Ian McCartney

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The Right Honourable Ian McCartney (born April 25, 1951) is a British Labour politician who is the member of Parliament for Makerfield and as of 2006 chairman of the Labour Party.

He was born in Lennoxtown, East Dunbartonshire, the son of Labour MP Hugh McCartney and trade unionist Margaret. He was the leader of a paper-boy's strike at the age of fifteen, and had a number of jobs after leaving school including working as a seaman and a local Government manual worker. He was a councillor for Wigan Borough 1982-1987.

He became the MP for Makerfield in 1987. McCartney held a number of positions in Opposition and was a spokesperson on Health, Employment, Education and Social Services. He ran John Prescott's successful campaign to become Deputy Leader in 1994.

He was a Minister of State at the Department of Trade and Industry from 1997 to 1999. While at the DTI he introduced a major package of new employment rights which including the first ever right to paid holidays, voted for the National Minimum Wage, and steered the Competition Act through Parliament. During this time he was also responsible for employment relations, the Post Office, Company Law and inward investment.

He was then was Minister of State at the Cabinet Office until 2001 where he was responsible for modernising Government and E-Government. He then became Minister of State for Pensions at the Department for Work and Pensions. He entered the Cabinet as Minister Without Portfolio and Party Chair in April 2003.

From October 2004 to October 2005, he was Chairman of the Labour Party in two capacities - as the Party Chair (appointed by the party's leader) with a seat in the Cabinet, and as the Chair of the National Executive Committee (elected by the members of the NEC). He is also chair of the party's National Policy Forum, which formulates Labour Party Policy. The NPF also oversaw the 'Big Conversation' project, which saw the Labour Government try to consult the general public on the future direction of party and government policy.

Trusted by both leadership and membership, he is seen as the key link between the Government and the wider Labour movement. He has worked to make the role of Party Chair a voice for Labour Party members within the Labour Government. Architect of the 'Warwick Agreement' by Labour's National Policy Forum, he was a key figure in co-ordinating the election manifesto for Labour's third term General Election campaign.

Just five feet and one inch tall, a straight-talking Glaswegian judged by supporters to have impeccable working class credentials, he describes himself on his parliamentary notepaper as the 'Socialist MP for Makerfield.' Known for a risqué sense of humour, he has confounded critics of his outspoken style by retaining the confidence of the Prime Minister in successive re-shuffles.

He recently returned from leave due to heart surgery and has publicly told of his fight to lose weight for the sake of his own health. His return to frontline politics was marked by his speech to the Labour Party 2006 Spring Conference in Blackpool in which he shed a tear while celebrating 100 years of the Parliamentary Labour Party.

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