Ian Lavery

Ian Lavery (born 6 January 1963) is a British Labour Party politician, who has been the Member of Parliament (MP) for Wansbeck since the 2010 general election as well as President of the National Union of Mineworkers.

Early life

Lavery has lived in Ashington, once the largest coal mining village in Europe, all of his life. After leaving school, Lavery started on a youth training scheme, before working in the construction industry. Following a recruitment campaign by the National Coal Board, he commenced work at Lynemouth Colliery in January 1980.^[2] In July 1980, he started a mining craft apprentice and started working at the coalface. In 1981, he was transferred to Ellington Colliery and went to college, receiving a HNC in Mining.

Supports strike

During the 1984-85 Miners' Strike Lavery was the only apprentice in the North East area who refused to go to work.^[3] He was arrested six or seven times during the strike.

Becomes an activist

In 1986, Lavery was elected onto the National Union of Mineworkers (NUM) committee at Ellington Colliery as Compensation Secretary. Later, he was voted on to the Northumberland Executive Committee, and then on to the North East Area Executive Committee. He claims that because of his union activity, he was barred by management from completing his HND qualification:

"I was the only one in the whole of the North East Area who had completed the HNC who wasn't given that opportunity. I went to see the manager, not that I would have gone by the way, and he said that they didn't think I would be interested. I asked him if he had thought to ask me, and he said no, not really, and he was smiling as he said it."

Rise to the Presidency

In 1992, list of thirty-one pits due for closure was announced, Lavery was persuaded to stand for the National Executive Committee of the NUM. In the subsequent ballot, he was elected in the first round having gained more than 50 per cent of the vote, and has been on the Executive Committee ever since.

Elected unopposed

When Arthur Scargill stepped down as NUM President in August 2002, Lavery was elected through the normal balloting procedures, although he stood unopposed. He was perceived by many in the NUM as "the natural successor to Arthur Scargill".^[4] Under his leadership membership of the union fell dramatically from over 200,000 to just 1,855 members in 2011.^[5]

Becomes parliamentary candidate

In February 2010 Lavery became the prospective parliamentary candidate for the Labour Party for Wansbeck^[6] and was duly elected Member of Parliament (MP) on 6 May 2010. A leftwinger, he sits with the Socialist Campaign Group of Labour MPs in the Commons.

In 2011 during Prime Minister's Question Time Lavery asked a question about health advisor Mark Britnell, whom he mistook as being appointed by the Conservative Party, whereas in fact Britnell was appointed by the Labour Party. Lavery condemned Britnell's actions, only for David Cameron to point out that Britnell was in fact an advisor to the Labour administration. Lavery also got Britnell's first name wrong.^[7]

Family

Lavery is married with two sons, the younger of whom is a Labour Town Councillor in Ashington. ^{[citation needed]}

Notes