Bob Ainsworth | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Ainsworth in 2010 | |
| Shadow Secretary of State for Defence | |
| In office 11 May 2010 – 8 October 2010 | |
| Leader | Harriet Harman Ed Miliband |
| Preceded by | Liam Fox |
| Succeeded by | Jim Murphy |
| Secretary of State for Defence | |
| In office 5 June 2009 – 11 May 2010 | |
| Prime Minister | Gordon Brown |
| Preceded by | John Hutton |
| Succeeded by | Liam Fox |
| Minister for the Armed Forces | |
| In office 29 June 2007 – 5 May 2009 | |
| Prime Minister | Gordon Brown |
| Preceded by | Adam Ingram |
| Succeeded by | Bill Rammell |
| Deputy Chief Government Whip Treasurer of the Household | |
| In office 13 June 2003 – 28 June 2007 | |
| Prime Minister | Tony Blair |
| Preceded by | Keith Hill |
| Succeeded by | Nick Brown |
| Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Home Affairs | |
| In office 11 June 2001 – 13 June 2003 | |
| Prime Minister | Tony Blair |
| Preceded by | Mike O'Brien |
| Succeeded by | Caroline Flint |
| Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Environment, Transport and the Regions | |
| In office 25 January 2001 – 7 June 2001 | |
| Prime Minister | Tony Blair |
| Preceded by | Chris Mullin |
| Succeeded by | The Lord Whitty |
| Lord Commissioner of the Treasury | |
| In office 8 May 1997 – 24 January 2001 | |
| Prime Minister | Tony Blair |
| Preceded by | Roger Knapman |
| Succeeded by | David Clelland |
| Member of Parliament forCoventry North East | |
| In office 9 April 1992 – 30 March 2015 | |
| Preceded by | John Hughes |
| Succeeded by | Colleen Fletcher |
| Personal details | |
| Born | (1952-06-19)19 June 1952 (age 73) |
| Party | Labour |
| Spouse | Gloria Ainsworth |
Robert William Ainsworth (born 19 June 1952) is a BritishLabour Party politician who was the Member of Parliament (MP) forCoventry North East from 1992 to 2015, and was theSecretary of State for Defence from 2009 to 2010. Following the general election in2010 he was theShadow Defence Secretary, but was replaced byJim Murphy following the election of Labour leaderEd Miliband.
Ainsworth was born inCoventry on 19 June 1952, and attended the localFoxford Comprehensive School.[1] From 1971 to 1991, he was asheet metalworker andfitter atJaguar.[2] He first became active in politics as atrade unionist at the Jaguar Cars plant in Coventry[1] where he worked and served in many union capacities, including as Branch President (in what was later to become part of theManufacturing, Science and Finance union). In 1984, he was elected toCoventry City Council, became Chair of the Finance Committee,[3] and was deputy leader of the ruling Labour group. He was also Constituency Labour Party chairman.
Ainsworth tried to become Labour candidate for Coventry North East in the run-up to the 1987 general election, afterGeorge Park MP announced his retirement, but only came third at the selection meeting, behindJohn Hughes andTed Knight. In the run-up to the 1992 general election, Hughes was de-selected by theConstituency Labour Party, and Ainsworth became the candidate. He was elected with an 11,676 majority, and stepped down from the city council the following year. At the1997 general election his majority rose sharply to 22,569, falling back to 15,751 at the2001 election, and 14,222 at the2005 election.
On 7 December 2012, Ainsworth announced his intention not to stand at the2015 general election.[4]
Ainsworth was appointed a Labourwhip in 1995[3] and served in government until January 2001 when he was promoted toParliamentary Under Secretary of State at the formerDepartment for Environment, Transport and the Regions. Following the 2001 general election, Ainsworth was moved to theHome Office asParliamentary Under-Secretary with responsibility for Drugs and Organised Crime,[3] where he remained until 2003, when he became theDeputy Chief Whip (also known as theTreasurer of the Household). He was appointed to thePrivy Council in February 2005.[5] On 29 June 2007, he moved to become theMinister of State for the Armed Forces.[3]
On 5 June 2009, he was appointed to the cabinet byGordon Brown asSecretary of State for Defence,[6] in what was considered by some to be "a surprise choice".[7][8] As Defence Secretary, Ainsworth declared in July 2009 that "the government should have offered more support to British troops at the beginning of the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq."[9]
At the Labour Party Conference inBrighton in 2009, Ainsworth stated that sending reinforcements toAfghanistan may not be possible because of a lack of necessary military resources. He said, "Before I agree to any increase in troop numbers I must be sure that the balance of risk is acceptable by evaluating the capacity of the supply chain to properly equip the increased force."[10]
In the 2009Parliamentary expenses scandal, in which a number of MPs were criticised for theirexpense claims, it was revealed that, in 2007–08, Ainsworth had claimed the maximum permissible amount of £23,083 for second-home allowances, making him the joint highest claimant that year with 142 other MPs.[11][12] For 2008–09, he claimed £20,304, 269th out of 647 MPs.[12]
Ainsworth launched theHome Office's "Safer Clubbing" guide in 2002[13] which provided guidance tonightclub owners on harm reduction relating torecreational drug use.
In December 2010, Ainsworth called for thelegalisation and regulation of drugs, arguing it is better for addicts to receive their fixes on prescription rather than relying for their supply on the international criminal gangs that make billions of pounds from the trade.[14] As a Home Office minister, Ainsworth was responsible for drugs policy.
In 1974, Ainsworth married Gloria. Together they have two daughters.[2]
In May 2019, Ainsworth revealed that he had voted for theGreen Party in that month'sEuropean Parliament election. He called it an "I'm Spartacus" moment, stating: "I voted Green in the Euro elections having never voted other than Labour before in my entire life. I didn't intend to make this public, but now Alastair has been expelled for doing the same I feel obliged to do so." This was in reference to the expulsion ofAlastair Campbell for revealing that he had voted for the Liberal Democrats at the same election.[15]
{{cite book}}:|website= ignored (help)| Parliament of the United Kingdom | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Member of Parliament forCoventry North East 1992–2015 | Succeeded by |
| Political offices | ||
| Preceded by | Government Deputy Chief Whip of theHouse of Commons 2003–2007 | Succeeded by |
| Treasurer of the Household 2003–2007 | ||
| Preceded by | Minister of State for the Armed Forces 2007–2009 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Secretary of State for Defence 2009–2010 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Shadow Secretary of State for Defence 2010 | Succeeded by |
| Party political offices | ||
| Preceded by | Labour Deputy Chief Whip in theHouse of Commons 2003–2007 | Succeeded by |
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