Roger Leslie Berry (born 4 July 1948) is a British Labour Party politician, who was the Member of Parliament (MP) for Kingswood from the 1992 general election ending at the 2010 general election.

Early life

Roger Berry was born in 1948 in

Huddersfield Huddersfield is a market town in the Kirklees district in West Yorkshire, England. It is the administrative centre and largest settlement in the Kirklees district. The town is in the foothills of the Pennines. The River Holme's confluence into ...

and educated at th
Dalton County Primary School
on ''Mayfield Avenue'' in Huddersfield;

Huddersfield New College Huddersfield New College is a former grammar school and current sixth form college located in Salendine Nook on the outskirts of Huddersfield, in the county of West Yorkshire, England. The current principal is Angela Williams. On 17 May 2016 the ...

; the

University of Bristol , mottoeng = earningpromotes one's innate power (from Horace, ''Ode 4.4'') , established = 1595 – Merchant Venturers School1876 – University College, Bristol1909 – received royal charter , type ...

, where he obtained a BSc in Economics in 1970; and the

University of Sussex , mottoeng = Be Still and Know , established = , type = Public research university , endowment = £14.4 million (2020) , budget = £319.6 million (2019–20) , chancellor = Sanjeev Bhaskar , vice_chancellor = Sasha Roseneil , ...

where he was awarded a DPhil in Economics in 1977. Berry lectured in Economics at the

School of African and Asian Studies A school is an educational institution designed to provide learning spaces and learning environments for the teaching of students under the direction of teachers. Most countries have systems of formal education, which is sometimes compul ...

in London from 1973–4; Institute of Development Studies at the

from 1973–4; the

University of Papua New Guinea The University of Papua New Guinea (UPNG) is a university located in Port Moresby, capital of Papua New Guinea. It was established by ordinance of the Australian administration in 1965. This followed the Currie Commission which had enquired ...

from 1974–8; and the University of Bristol from 1978–92. He was elected as a councillor to the

Avon County Council Avon County Council was the county council of the non-metropolitan county of Avon in south west England. It came into its powers on 1 April 1974 and was abolished on 1 April 1996 at the same time as the county. The county council was based at Av ...

in 1981, becoming the deputy in 1985 and the group leader in from 1986–92; he stood down from the council in 1993.

Parliamentary career

Berry contested

Weston-super-Mare Weston-super-Mare, also known simply as Weston, is a seaside town in North Somerset, England. It lies by the Bristol Channel south-west of Bristol between Worlebury Hill and Bleadon Hill. It includes the suburbs of Mead Vale, Milton, Oldmix ...

at the 1983 General Election but was defeated by Jerry Wiggin. Berry also unsuccessfully fought the seat of

Bristol Bristol () is a city, ceremonial county and unitary authority in England. Situated on the River Avon, it is bordered by the ceremonial counties of Gloucestershire to the north and Somerset to the south. Bristol is the most populous city in ...

for the

European Parliament The European Parliament (EP) is one of the legislative bodies of the European Union and one of its seven institutions. Together with the Council of the European Union (known as the Council and informally as the Council of Ministers), it adopts ...

1984 Events January * January 1 – The Bornean Sultanate of Brunei gains full independence from the United Kingdom, having become a British protectorate in 1888. * January 7 – Brunei becomes the sixth member of the Association of Southeas ...

. Berry was selected to contest the marginal seat of Kingswood at the 1987 General Election and was defeated by Robert Hayward by over 4,000 votes. Berry again contested Kingswood against Hayward at the 1992 General Election and this time was victorious, winning the seat with a majority of 2,370. He made his

maiden speech A maiden speech is the first speech given by a newly elected or appointed member of a legislature or parliament. Traditions surrounding maiden speeches vary from country to country. In many Westminster system governments, there is a convention th ...

on 10 June 1992. Berry was a frequent "rebel" against the Labour government since 1997. He was a Member of the Trade and Industry Committee. On 17 January 2007, he criticised the government for halting a corruption inquiry into arms sales to Saudi Arabia, saying it would do irreparable damage to Britain's reputation. In December 2007 Berry added his name to a petition to save the threatened Cadbury's Somerdale Factory from demolition. The petition urges for English Heritage to protect the historic birthplace of modern chocolate production. Early on in his parliamentary career, Berry became known as a

disability rights The disability rights movement is a global social movement that seeks to secure equal opportunities and equal rights for all people with disabilities. It is made up of organizations of disability activists, also known as disability advocat ...

activist, and was Secretary and Co-Chair of the All Party Parliamentary Disability Group. Berry lost his seat to

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 ...

candidate

Chris Skidmore Christopher James Skidmore, (born 17 May 1981) is a British politician, and author of popular history. He served as Minister of State for Universities, Science, Research and Innovation from December 2018 to July 2019, and from September 2019 ...

in the 2010 General Election. The seat was not very high among the Tory targets, and his unseating was the result of a swing of nearly 10% in favour of the Tories, with Labour Party officials blaming his defeat on a restructuring of constituency boundaries which were seen to favour the Tory vote. Under the average swing of 3.7% in that election, Labour would have held the seat. Since losing his seat, Berry has become a Trustee of the charity Disability Rights UK. and is Chair of the Avon & Bristol Law Centre.ablc.org.uk

Personal life

He married Alison Delyth in December 1996 in

Pontypridd () ( colloquially: Ponty) is a town and a community in Rhondda Cynon Taf, Wales. Geography comprises the electoral wards of , Hawthorn, Pontypridd Town, 'Rhondda', Rhydyfelin Central/Ilan ( Rhydfelen), Trallwng ( Trallwn) and Treforest (). ...

References

External links

Website of Roger Berry MP
*

* ttps://www.theyworkforyou.com/mp/roger_berry/kingswood TheyWorkForYou.com – Roger Berry MP
The Public Whip – Roger Berry MP
voting record
BBC Politics page

News items

2000 Budget
{{DEFAULTSORT:Berry, Roger 1948 births Living people Politics of Bristol Politics of South Gloucestershire District Labour Party (UK) MPs for English constituencies Councillors in South West England UK MPs 1992–1997 UK MPs 1997–2001 UK MPs 2001–2005 UK MPs 2005–2010 British disability rights activists People from Huddersfield Alumni of the University of Sussex University of Papua New Guinea faculty People educated at Huddersfield New College