John Steven Bassam, Baron Bassam of Brighton, (born 11 June 1953) is a British Labour and

Co-operative A cooperative (also known as co-operative, co-op, or coop) is "an autonomous association of persons united voluntarily to meet their common economic, social and cultural needs and aspirations through a jointly owned and democratically-control ...

politician and a member of the

House of Lords The House of Lords, also known as the House of Peers, is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Membership is by appointment, heredity or official function. Like the House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminst ...

Background

Bassam grew up on a

council estate Public housing in the United Kingdom, also known as council estates, council housing, or social housing, provided the majority of rented accommodation until 2011 when the number of households in private rental housing surpassed the number in so ...

Great Bentley Great Bentley is a village, civil parish and electoral ward in the Tendring district of north Essex, England, located seven miles east of Colchester. The parish includes the hamlets of Aingers Green and South Heath. It is home to the second lar ...

, Essex and went to the local boys secondary modern school in Pathfield Road, now Clacton Coastal Academy in

Clacton-on-Sea Clacton-on-Sea is a seaside town in the Tendring District in the county of Essex, England. It is located on the Tendring Peninsula and is the largest settlement in the Tendring District with a population of 56,874 (2016). The town is situated ...

. He then went to study at the universities of

Sussex Sussex (), from the Old English (), is a historic county in South East England that was formerly an independent medieval Anglo-Saxon kingdom. It is bounded to the west by Hampshire, north by Surrey, northeast by Kent, south by the Englis ...

and

Kent Kent is a county in South East England and one of the home counties. It borders Greater London to the north-west, Surrey to the west and East Sussex to the south-west, and Essex to the north across the estuary of the River Thames; it faces ...

, where he received a Master's in social work. Bassam then began his career as a social worker at

Camden London Borough Council Camden London Borough Council is the local authority for the London Borough of Camden in Greater London, England. It is a London borough council, one of 32 in the United Kingdom capital of London. Camden is divided into 18 wards, each electing th ...

. He moved on to other roles in local government, serving as an assistant secretary at the Association of Metropolitan Authorities, later the

Local Government Association The Local Government Association (LGA) is the national membership body for local authorities. Its core membership is made up of 339 English councils and the 22 Welsh councils through the Welsh Local Government Association. The LGA is p ...

. Bassam was also a

squatter Squatting is the action of occupying an abandoned or unoccupied area of land or a building, usually residential, that the squatter does not own, rent or otherwise have lawful permission to use. The United Nations estimated in 2003 that there ...

and a committed far left

anarchist Anarchism is a political philosophy and movement that is skeptical of all justifications for authority and seeks to abolish the institutions it claims maintain unnecessary coercion and hierarchy, typically including, though not necessar ...

during his early years in

Brighton Brighton () is a seaside resort and one of the two main areas of the City of Brighton and Hove in the county of East Sussex, England. It is located south of London. Archaeological evidence of settlement in the area dates back to the Bronze A ...

, where he founded a squatters union which campaigned for the rights of squatters to occupy empty properties and improve the conditions of the squats. In January 1976, Bassam led the opposition to the eviction of a family from a house on West Hill Road, saying "We will gladly vacate the premises if we are assured that the family at the top of the housing list is given the house to live in." Interviewed in 2013, he claimed that he would not support anyone who occupies someone else's home.

Political career

Bassam became involved in local politics and was elected a

councillor. He rose to become Leader of Brighton, then

Brighton and Hove Brighton and Hove () is a city and unitary authority in East Sussex, England. It consists primarily of the settlements of Brighton and Hove, alongside neighbouring villages. Often referred to synonymously as Brighton, the City of Brighton and H ...

Council, from 1987 until 1999. He stood unsuccessfully for Parliament in

Brighton Kemptown Brighton Kemptown, often referred to as Brighton Kemptown and Peacehaven by local political parties, is a constituency represented in the House of Commons of the UK Parliament since 2017 by Lloyd Russell-Moyle, a Labour Co-op MP. The consti ...

at the 1987 general election against 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 in ...

Andrew Bowden Sir Andrew Bowden (born 8 April 1930) is a British Conservative Party politician. From 2004 to 2010, he was an international consultant at Global Equities Corporation. Early life Bowden was born the son of William Victor Bowden, a solicitor, an ...

. On 3 November 1997, he 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 ...

as Baron Bassam of Brighton, ''of

in the County of

East Sussex East Sussex is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in South East England on the English Channel coast. It is bordered by Kent to the north and east, West Sussex to the west, and Surrey to the north-west. The largest settlement in East ...

'', and was introduced in the

on 18 November, sitting on the Labour benches. Bassam was promoted to the frontbenches as

Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (or just Parliamentary Secretary, particularly in departments not led by a Secretary of State) is the lowest of three tiers of government minister in the UK government, immediately junior to a Minister ...

for the Home Office in 1999. In 2001, he was appointed a

Lord-in-waiting Lords-in-waiting (male) or baronesses-in-waiting (female) are peers who hold office in the Royal Household of the sovereign of the United Kingdom. In the official Court Circular they are styled "Lord in Waiting" or "Baroness in Waiting" (withou ...

(Government

whip A whip is a tool or weapon designed to strike humans or other animals to exert control through pain compliance or fear of pain. They can also be used without inflicting pain, for audiovisual cues, such as in equestrianism. They are generally ...

in the Lords). He served in that role and as Government spokesman for the Home Office until 2008. During the same period he served at various times as Government spokesman for a number of other departments:

Lord Chancellor's Department The Lord Chancellor's Department was a United Kingdom government department answerable to the Lord Chancellor with jurisdiction over England and Wales. Created in 1885 as the Lord Chancellor's Office with a small staff to assist the Lord Chancel ...

2001–04,

Cabinet Office The Cabinet Office is a department of His Majesty's Government responsible for supporting the prime minister and Cabinet. It is composed of various units that support Cabinet committees and which co-ordinate the delivery of government object ...

2001–07, Office of the Deputy Prime Minister (subsequently

Communities and Local Government The Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities (DLUHC), formerly the Ministry for Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG), is a department of His Majesty's Government responsible for housing, communities, local government i ...

) 2002–04, 2005–07, 2008,

Attorney General's Office The Attorney General's Office (AGO) is a department of His Majesty's Government that supports the Attorney General and their deputy, the Solicitor General (together, the Law officers of the Crown in England and Wales). It is sometimes referred ...

2005–08,

Transport Transport (in British English), or transportation (in American English), is the intentional movement of humans, animals, and goods from one location to another. Modes of transport include air, land ( rail and road), water, cable, pipelin ...

2007–08, Culture, Media and Sport 2008. In 2008, Gordon Brown promoted him to the role of

Labour Chief Whip The Chief Whip of the Labour Party oversees the whipping system in the party, which is responsible for ensuring that Labour MPs or members of the House of Lords attend and vote in parliament in the desired way of the party leadership. Chief W ...

, and therefore Government

Chief Whip 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 ...

and

Captain of the Honourable Corps of Gentlemen-at-Arms The Captain of the Honourable Corps of Gentlemen-at-Arms is a post in the Government of the United Kingdom that has been held by the Government Chief Whip in the House of Lords The House of Lords, also known as the House of Peers, is th ...

. On 8 July 2009 he was made a

Privy Councillor 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 mo ...

. When Labour moved into

Opposition Opposition may refer to: Arts and media * ''Opposition'' (Altars EP), 2011 EP by Christian metalcore band Altars * The Opposition (band), a London post-punk band * '' The Opposition with Jordan Klepper'', a late-night television series on Com ...

in 2010, he became Opposition Chief Whip. In December 2011 and January 2012, Bassam engaged in a vigorous debate on Twitter with Brighton and Hove Greens about budget cuts by the council's Green administration.

2017 expenses scandal

In December 2017 he was accused of over-claiming expenses. He agreed to stand down as Labour's Chief Whip in the House of Lords following the appointment of a successor. He also referred himself to the

House of Lords Commissioner for Standards There are currently two House of Lords Commissioners for Standards, officers of the United Kingdom House of Lords. When the post was created in 2010 there was a single commissioner who was "responsible for the independent and impartial investig ...

over the accusations. The Commissioner found that Bassam had claimed both the Lords allowance and the Lords Office Holders Allowance for travel costs, but had done so mistakenly rather than dishonestly. The

Committee for Privileges and Conduct The Committee for Privileges and Conduct was a select committee of the House of Lords in the Parliament of the United Kingdom which considered issues relating to the privileges of the House of Lords and its members, as well as having oversight ...

asked that Bassam repay £15,737 in over-claimed travel allowance and write a letter of apology to the Committee. Bassam stated he would resign as chief whip once a replacement had been elected.

References

External links

* , - , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Bassam, Steve 1953 births Living people Alumni of the University of Kent Alumni of the University of Sussex Councillors in East Sussex English social workers Honourable Corps of Gentlemen at Arms Labour Co-operative life peers Labour Party (UK) Baronesses- and Lords-in-Waiting Leaders of local authorities of England Members of the Privy Council of the United Kingdom Life peers created by Elizabeth II People from Great Bentley Squatters