| Jim Dowd MP | |
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Member of Parliament
for Lewisham West |
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| Incumbent | |
| Assumed office 9 April 1992 |
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| Preceded by | John Maples |
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| Majority | 9,932 (31.1%) |
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| Born | 5 March 1951 Bad Eilsen, Lower Saxony |
| Nationality | British |
| Political party | Labour |
James Patrick Dowd (5 March 1951) is a British Labour politician. He is the Member of Parliament for Lewisham West.
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Early life
Jim Dowd was born in Bad Eilsen in Lower Saxony, Germany and grew up in Lewisham, London with an Irish father and German mother. He was educated at the Dalmain Infant and Junior Schools in Forest Hill; the Sedgehill Comprehensive School, Catford, and the London Nautical School, Lambeth. He began his career in telephone engineering as an apprentice in 1967 with the General Post Office (GPO). After his apprenticeship in 1972, he became a manager at a Heron petrol station for a year before joining Plessey as a telecommunications engineer in 1973, where he remained until his election to Parliament.
Dowd was elected as a councillor in the London Borough of Lewisham in 1974, becoming its deputy leader in 1984 for two years. He was twice deputy mayor in 1987 and 1990, and was the Mayor of Lewisham in 1992. He stepped down from the council in 1997.
Parliamentary career
Dowd first stood for Parliament at the 1983 general election for the seat of Beckenham, finishing in third place behind the long-standing Conservative MP Philip Goodhart by some 17,330 votes. At the 1987 general election he contested the marginal seat of Lewisham West, but was defeated by John Maples by 3,772 votes.
Five years later though, at the 1992 general election, Dowd again contested Lewisham West, and defeated Maples by 1,809 votes. He made his maiden speech in the House of Commons on 10 June 1992.[1]
Jim Dowd entered the new Tony Blair team as an opposition whip in 1994, before becoming the spokesman on Northern Ireland in 1995. Following the election of the Labour government at the 1997 General Election he was given a place in the Blair government as a whip. He was unexpectedly sacked after the 2001 general election,[2] since when he has been a member of the Health Select Committee and maintained a voting record strongly in line with government policies.[3]
In 2005 he was involved in a heated confrontation in Parliament with fellow Labour MP Bob Marshall-Andrews over the Terrorism Bill.[4]
Dowd is a member of the Unite trade union.
Personal life
Dowd lists his interests as music, theatre and reading, and enjoys travelling in Cornwall. His partner Janet Anderson is the Labour MP for Rossendale and Darwen.
See also
- Dowd (surname)
References
External links
- ePolitix - Jim Dowd official site
- Guardian Unlimited Politics - Ask Aristotle: Jim Dowd MP
- The Public Whip - Jim Dowd MP voting record
- BBC News: Politics - Jim Dowd MP profile (2005)
| Parliament of the United Kingdom | ||
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| Preceded by John Maples |
Member of Parliament for Lewisham West 1992–present |
Incumbent |
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