader in 1994, and became the leader of the council in 1996. He stepped down from both the National Health Service and the council at Rochdale on his election to the House of Commons. In 1992 he had unsuccessfully contested the Bury North seat, coming second to the sitting Conservative MP Alistair Burt, some 4,764 votes behind.
Dobbin was elected to the House of Commons at the 1997 General Election for the safe Labour seat of Heywood and Middleton on the retirement of the veteran Labour MP Jim Callaghan. He held the seat comfortably with a majority of 17,542 and has been an MP there since. He made his maiden speech on 30 July 1997.[1]. He has been a member of the European Scrutiny Select Committee since 1998.
Dobbin employs his wife to be his secretary in the House of Commons, a practice which has attracted significant national debate, but remains permissible under House of Commons rules.[2][3] Labour councillors Colin Lambert and Alan Godson, as well as ex-Labour councillor Brian Leather are also paid out of Dobbin's parliamentary expenses.[4]
In May 2009 it was revealed that Dobbin claimed more public funds for staff than any other MP in Greater Manchester: £99,700.[5] He has defended this by observing that he also has the largest number of constituents. Nationally, he has one of the lowest overall expense bills, with 504 out of 646 MPs having higher expense claims than him.[6]
Dobbin has chaired the all-party Pro Life Group and is a Roman Catholic [2]. He married Pat Russell in 1964, and they have two sons and two daughters, Juliette Curran. His wife is also his secretary. He has seven grandsons, one of whom, Joseph Liam Murphy, is a professional drummer.
| Parliament of the United Kingdom | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by James Callaghan |
Member of Parliament for Heywood and Middleton 1997–present |
Incumbent |