James Philip Knight, Baron Knight of Weymouth, (born 6 March 1965) is a British politician who served as
Minister for the South West and
Minister of State for Employment and Welfare Reform
The Minister of State for Employment is a mid-level position in the Department for Work and Pensions in the British government.
History
The office was previously held by Julie Marson following the resignation of Mims Davies
Miriam Jane Ali ...
from 2009 to 2010. A member of the
Labour Party and
Co-operative Party
The Co-operative Party is a centre-left political party in the United Kingdom, supporting co-operative values and principles. Established in 1917, the Co-operative Party was founded by co-operative societies to campaign politically for the fair ...
, he was
Member of Parliament
A member of parliament (MP) is the representative in parliament of the people who live in their electoral district. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, this term refers only to members of the lower house since upper house members of ...
(MP) for
South Dorset
South Dorset is a constituency represented in the House of Commons of the UK Parliament since 2010 by Richard Drax, a Conservative. The constituency was created as a consequence of the Redistribution of Seats Act 1885, although the area cover ...
from
2001
The September 11 attacks against the United States by Al-Qaeda, which Casualties of the September 11 attacks, killed 2,977 people and instigated the global war on terror, were a defining event of 2001. The United States led a Participants in ...
to
2010
File:2010 Events Collage New.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2010 Chile earthquake was one of the strongest recorded in history; The Eruption of Eyjafjallajökull in Iceland disrupts air travel in Europe; A scene from the opening ceremony of ...
.
After losing his seat to
Richard Drax
Richard Grosvenor Plunkett-Ernle-Erle-Drax (born 29 January 1958) is a British Conservative politician, journalist and landowner, serving as the Member of Parliament (MP) for South Dorset since 2010.
Early life
Drax was born on 29 January 1958 ...
of the
Conservative Party
The Conservative Party is a name used by many political parties around the world. These political parties are generally right-wing though their exact ideologies can range from center-right to far-right.
Political parties called The Conservative P ...
, it was announced Knight would be made a
life peer
In the United Kingdom, life peers are appointed members of the peerage whose titles cannot be inherited, in contrast to hereditary peers. In modern times, life peerages, always created at the rank of baron, are created under the Life Peerages ...
in the
2010 Dissolution Honours
The 2010 Dissolution Honours List was issued on 28 May 2010 at the advice of the outgoing Prime Minister, Gordon Brown. The list was gazetted on 15 June.
Life Peerages
Conservative
* Timothy Eric Boswell - former Whip and Parliamentary secreta ...
. He is now chief education and external officer at
TES Global Ltd, and a Visiting Professor at the London Knowledge Lab of the
Institute of Education
IOE, UCL's Faculty of Education and Society (IOE) is the education school of University College London (UCL). It specialises in postgraduate study and research in the field of education and is one of UCL's 11 constituent faculties. Prior to m ...
in London.
Education
Knight was educated at
Eltham College
Eltham College is an independent day school situated in Mottingham, southeast London. Eltham and Mottingham once formed part of the same parish, hence its name. It is a member of The Headmasters' and Headmistresses' Conference (HMC).
Early hi ...
, an independent school in
Mottingham
Mottingham is a district of south-east London, England, which straddles the border of both the London Borough of Bromley and the Royal Borough of Greenwich. It is located south of Eltham, southeast of Charing Cross. It is within the historic ...
in South-East London, followed by
Fitzwilliam College, Cambridge
Fitzwilliam College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge.
The college traces its origins back to 1869 and the foundation of the Non-Collegiate Students Board, a venture intended to offer academically excellent students of all ...
, where he studied Geography,
Social & Political Sciences from 1984–87, gaining a
BA Hons.
Early career
Knight was Manager of Central Studio in Basingstoke from 1988–90. From 1990–91, he was Director of West Wiltshire Arts Centre Ltd, then Director of Dentons Directories Ltd in
Westbury from 1991–2001.
Election history
Knight first stood for Parliament at the
1997 general election as the
Labour Party candidate for
South Dorset
South Dorset is a constituency represented in the House of Commons of the UK Parliament since 2010 by Richard Drax, a Conservative. The constituency was created as a consequence of the Redistribution of Seats Act 1885, although the area cover ...
, but narrowly lost by just 77 votes. He was, however, elected on the same day to
Mendip District Council
Mendip may refer to:
*Mendip District, a local government district of Somerset, England
*Mendip Hills, a group of hills in Somerset, England
**Mendip Way, a footpath across the Mendip Hills
** Mendip TV Mast, a transmitter in the Mendips area
*Fore ...
, on which he served until 2001; including as Labour Group leader.
At the
2001 general election, he was elected as the Member of Parliament for South Dorset by 153 votes in the only Labour gain from the
Conservatives
Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization in ...
that year. At the
2005 general election, Knight increased his majority to 1,812 votes, but with a small decrease in his share of the vote. At the
2010 general election, Knight lost his seat to
Conservative
Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization i ...
Richard Drax
Richard Grosvenor Plunkett-Ernle-Erle-Drax (born 29 January 1958) is a British Conservative politician, journalist and landowner, serving as the Member of Parliament (MP) for South Dorset since 2010.
Early life
Drax was born on 29 January 1958 ...
by 7,443 votes after an 11.4% drop in his share of the vote.
Knight was the campaign co-ordinator for
Ed Balls
Edward Michael Balls (born 25 February 1967) is a British broadcaster, writer, economist, professor and former politician who served as Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families from 2007 to 2010, and as Shadow Chancellor of the Exc ...
' unsuccessful Labour Party leadership campaign in 2010.
Parliamentary career
Knight was
Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State
Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (or just Parliamentary Secretary, particularly in departments not led by a Secretary of State (United Kingdom), Secretary of State) is the lowest of three tiers of Minister (government), government minist ...
for Rural Affairs, Landscape and Biodiversity in the
Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) is a department of His Majesty's Government responsible for environmental protection, food production and standards, agriculture, fisheries and rural communities in the United K ...
from 2005–06. He then moved to become
Minister of State
Minister of State is a title borne by politicians in certain countries governed under a parliamentary system. In some countries a Minister of State is a Junior Minister of government, who is assigned to assist a specific Cabinet Minister. In o ...
for Schools in the
Department for Education and Skills. On 28 June 2007, when
Gordon Brown
James Gordon Brown (born 20 February 1951) is a British former politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Labour Party (UK), Leader of the Labour Party from 2007 to 2010. He previously served as Chance ...
disbanded the department, Knight moved to the newly created
Department for Children, Schools and Families
Department for Children, Schools and Families (DCSF) was a department of the UK government, between 2007 and 2010, responsible for issues affecting people in England up to the age of 19, including child protection and education. DCSF was replac ...
, as the Minister for Schools and Learners. In October 2008 following the reshuffle, Knight became a member of the
Privy Council
A privy council is a body that advises the head of state of a state, typically, but not always, in the context of a monarchic government. The word "privy" means "private" or "secret"; thus, a privy council was originally a committee of the mon ...
.
In 2009, when MPs expenses were revealed following a leak in the Daily Telegraph, Knight was ranked 171 out of 645 in the MPs' expenses list, claiming £155,987 in 2007/2008, compared with £137,970 in 2006/2007, of which £94,135 was for staff, £9,746 was for a communications allowance and £4,993 was for personal living expenses.
In his first
Parliament
In modern politics, and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: Representation (politics), representing the Election#Suffrage, electorate, making laws, and overseeing ...
, Jim Knight generally voted in line with party policy, including all major votes such as those on the
Iraq war
{{Infobox military conflict
, conflict = Iraq War {{Nobold, {{lang, ar, حرب العراق (Arabic) {{Nobold, {{lang, ku, شەڕی عێراق (Kurdish languages, Kurdish)
, partof = the Iraq conflict (2003–present), I ...
and
top-up fees
Tuition fees were first introduced across the entire United Kingdom in September 1998 under the Premiership of Tony Blair, Labour government of Tony Blair to fund tuition for undergraduate and postgraduate certificate students at universities; s ...
.
Jim Knight held the following positions:
*2003–2004 – Parliamentary Private Secretary to
Rosie Winterton then Minister of State at the
Department of Health
A health department or health ministry is a part of government which focuses on issues related to the general health of the citizenry. Subnational entities, such as states, counties and cities, often also operate a health department of their ow ...
*2004–2005 – Parliamentary Private Secretary to the Ministerial Team at the
Department of Health
A health department or health ministry is a part of government which focuses on issues related to the general health of the citizenry. Subnational entities, such as states, counties and cities, often also operate a health department of their ow ...
*2005–2006 – Parliamentary under Secretary of State for Rural Affairs, the Landscape & Biodiversity
*2006–2009 – Minister of State for Schools
*2009–2010 – Minister of State for Employment
*2009–2010 – Minister for the South West
After politics
Knight was created a
Life Peer
In the United Kingdom, life peers are appointed members of the peerage whose titles cannot be inherited, in contrast to hereditary peers. In modern times, life peerages, always created at the rank of baron, are created under the Life Peerages ...
on 23 June 2010, taking the title Baron Knight of Weymouth, of
Weymouth in the County of Dorset.
In April 2014 he stepped down from the Labour front bench in the House of Lords to take up a full-time role as managing director, online learning at TES Global Ltd, building an online professional development and training service for teachers. Knight was subsequently appointed chief education and external officer at TES Global.
In 2011, Knight was appointed as Chair of digital and social inclusion charity
Good Things Foundation (then Tinder Foundation). He stood down as chair in 2016 but remains a patron of The Technology, Pedagogy and Education professional association. He is the co-owner of XRapid, an app that diagnoses malaria and is a board member of Apps for Good. He is also the deputy chair of the Nominet Trust, and an honorary associate of the
National Secular Society
The National Secular Society (NSS) is a British campaigning organisation that promotes secularism and the separation of church and state. It holds that no one should gain advantage or disadvantage because of their religion or lack of it. It was ...
.
References
External links
Jim Knight – Department for Children, Schools and FamiliesTheyWorkForYou.com – Jim Knight MP
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Knight, Jim
1965 births
Living people
Alumni of Fitzwilliam College, Cambridge
Councillors in Somerset
Labour Party (UK) life peers
Life peers created by Elizabeth II
Labour Party (UK) MPs for English constituencies
Members of the Privy Council of the United Kingdom
People educated at Eltham College
Politics of Dorset
UK MPs 2001–2005
UK MPs 2005–2010