Ed Miliband

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Ed Miliband

Ed Miliband is a British politician who has been the MP for Doncaster North since 2005. From 2010 to 2015 he was the leader of the Labour Party but resigned after losing the election by 99 seats to the Conservative Party.[1] [2]

Biography

Ed Miliband, full name Edward Samuel Miliband, was born on December 24, 1969, London. He is the son of the late Marxist theorist Ralph Miliband and Marion Kozak. He is the younger brother of David Miliband.[3] In September 2010 the brothers fought a Labour leadership contest that saw Ed narrowly win after four rounds of voting, with support from 50.654% of the electoral college.

He holds an MSc in Economics from the London School of Economics and a BA from Oxford University. In 2003 he was a Visiting Lecturer in the Department of Government at Harvard University and also a Visiting Scholar at the Center for European Studies.[4] Ed Miliband is the former partner of Liz Lloyd, a close adviser to Tony Blair.[5] He now lives with environmental lawyer Justine Thornton with whom he has two sons, Daniel and Samuel.[6]

New Labour

Ed Miliband was an adviser to the Chancellor Gordon Brown while Labour held office and was also an adviser to Harriet Harman when they were in opposition.[7]

In May 2005 he was elected Labour MP for Doncaster North.[8]

Ed Miliband voted in favour of the Terrorism Bill - 09/11/2005, which, if passed, would have extended the maximum period for police detention of a terrorist suspect without charge to 90 days. The government's bill was defeated, with 49 Labour MPs rebelling. Ed Miliband also voted in favour for the introduction of ID cards.[9] He is in favour of nuclear power, the replacement of Trident and doesn't believe that an investigation into the Iraq war is necessary.[10]

In June 2007, Ed Miliband was appointed Cabinet Office Minister and Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster in Gordon Brown's first cabinet as prime minister. His brother, David Miliband, was also appointed to cabinet, as Foreign Secretary. They were the first pair of brothers to sit in the Cabinet for nearly 80 years.[11]

Ed Miliband later held the position of Secretary of State for Climate Change between 2008 and 2010. He led the British delegation to the Copenhagen summit.Since becoming Labour leader he has stressed that 'tackling climate change is a central task for Britain and the world, and an issue that will be at the heart of his leadership of the Labour Party now and in the future.' [12]

Donations

In the months after the 2010 General Election Miliband received donations from two of Labour's biggest donors. Trade unions GMB and Unite donated £28,000.00 and £100,000.00 to the Labour leader in July and August.

In June 2011 Miliband received £34,712.00 from businessman and TV personality Lord Alan Sugar of Clapton.[13]

Meetings with donors

In order to provide the Labour Party with greater transparency, Miliband agreed to release a list of all meetings with donors and trade union general secretaries in his office or at his home who have given more that £7,500.00.

25 September 2010-31 December 2013

Stance on fracking

FrackWell.png This article is part of the Spinwatch Fracking Portal and project

‬ Miliband does not have a clear position on fracking. In a visit to Lancashire in 2014, the former Labour leader said of fracking:

'I think we've got to look really carefully about this. There's strong local feeling and we've got to look at, and investigate, the issue very seriously.' [15]

Miliband's constituency includes five oil and gas licence blocks, awarded by the Oil and Gas Authority under the 14th licensing round in 2015. Two shale licenses were awarded to Cuadrilla, one to IGas, one to Celtique Energy, and an abandoned mine methane vent licence to Alkane Energy. There are plans for four shale wells, two hrz frac wells and 2D and 3D seismic surveying; no applications are currently underway. [16]

Voting record

Miliband was absent for most votes in parliament regarding fracking. [17]

  • 26 January 2015: absent for a vote on making fracking companies apply for an environmental permit before conducting exploratory drilling. Also absent for a vote on an amendment to the Infrastructure Bill to include an 18 month moratorium on fracking.
  • 11 February 2015: absent for a vote on requiring more pre-conditions for where fracking can take place.
  • 16 December 2015: voted against weakening regulations on fracking in protected areas and national parks.

Advisers

Former advisers

Related Articles

'Ed Miliband - Details of Key Votes', The Guardian, http://politics.guardian.co.uk/person/howtheyvoted/0,,-8711,00.html

External Links

References

  1. Ed Miliband biography, accessed 10 November 2010.
  2. BBC News Election results, accessed 11 May 2015.
  3. 'In the House of the Rising Sons', The Guardian, 28/02/2004.
  4. Cabinet Office Website, 06/02/2007, [1] archived webpage, accessed 10 November 2010.
  5. 'The Labour Machine: An Insiders' Guide', The Independent, 08/06/2007.
  6. Ed Miliband biography, accessed 10 November 2010.
  7. James Kirkup, 'Left-winger Pleads for a Contest, Not a Coronation', The Scotsman, 15/05/2007.
  8. See Miliband's biography on the Cabinet Office Website, 06/02/2007.
  9. 'Details of key Votes', The Guardian
  10. The Public Whip, 'Voting Record - Edward Miliband MP, Doncaster North', http://www.publicwhip.org.uk/mp.php?mpn=Edward_Miliband&mpc=Doncaster+North
  11. 'The Cabinet', BBC website
  12. Ed Miliband biography, accessed 10 November 2010.
  13. Electoral Commission, Donation search, accessed 9 March 2015
  14. Labour, Ed Miliband meetings, accessed 4 March 2015
  15. Fracking threatens tremors in general election, BBC News, 14 August 2014, accessed 28 December 2016.
  16. Oil and gas: licensing rounds, GOV.uk, accessed 14 November 2016.
  17. TheyWorkForYou | Ed Miliband, TheyWorkForYou, accessed 28 December 2016.
  18. Westminster Policy Institute Sonia Sodha, accessed 15 April 2015.