Mark Fisher (politician)

Mark Fisher (born 29 October 1944) is a British Labour Party politician. He was the Member of Parliament (MP) for Stoke-on-Trent Central from 1983 to 2010 and Minister for the Arts between 1997 and 1998.

Early life

Mark Fisher is the son of Sir Nigel Fisher, the former Conservative MP for Surbiton and Lady Gloria Vaughan, daughter of the 7th Earl of Lisburne. He is the stepson of Ulster Unionist MP Patricia Ford, and thus the brother-in-law of Conservative MP Sir Michael Grylls and uncle of explorer Bear Grylls.

After the retirement of Tam Dalyell in 2005, Fisher became the only Labour MP to have been educated at Eton College. He read English Literature at Trinity College, Cambridge. After completing his education in 1966, he became a film producer and screenwriter, but in 1975 Fisher became the principal of the Tattenhall Centre of Education in Cheshire, where he remained until his election to Westminster.

Before leaving university, Fisher had numerous low-paying jobs, including: working in a Cyril Lord carpet factory in Northern Ireland, as a waiter, as a kitchen porter, as a caddie on a golf course, insulating roofs, on a travelling fairground and as a folk singer and guitarist.

His film work consisted of writing screenplays for Harry Saltzman and two stage plays: in 1974 for the new Arts Council Horseshoe Theatre in Basingstoke and, in 1988, for the Theatre Upstairs, at the Royal Court in London.

Political career

Fisher unsuccessfully contested Leek at the 1979 general election but was defeated by David Knox by 10,571 votes. He was elected as a councillor to the Staffordshire County Council in 1981 and remained a councillor until he stood down in 1985.

He was elected as an MP for Stoke-on-Trent Central at the 1983 general election following the retirement of the sitting Labour MP Robert Cant. Fisher held the seat with a majority of 8,250.

In parliament, Fisher served on the Treasury Select committee for three years from 1983. In 1985 he was appointed as an Opposition Whip by Neil Kinnock for a year in 1985. Following the 1987 General Election he became the opposition spokesman on arts and media and following the 1992 general election he became the spokesman on the Citizen's Charter, a year later in 1993, however, he was back as a spokesman at the newly named Department of National Heritage. In 1992 he introduced the "Right to Know Bill", a Private member's bill, which, though unsuccessful, became the forerunner of the Freedom of Information Bill.

After the Labour victory at the 1997 general Election, new prime minister Tony Blair appointed Fisher as the Parliamentary Under Secretary of State at the Department for Culture, Media and Sport. He rebelled against the government by voting against the party whip on the Competition Act 1998, and was later sacked in Blair's first cabinet reshuffle in 1998, after which Fisher returned to the backbenches.

He has served as the Patron for the National Benevolent Fund for the Aged since 1986, and was a member of the BBC
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