James Frith | |
|---|---|
 Official portrait, 2017 | |
| Member of Parliament forBury North | |
| Assumed office 4 July 2024 | |
| Preceded by | James Daly |
| In office 8 June 2017 – 6 November 2019 | |
| Preceded by | David Nuttall |
| Succeeded by | James Daly |
| Member of Bury Council forElton | |
| In office 5 May 2011 – 7 May 2015 | |
| Preceded by | Denise Bigg |
| Succeeded by | Michael Hankey |
| Personal details | |
| Born | (1977-04-23)23 April 1977 (age 47) London, England |
| Political party | Labour |
| Spouse | Nikki Frith |
| Children | 4 |
| Parent | Richard Frith |
| Alma mater | Manchester Metropolitan University |
James Richard Frith (born 23 April 1977) is a BritishLabour Party politician who has been theMember of Parliament (MP) forBury North since2024. He was previously the MP from 2017 to 2019.[1]
Frith was born inLondon on 23 April 1977,[2][3] the son ofRichard Frith, who formerly served asBishop of Hull andBishop of Hereford. He was privately educated at bothMonkton Combe School andTaunton School, and then studied Politics and Economics atManchester Metropolitan University.[4]
Frith was the lead singer in a rock band called Finka, and later another band, the Fusileers, performing nationwide at venues and festivals includingGlastonbury.[5][6]
During the2005 General Election campaign, Frith worked as a Campaign and Communications Manager for theLabour Party andRuth Kelly MP, thenSecretary of State for Education.[4]
Before his election to Parliament, Frith was the CEO and Founder of All Together, a social enterprise providing careers education and guidance services to young people to help them get into work.[5]
In the2010 Bury Metropolitan Borough Council Election, Frith unsuccessfully stood as theLabour Party candidate for Elton ward against incumbentConservative Michael Hankey.[7] He successfully stood for Elton ward again in2011, gaining the open seat from the Conservatives after disgraced incumbent Denise Bigg chose not to seek re-election.[7][8] Frith became the first Labour councillor to represent the ward since2002.[7]
Frith sat on the Licensing Committee during his four-year term as a Councillor,[4] and opted to run forParliament rather than seek re-election.[9]
After being selected as the Labour Party candidate inBury North for the2015 General Election, he was profiled by theYoung Fabians during the2015 General Election campaign for a pamphlet on prospective parliamentary candidates named 'Fifteen for 2015'. In the pamphlet, Frith said "I think [Blair] did more for ordinary people and families than any government since", but addedNew Labour “should have gone further and faster”.[10] He lost to incumbent ConservativeDavid Nuttall by 378 votes despite a swing to Labour.[11]
Frith contributed to theFabian Society's bookNever Again: Lessons from Labour's Key Seats after his election defeat, criticising the leadership's 'failure to build on Labour's excellent record on enterprise and skills in government by engaging properly with the business community'.[12]
He was re-selected to stand as the Labour candidate for Bury North in the2017 General Election, fending off a challenge from high-profile candidateKaren Danczuk.[13]
Frith was elected asMember of Parliament for Bury North in 2017, defeating incumbent Conservative David Nuttall with a majority of 4,375.[14] He made hismaiden speech on 19 July 2017 during the debate on tuition fees.[15]
Frith was a member of theEducation Select Committee from 2017 to 2019,[1] and chaired theAll Party Parliamentary Group for Hospice and End of Life Care.[4] In May 2018, he was appointed asParliamentary Private Secretary toJohn Healey MP, theShadow Secretary of State for Housing.[16]
He edited a book entitledNew Brooms, published by the Fabian Society in 2018, featuring a collection of essays on parliamentary reform written by several Labour MPs from the 2017 intake.[17]
In July 2019, Frith worked alongsideUK Music to secure and lead a debate inWestminster Hall on the decline of music in education, during which he urged the government combat the crisis facing music in education.[6]
He lost his seat in the2019 General Election toJames Daly, Bury Council's Conservative Group Leader, by 105 votes and conceded after three recounts.[18][19] Following his defeat, Frith described feeling a "a degree of release" from the weeks campaigning, but added he felt the impact of being "inches from winning".[18]
He was re-elected in the 2024 General Election to Bury North and sits on the Culture, Media, and Sport Select Committee.
In an opinion piece forLabourList during the2020 Labour Leadership Election, Frith invited all the candidates to visit his marginal constituency to better understand the seats they need to win. Also in the piece, he was critical of the party's 2019 General Election campaign for 'sending hundreds of activists to Tory seats that we had no hope of winning' and cautioned against creating a 'manifesto that nobody believes'.[20]
Frith worked at Atticus Partners before re-entering parliament, a political lobbying and PR group.
Frith and his wife Nikki have been Bury residents since 2009, where they have raised their four children.[5] He has spoken about the challenges of balancing family life whilst being a Member of Parliament.[21]
| Parliament of the United Kingdom | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Member of Parliament forBury North 2017–2019 | Succeeded by |
