Alex Sobel | |
|---|---|
 Official portrait, 2019 | |
| Shadow Minister for Nature Recovery and the Domestic Environment | |
| In office 4 December 2021 – 5 September 2023 | |
| Leader | Keir Starmer |
| Preceded by | Olivia Blake |
| Succeeded by | Office abolished |
| Shadow Minister for Tourism and Heritage | |
| In office 9 April 2020 – 4 December 2021 | |
| Leader | Keir Starmer |
| Preceded by | Kevin Brennan |
| Succeeded by | Jeff Smith |
| Member of Parliament forLeeds Central and Headingley | |
| Assumed office 4 July 2024 | |
| Preceded by | Constituency established |
| Majority | 8,422 (26.7%) |
| Member of Parliament forLeeds North West | |
| In office 8 June 2017 – 30 May 2024 | |
| Preceded by | Greg Mulholland |
| Succeeded by | Katie White |
| Member of Leeds City Council forMoortown | |
| In office 3 May 2012 – 3 May 2018 | |
| Preceded by | Mark Harris |
| Succeeded by | Mohammed Shahzad |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Alexander David Sobel (1975-04-26)26 April 1975 (age 49) Leeds, England |
| Political party | Labour Co-op |
| Alma mater | University of Leeds |
| Website | alexsobel |
Alexander David Sobel (born 26 April 1975)[1] is a BritishLabour and Co-operative politician who has served as theMember of Parliament (MP) forLeeds Central and Headingley, previouslyLeeds North West, since2017. He served as Shadow Minister for Nature Recovery and the Domestic Environment from 2021 to 2023.[2][3]
Alexander Sobel was born on 26 April 1975 inHyde Park,Leeds,[1] to parents who came to England from Israel in 1971.[4] He grew up inBeaconsfield, attending Holtspur Middle School andJohn Hampden Grammar School.[5] As a teenager, he joined anti-fascist and environmental protests in Leeds.[6]
After graduating ininformation systems at theUniversity of Leeds in 1997, Sobel worked with social enterprises, and ran the regional body Social Enterprise Yorkshire and the Humber from 2009 until 2017.[7][8]
Sobel joined theLabour Party in 1997.[6]
After standing unsuccessfully in fourLeeds City Council elections between 2002 and 2007, he was elected as a Labour councillor for theMoortown ward in the2012 council election, and was re-elected in the2016 council election.[9][10][11] He led the council's work on air pollution and climate change.[12]
In December 2015, Sobel co-founded the activist groupOpen Labour.[13]
At the2005 general election, Sobel stood as theLabour candidate inBeaconsfield, coming third with 19.4% of the vote behind the incumbentConservative MPDominic Grieve and theLiberal Democrat candidate.[14]
At the2015 general election, Sobel stood inLeeds North West, coming second with 30.1% of the vote behind the incumbentLiberal Democrat MPGreg Mulholland.[15][16] During the election, Sobel and the Leeds North West Labour Party were required to publish an apology leaflet and pay legal costs after falsely claiming that the incumbentLiberal Democrat MPGreg Mulholland voted for theAcademies Act 2010.[17]
Sobel was elected to Parliament as MP for Leeds North West at the snap2017 general election with 44.1% of the vote and a majority of 4,224.[18]
In October 2017, Sobel was elected as one of the officers of theAll-Party Parliamentary Group on rare, genetic and undiagnosed conditions.[19]
On 15 March 2019, Sobel supportedYouth Strike for Climate, speaking at one of their school strikes, also praising Leeds City Council's decision to declare a Climate Emergency, saying "We will be the biggest council in the country to have declared a climate emergency. Nearly 800,000 people live in our great city".[20]
In October 2019 Sobel openly supported and spoke at anExtinction Rebellion occupation of Westminster, London despite warnings by the Met Police he could be arrested if he did so.[21]
"I'm here right in front of Parliament because the Government hasn't declared a climate emergency, they haven't conceded to any of three demands of Extinction Rebellion, and action needs to happen immediately,""We are not seeing a fall in our climate emissions, we are not seeing the transformation of our society that we need if we are to avoid warming of over one and a half degrees and the terrible climatic effects that will bring and what's really important here is one, we're building public pressure, and two we're pressuring the legislature, we're pressuring Parliament."
At the2019 general election, Sobel was re-elected as MP for Leeds North West with an increased vote share of 48.6% and an increased majority of 10,749.[22][23][24]
In December 2019, he formed an All-Party Parliamentary Group aiming to reduce carbon emissions tonet zero as early as possible.[25]
In January 2020, Sobel apologised after receiving criticism for meeting with the director ofPopulation Matters, a controversial humanpopulation control charity.[26]
In April 2020, Sobel became shadowminister for arts, heritage and tourism.[27]
In March 2021, Sobel wrote a letter toRobert Jenrick, the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, on behalf of Group for Action onLeeds Bradford Airport (GALBA).[28]
"I have requested that the split decision of the cross party plans panel to grant the new terminal and extend flight times at Leeds Bradford Airport be called in by the Government. This application was predicated on an expansion of flights equating to 3 million more passengers annually which is not in keeping with the sixth and subsequent UK carbon budgets which calls for no net increase in aviation emissions, nor is it in keeping with the recent Heathrow judgement in the Supreme Court.""I do not believe that a local plans panel of 14 councillors is in any way a competent body to be making a decision of this significance. Applications which significantly affect the Carbon Budget must be made nationally. We need a national aviation plan and significant measures to reduce net emissions from UK flights. I look forward to seeing these in the Government's response to the Committee on Climate Change's Sixth Carbon Budget Report."
In December 2021, Sobel became Shadow Minister for Nature Recovery and the Domestic Environment.[2] He left the position in the2023 British shadow cabinet reshuffle.[29]
In July 2023 theNew Statesman named Sobel within a small list of Labour MPs who understand climate change. In this article he was described by Richard Benwell as having a "Hermione Granger-style time-turner because he is indefatigable in turning up to almost every environment event".[30]
Following the2023 Periodic Review of Westminster constituencies, theHeadingley andWeetwood wards of theLeeds North West constituency were moved into the newly created constituency ofLeeds Central and Headingley. At the2024 general election, Sobel was elected to Parliament as MP for Leeds Central and Headingley with 50.2% of the vote and a majority of 8,422 over the second-placedGreen Party candidate. There were eight candidates, and aturnout of 45 %. The result was described as "Labour Hold" because thenotional 2019 result for the new seat was a win for Labour.[31][32]
Sobel is married, with two sons and lives in Leeds.[7]
Shadow Minister (Environment, Food and Rural Affairs) 4 December 2021 – Present
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| Parliament of the United Kingdom | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Member of Parliament forLeeds North West 2017–2024 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by New seat | Member of Parliament forLeeds Central and Headingley 2024–present | Incumbent |
