Graham Stringer | |
|---|---|
_(cropped).jpg) Stringer in 2025 | |
| Lord Commissioner of the Treasury | |
| In office 12 June 2001 – 29 May 2002 | |
| Prime Minister | Tony Blair |
| Parliamentary Secretary to the Cabinet Office | |
| In office 9 November 1999 – 7 June 2001 | |
| Prime Minister | Tony Blair |
| Preceded by | Office established |
| Succeeded by | Chris Leslie |
| Member of Parliament forBlackley and Middleton South Blackley and Broughton (2010–2024) Manchester Blackley (1997–2010) | |
| Assumed office 1 May 1997 | |
| Preceded by | Ken Eastham |
| Majority | 10,220 (32.7%) |
| Leader ofManchester City Council | |
| In office 1984–1996 | |
| Preceded by | Bill Egerton |
| Succeeded by | Richard Leese |
| Member ofManchester City Council | |
| In office 4 May 1979 – 7 May 1998 | |
| Ward | Harpurhey (1982–1998) Charlestown (1979–1982) |
| Personal details | |
| Born | (1950-02-17)17 February 1950 (age 76) Manchester, England |
| Party | Labour |
| Alma mater | University of Sheffield |
Graham Eric Stringer (born 17 February 1950) is a BritishLabour politician who has served asMember of Parliament forBlackley and Middleton South since the2024 general election. He has served as the area's MP continuously since1997, representing the predecessor constituencies ofManchester Blackley (1997–2010), andBlackley and Broughton (2010–2024). Between 1999 and 2002, he served minor roles in the Labour Government of Tony Blair.
Prior to entering parliament, within local politics, he was leader ofManchester City Council from 1984 to 1996, and a city councillor from 1979 to 1998, representing Charlestown and Harpurhey. He also served as chairman ofManchester Airport from 1996 to 1997.
Graham Stringer was born on 17 February 1950 inManchester. He attended Christ Church Primary School inBeswick and Openshaw Technical High School for Boys inOpenshaw. After graduating inchemistry from theUniversity of Sheffield in 1971, Stringer worked as an analytical chemist in theplastics industry.[1][2]
He became a local councillor inManchester in 1979, and wasManchester City Council leader from 1984 to 1996. He was also chair ofManchester Airport from 1996 to 1997.[2]
At the1997 general election, Stringer was elected to Parliament as MP forManchester Blackley with 70% of the vote and a majority of 19,588.[3]
Stringer was a member of the Environment, Transport and Regional Affairs Select Committee until 1999. He then served as Parliamentary Secretary to theCabinet Office until 2001. He is a member ofLabour Friends of Israel.[4]
At the2001 general election, Stringer was re-elected as MP for Manchester Blackley with a decreased vote share of 68.9% and a decreased majority of 14,464.[5] He was again re-elected at the2005 general election with a decreased vote share of 62.3% and a decreased majority of 12,027.[6]
Following a spell on theback benches and as agovernment whip, he spent the last six years of the Labour Government as a member of theTransport Select Committee. He campaigned against a proposed Congestion Charge in Greater Manchester.[7]
In September 2008, Stringer became the first Labour MP to publicly call forGordon Brown to resign as Prime Minister.[8]
Prior to the2010 general election, Stringer's constituency of Manchester Blackley was abolished, and replaced withBlackley and Broughton. At the 2010 general election, Stringer was elected to Parliament as MP for Blackley and Broughton with 54.3% of the vote and a majority of 12,303.[9]
In January 2011, he called forManchester United managerSir Alex Ferguson, a lifelongLabour voter and vocal supporter of the party at elections, to be given a seat in theHouse of Lords.[10]
He was a critic of former Labour Party leaderEd Miliband, whom he accused in May 2014 of running an "unforgivably unprofessional" campaign,[11] and referred to as "not an asset on the doorsteps" when campaigning.[12]
At the2015 general election, Stringer was re-elected as MP for Blackley and Broughton with an increased vote share of 61.9% and an increased majority of 16,874.[13][14]
At the snap2017 general election, Stringer was again re-elected with an increased vote share of 70.5% and an increased majority of 19,601.[7]
Stringer was again re-elected at the2019 general election, with a decreased vote share of 61.9% and a decreased majority of 14,402.[15]
As a result of the2023 review of Westminster constituencies, Stringer's constituency of Blackley and Broughton was abolished, and replaced withBlackley and Middleton South. In June 2024, Stringer was selected as the Labour candidate for Blackley and Middleton South, and he was duly elected at the2024 general election with a decreased majority of 10,220.[16]
In September 2025, Stringer denied claims that he might resign his seat early to trigger a by-election forAndy Burnham.[17]
In January 2009, Stringer denied the existence ofdyslexia, calling it "a cruel fiction" invented by "the education establishment" to divert blame forilliteracy from "their eclectic and incomplete methods for instruction".[18] TheDyslexia Action charity and the British Dyslexia Association criticised Stringer's claims.[19]
Stringer is a trustee ofThe Global Warming Policy Foundation, an organisation that promotesclimate change denialism.[20][21] As a member of theScience and Technology Committee, Stringer participated in the investigation into theClimatic Research Unit email controversy ("Climategate") in 2010, questioningPhil Jones closely on transparency[22] and other issues; in the five-member group producing the report, he voted against the other three voting members on every vote, representing a formulation more critical of theCRU and climate scientists.[23]
In anop-ed in March 2011, Stringer criticised the British inquiries into the CRU email controversy, writing that the controversy "demanded independent and objective scrutiny of the science by independent panels. This did not happen".[24]
Stringer contributed to the bookWhat Next for Labour? Ideas for a New Generation in January 2012; his piece was entitled "Transport Policy for the Twenty-First Century".[25]
Stringer was a member of theEnergy and Climate Change Select Committee from 2013 to 2015.[26] In 2014, Stringer was one of two MPs on the committee to vote against the acceptance of theIntergovernmental Panel of Climate Change conclusion that humans are the dominant cause of global warming.[27]
In 2017, Stringer mischaracterized climate research findings in theDaily Mail, leading the study's authors to publish a correction inThe Guardian, refuting his characterization of their findings.[28]
In February 2014, Stringer was among 99 MPs who voted for an amendment to the Immigration Bill introduced byDominic Raab. The amendment, which did not pass, would have meant that a foreign national facing deportation could only use human rights as a defence if they were at risk of death or torture. The only other circumstance where deportation could be stopped was if it would cause serious harm to their children.[29][30]
Stringer has established a reputation as a prominentEurosceptic in the Labour Party who favoured a referendum on the EU. He called for Britain to leave the EU in the2016 Brexit referendum, describing the EU as a barrier to a progressive government.[31]
On 17 July 2018, a vote was held on whether the United Kingdom should remain in the customs union in the event of a no-deal Brexit.Frank Field,Kate Hoey,John Mann and Stringer were the only Labour MPs to oppose the amendment, which was voted down by 307 votes to 301.[32]
On 21 October 2020, during theCOVID-19 pandemic, Stringer was the only Labour MP to vote against implementing stricterlockdown in theNorth West of England, an area that includes his own constituency in Greater Manchester.[33]
In 1999, he married Kathryn Carr; they have three children.[2][1] In the 2021BBC One dramaThe Trick, a dramatisation of theClimategate scandal, Stringer was portrayed byAndrew Dunn.[34]
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| Parliament of the United Kingdom | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Member of Parliament forManchester Blackley 1997–2010 | Constituency abolished |
| New constituency | Member of Parliament forBlackley and Broughton 2010–2024 | Constituency abolished |
| New constituency | Member of Parliament forBlackley and Middleton South 2024–present | Incumbent |
| Political offices | ||
| Preceded by | Leader ofManchester City Council 1984–1996 | Succeeded by |
