David Baines | |
|---|---|
 Official portrait, 2024 | |
| Member of Parliament forSt Helens North | |
| Assumed office 4 July 2024 | |
| Preceded by | Conor McGinn |
| Deputy Mayor of the Liverpool City Region | |
| In role June 2023 – July 2024 | |
| Succeeded by | Mike Wharton |
| Leader ofSt Helens Council | |
| In office 22 May 2019 – 15 May 2024 | |
| Succeeded by | Anthony Burn |
| Personal details | |
| Born | (1979-06-25)25 June 1979 (age 46) |
| Political party | Labour |
David Edward Baines (born 25 June 1979[1]) is a BritishLabour Party politician who has beenMember of Parliament (MP) forSt Helens North since2024.[2]
Baines grew up inHaydock.[3] He worked as a school teacher before going into politics.[4]
He was elected as aSt Helens Council councillor for the Windle ward in 2013, having previously worked as a primary school teacher.[5] In 2019, he became leader ofSt Helens Council, and laterDeputy Mayor of the Liverpool City Region[6] before standing down in 2024 ahead of hisgeneral election campaign, having been selected as the Labour candidate forSt Helens North.[7]
In the 2024 General Elections, Baines was elected as MP for St Helens North with 21,284 votes (52.6%) and amajority of 12,169 over the second place Reform UK candidate.[3][8] On 26 July 2024, he made hismaiden speech in the House of Commons during a debate on "Making Britain a Clean Energy Superpower".[4] Baines dedicated his first Parliamentary Question toSEND provision,[9] an issue he has regularly campaigned on and called for further improvements to protect children with SEND.
As a lifelongSaints fan and supporter of the game, Baines was elected as Chair of theAll Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) forRugby League. The APPG exists to act as a link between Government, Stakeholders and supporters to highlight the most important issues affecting the sport.
Since his election as the Member of Parliament for St Helens North in 2024, Baines has spoken on a range of issues in Parliament. He has contributed to debates on transport connectivity across north-west England, including calling for improved accessibility at railway stations in his constituency, including Garswood and Earlestown.[10]
With his background as a primary school teacher, Baines has regularly supported improvements to education, serving on thePublic Bill Committee for theChildren's Wellbeing and Schools Bill and raising questions on teacher qualifications, school accountability, child poverty and support for breakfast clubs.[11]
In 2025, he contributed to debates on theArmed Forces Commissioner Bill, arguing for greater recognition of the needs of service families.[12] He has also used Business of the House debates to pay tribute to local campaigners and highlight issues such as maternity services and hospital closures.
Mr Baines has acted as a key figure in various campaigns that he is passionate about . As a huge advocate for men's mental health and paternity leave, Baines has supported bothMovember and theDad Shift campaign who collaborated to highlight issues surrounding current UK paternity leave laws and their impact on fathers' mental health. In August 2025, Baines hosted a roundtable on behalf of the campaign with local fathers to hear about their experiences and how paternity leave could be improved by the government following the parental leave and pay review consultation.[13]
Baines has actively worked to help tackle anti-social behaviour in St Helens North and particularly on high streets. He has supported the Shop Kind Campaign led by theAssociation of Convenience Stores to help protect shopworkers from abuse and make streets safer.
After being elected as chair of the Rugby League APPG, Baines began to campaign both publicly and privately for the sports first ever knighthood in its 130-year history, labelling it a "a sporting injustice that has persisted for far too long, that no Rugby League player had been knighted for services to the sport, its communities and our country.".[14] On the 9th of June 2025,Billy Boston, who had 488 appearances for Wigan and overcame class prejudice to become the first non-white player selected for a Great Britain tour in 1954, became Rugby League's first ever Knight for his services to the game.[15]
