Steve McCabe (politician)
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Stephen James "Steve" McCabe (born 4 August 1955) is a British politician who has served as
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 Birmingham Selly Oak since 2010. A member of the Labour Party, he was previously MP for
Birmingham Hall Green Birmingham Hall Green is a parliamentary constituency in the city of Birmingham, which has been represented in the House of Commons of the UK Parliament since 2019 by Tahir Ali of the Labour Party. It has become in recent years a Labour sa ...
from 1997 to 2010.


Early life

Born in the
shipbuilding Shipbuilding is the construction of ships and other floating vessels. It normally takes place in a specialized facility known as a shipyard. Shipbuilders, also called shipwrights, follow a specialized occupation that traces its roots to befor ...
town of
Port Glasgow Port Glasgow ( gd, Port Ghlaschu, ) is the second-largest town in the Inverclyde council area of Scotland. The population according to the 1991 census for Port Glasgow was 19,426 persons and in the 2001 census was 16,617 persons. The most recen ...
on the
River Clyde The River Clyde ( gd, Abhainn Chluaidh, , sco, Clyde Watter, or ) is a river that flows into the Firth of Clyde in Scotland. It is the ninth-longest river in the United Kingdom, and the third-longest in Scotland. It runs through the major cit ...
, McCabe attended the Port Glasgow High School before studying at the Moray House College (later named
Moray House School of Education The Moray House School of Education and Sport ('Moray House') is a school within the College of Arts, Humanities and Social Science at the University of Edinburgh. It is based in historic buildings on the Holyrood Campus, located between the C ...
,
University of Edinburgh The University of Edinburgh ( sco, University o Edinburgh, gd, Oilthigh Dhùn Èideann; abbreviated as ''Edin.'' in post-nominals) is a public research university based in Edinburgh, Scotland. Granted a royal charter by King James VI in 15 ...
) in
Edinburgh Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian ...
, where he was awarded a Diploma in Social Studies (Certificate Qualification Social Work) in 1977 and qualified as a social worker. He worked initially as a social worker in
Wolverhampton Wolverhampton () is a city, metropolitan borough and administrative centre in the West Midlands, England. The population size has increased by 5.7%, from around 249,500 in 2011 to 263,700 in 2021. People from the city are called "Wulfrunian ...
for six years from 1977, and from 1978 to 1982 he served as a
shop steward A union representative, union steward, or shop steward is an employee of an organization or company who represents and defends the interests of their fellow employees as a labor union member and official. Rank-and-file members of the union hold ...
with the
National and Local Government Officers Association The National and Local Government Officers' Association was a British trade union representing mostly local government "white collar" workers. It was formed in 1905 as the National Association of Local Government Officers, and changed its full ...
. In 1983, he was appointed manager of the Priory in Thatcham, providing alternatives to care and custody for young people, for Berkshire Social Services. He left the Priory in 1985 and returned to education, taking an MA in Social Work at the
University of Bradford The University of Bradford is a Public university, public research university located in the city of Bradford, West Yorkshire, England. A plate glass university, it received its royal charter in 1966, making it the 40th university to be creat ...
in 1986. Following his degree, he worked as a social services lecturer at the North East Worcestershire College in
Redditch Redditch is a town, and local government district, in north-east Worcestershire, England, approximately south of Birmingham. The district has a population of 85,000 as of 2019. In the 19th century, it became the international centre for the ...
. In 1989, he became a child care worker in
Solihull Solihull (, or ) is a market town and the administrative centre of the wider Metropolitan Borough of Solihull in West Midlands County, England. The town had a population of 126,577 at the 2021 Census. Solihull is situated on the River Blythe i ...
until 1991 when was appointed as an education adviser to the Central Council for Education and Training in Social Work (now called the
General Social Care Council The General Social Care Council (GSCC) was a non-departmental public body of the Department of Health in the United Kingdom which was the regulator of social workers and social work students in England between 2001 and 2012. It set down codes of c ...
). He remained in this position until his election to the
House of Commons The House of Commons is the name for the elected lower house of the bicameral parliaments of the United Kingdom and Canada. In both of these countries, the Commons holds much more legislative power than the nominally upper house of parliament. ...
. He was elected as a councillor to
Birmingham City Council Birmingham City Council is the local government body responsible for the governance of the City of Birmingham in England, which has been a metropolitan district since 1974. It is the most populated local council area in the United Kingdom (e ...
in 1990 and served until 1998, during which time he served as the chair of the city's technical services committee.


Parliamentary career

McCabe was elected as the Labour MP for Birmingham Hall Green at the 1997 general election when he unseated the
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 ...
member Andrew Hargreaves by 8,420 votes in the Labour landslide; the first time a Labour MP held the seat. He served as the
Parliamentary Private Secretary A Parliamentary Private Secretary (PPS) is a Member of Parliament (MP) in the United Kingdom who acts as an unpaid assistant to a minister or shadow minister. They are selected from backbench MPs as the 'eyes and ears' of the minister in the H ...
to
Charles Clarke Charles Rodway Clarke (born 21 September 1950) is a British Labour Party politician, who was the Member of Parliament (MP) for Norwich South from 1997 until 2010, and served as Home Secretary from December 2004 until May 2006. Early life Th ...
in his capacity as
Secretary of State for Education and Skills The secretary of state for education, also referred to as the education secretary, is a secretary of state in the Government of the United Kingdom, responsible for the work of the Department for Education. The incumbent is a member of the Ca ...
(2003–2004) and as
Home Secretary The secretary of state for the Home Department, otherwise known as the home secretary, is a senior minister of the Crown in the Government of the United Kingdom. The home secretary leads the Home Office, and is responsible for all national ...
(2004–2005). He joined the government
Whips Office The Chief Whip is a political leader whose task is to enforce the whipping system, which aims to ensure that legislators who are members of a political party attend and vote on legislation as the party leadership prescribes. United Kingdom ...
in 2006 as an Assistant, and from 2007 was a Lord Commissioner to the Treasury (a full Whip). He also served on various select committees, including
Northern Ireland Affairs Select Committee The Northern Ireland Affairs Select Committee (or simply the Northern Ireland Affairs Committee) is a select committee of the House of Commons in the Parliament of the United Kingdom. The committee's remit is to examine the expenditure, administ ...
(1998–2003) and
Home Affairs Select Committee The Home Affairs Select Committee is a Departmental Committee of the House of Commons in the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Remit The Home Affairs Committee is one of the House of Commons Select committees related to government departments: its ...
(2005–2006 and 2010–2013). In October 2006, he applied for selection to the redrawn Birmingham Selly Oak seat, which incorporated much of his existing seat. Following the announcement by
Lynne Jones Lynne Mary Jones (born 26 April 1951) is a British Labour Party (UK), Labour Party politician, who was the Member of Parliament (United Kingdom), Member of Parliament (MP) for Birmingham Selly Oak (UK Parliament constituency), Birmingham Selly ...
, the sitting member for Selly Oak, in January 2007 that she would stand down at the next election, he became the favourite to be selected for the newly drawn constituency, and was duly selected by the local Labour party. He decided not to apply for the redrawn Hall Green seat on the grounds that its boundaries were significantly different from the existing seat of the same name. He was re-elected, in Selly Oak, at the May 2010 general election. From 2013 to 2015, he served as a Shadow Minister for Children and Families as part of Ed Miliband's front bench team. McCabe called in 2013 for a referendum on remaining in the EU to be held "as soon as possible", stating he found himself "at odds with his party" on the issue. McCabe joined 18 other Labour MPs in backing a referendum on Europe in a House of Commons vote called by rebel Conservative MPs. McCabe was appointed Parliamentary Chair of the
Labour Friends of Israel Labour Friends of Israel (LFI) is a group in the Parliament of the United Kingdom that promotes support for a strong bilateral relationship between Britain and Israel, and seeks to strengthen ties between the British Labour Party and the Isra ...
in February 2020. He is a long-standing supporter and visited Israel as part of a delegation in 2019.


Expenses

In the 2009 expenses scandal that included over 50 MPs it was revealed that McCabe had over-claimed on his mortgage by £4,059.McCabe scandal over expenses
, ''The Daily Telegraph; accessed 8 May 2015.
A three-month investigation by the parliamentary fees office resulted in McCabe calling for Commons officials to be sacked."McCabe calls for Commons officials to be sacked"
, ''Birmingham Mail''; accessed 8 May 2015.
He later said: "I did make an error in my claim and, as the letter from the fees office shows, this money was repaid in a deduction from my next claim". Between 2004 and 2008, McCabe claimed £54,699 in expenses for his second home, on which he has a £60,000 mortgage. The claims included £5,500 for a new kitchen.


Political positions

McCabe supports
sanctions against Iran There have been a number of sanctions against Iran imposed by a number of countries, especially the United States, and international entities. Iran was the most sanctioned country in the world until it was surpassed by Russia following its inva ...
to "curb their nuclear ambitions". McCabe was a supporter of the
Abraham Accords The Abraham Accords are a series of joint normalization statements initially between Israel, the United Arab Emirates, and Bahrain, effective since September 15, 2020. Mediated by the United States, the initial announcement of August 13, 2020, ...
.


Personal life

In 2012, McCabe underwent
open heart surgery Cardiac surgery, or cardiovascular surgery, is surgery on the heart or great vessels performed by cardiac surgeons. It is often used to treat complications of ischemic heart disease (for example, with coronary artery bypass grafting); to corr ...
at the
Queen Elizabeth Hospital Birmingham The Queen Elizabeth Hospital Birmingham is a major, 1,215 bed, tertiary NHS and military hospital in the Edgbaston area of Birmingham, situated very close to the University of Birmingham. The hospital, which cost £545 million to construct ...
for a
heart murmur Heart murmurs are unique heart sounds produced when blood flows across a heart valve or blood vessel. This occurs when turbulent blood flow creates a sound loud enough to hear with a stethoscope. Turbulent blood flow is not smooth. The sound di ...
. On 1 August 2017, McCabe suffered minor facial injuries after a motorcyclist in Kings Heath, Birmingham threw a brick at him, which he reported to the police.


References


External links


Steve McCabe website
* * {{DEFAULTSORT:McCabe, Steve 1955 births Living people Alumni of the University of Edinburgh Alumni of the University of Bradford Councillors in Birmingham, West Midlands Labour Party (UK) MPs for English constituencies UK MPs 1997–2001 UK MPs 2001–2005 UK MPs 2005–2010 UK MPs 2010–2015 UK MPs 2015–2017 UK MPs 2017–2019 UK MPs 2019–present People from Johnstone Labour Party (UK) councillors Labour Friends of Israel