Kate Hoey

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Kate Hoey MP
Kate Hoey
Member of Parliament
for Vauxhall
Incumbent
Assumed office 
15 June 1989
Preceded by Stuart Holland
Born 21 June 1946 (1946-06-21) (age 61)
Belfast
Nationality British
Political party Labour
Alma mater University of Ulster

Catharine Letitia Hoey, known as Kate Hoey (born 21 June 1946, Belfast) is a Labour Party politician in the United Kingdom. She has been the Member of Parliament for Vauxhall since a by-election in 1989.

Contents

[edit] Background

Hoey studied at Belfast Royal Academy. While attending the Ulster College of Physical Education she joined the International Marxist Group, one of the few people with an Ulster Unionist background to do so in the 1960s.[1] (Although some claim the Spartacist League, while others claim the Left Opposition of the International Socialists which became Workers Power). After relocating to England, Hoey graduated in economics from the City of London College. She was a senior lecturer at Kingsway College from 1976 to 1985, during which time she left the International Marxist Group.

[edit] Sport

Hoey is known for her longstanding interest in sport. She was Northern Ireland High Jump Champion and worked for football clubs including Arsenal, Tottenham Hotspur, Queens Park Rangers, Chelsea and Brentford, as an Educational Advisor. Prior to entering Parliament she was educational adviser to Arsenal Football Club from 1985 to 1989.

A founder member of the London Northern Ireland Supporters' Club, Hoey took part in a St Patrick's Day parade in London with Northern Ireland manager Lawrie Sanchez.[2]

[edit] Politics

Kate Hoey was Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State at the Home Office from 1998 to 1999, and Minister for Sport in the Department of Culture, Media and Sport from 1999 to 2001. She campaigned against London's candidacy for the 2012 Olympics but has actively promoted sport in schools and is involved in gun politics in the UK. The current handgun ban affects training and participation in international shooting competitions. Hoey has been involved in the issues of affordable housing, top-up tuition fees, foundation trust hospitals and provision for pensioners.

In Parliament, Hoey has participated in 51% of votes, described as "well below average amongst MPs"[3]. On top of her income as an MP, she is paid over £5,000 a year for articles in the Daily Telegraph, a conservative newspaper, and over £15,000 a year for her campaigning work on behalf of the Countryside Alliance, a rural pressure group.

Hoey quite often rebels against her party.[4] She has voted against government policy on the war in Iraq, foundation hospitals, university tuition and top-up fees, ID cards and extended detention without trial. She was a leading Labour rebel supporting a referendum on the EU Lisbon Treaty.

The existence of the British Telecom Tower was covered by the Official Secrets Act (and therefore officially secret) until the mid 1990s. It was finally "confirmed" by Kate Hoey on 19 February 1993: "Hon. Members have given examples of seemingly trivial information that remains officially secret. An example that has not been mentioned, but which is so trivial that it is worth mentioning, is the absence of the British Telecom tower from Ordnance Survey maps. I hope that I am covered by parliamentary privilege when I reveal that the British Telecom tower does exist and that its address is 60 Cleveland Street, London."[5]

Hoey opposed her party's allegedly racist ban on membership from Northern Ireland, which was changed several years ago.[6]

On 29 April 2008 it was announced that Hoey would form part of the team of Conservative Boris Johnson, should he become Mayor, as an unpaid non-executive director advising on sport and the 2012 Olympics.[7]

[edit] Other interests

Hoey is known for her fight against the Labour Government's plans to ban fox hunting in the UK; a rare position among Labour MPs.[8][9]

On the 22nd of July 2005, Ms Hoey was named the new chairman of the Countryside Alliance (the main pro-hunting group in the UK). She said the appointment was a "great honour and a great challenge". The Alliance's headquarters are in Ms Hoey's Vauxhall constituency.[10]

Hoey's appointment in this role was greeted with widespread disdain in the Labour Party as the Countryside Alliance was seen to be behind a campaign to unseat Labour MPs at the 2005 election.

Hoey has been a trustee of the Outward Bound charity since October 2002.[11]

[edit] Government and Parliamentary positions

  • Opposition spokesperson, citizen's charter and women (1992 - 1993)
  • PPS to Frank Field, Department of Social Security (1997 - 1998)
  • Junior minister, home office (1998 - 1999)
  • Junior minister, department of culture, media and sport (1999 - 2001)
  • Backbencher (2001 - present)

[edit] References

  1. ^ The Guardian
  2. ^ BBC News
  3. ^ Kate Hoey MP, Vauxhall (TheyWorkForYou) - Numerology
  4. ^ The Public Whip website
  5. ^ Hansard text.
  6. ^ The Times Online
  7. ^ "Labour Hoey would help Tory mayor", BBC News, 29 April 2008. Retrieved on 29 April 2008.
  8. ^ The Telegraph
  9. ^ Hansard text
  10. ^ Western Mail & Echo
  11. ^ Outward Bound website

[edit] External links

Parliament of the United Kingdom
Preceded by
Stuart Holland		 Member of Parliament for Vauxhall
1989 – present		 Incumbent
Political offices
Preceded by
Tony Banks		 Minister for Sport
1999–2001		 Succeeded by
Richard Caborn