London (Parliament Politics Magazine) – Ian Byrne is a British Labour Party politician. He is serving as the Member of Parliament (MP) for Liverpool West Derby since the 2019 general election. Moreover, he is a member of the Socialist Campaign Group parliamentary caucus. If you are interested to know more about Ian Byrne here are more details below:
Bio & Early Life
Ian Robert Byrne was born in 1972. When he was 17, Ian was present at the Hillsborough disaster and escaped before the crash occurred. However, his father was seriously injured. During his teenage, he worked as a taxi driver. He completed his degree from The Open University over six years. Moreover, he became a trade union organizer after joining Unite the Union. Among his duties was organizing subcontracted NHS workers for better pay and conditions. He co-founded Fans Supporting Foodbanks in 2015 to address food poverty in Liverpool. Before becoming an MP, he worked with Dan Carden in the neighboring Liverpool Walton constituency.
Start Of Political Career
Ian Byrne is the Labour MP for Liverpool West Derby. He got this position with a massive majority of 29,984 votes. West Derby, Croxteth, Norris Green, Tuebrook, and Stoneycroft are included in the constituency of Liverpool West Derby. It covers the northwest of the city of Liverpool. The seat was won by the Conservatives between 1950 and 1964. Since then it has become one of the safest Labour seats in the UK.
With three out of four voters supporting Labour in 2019. Before being elected to Parliament, Byrne worked as a trade union organizer for Unite. He also worked as a taxi driver while studying at the Open University. Before being elected to Parliament, Byrne worked for fellow Liverpool MP Dan Carden.
Success In Political Career
Along with Labour’s Jane Corbett and Frank Prendergast MBE, Ian was elected to Liverpool City Council in 2018. After becoming an MP, he continued to serve as a local councilor. He started donating his councilor’s allowance to the Vauxhall Law Centre. In 2022, he stood down from his council seat and was succeeded by Ellie.
In November 2019, Byrne was selected by Labour as the candidate for Liverpool West Derby. Following the decision of MP Stephen Twigg to leave at the 2019 general election, he took over. His selection process was mired in chaos, but he pulled through with a three-vote margin over Angela Coleman from Liverpool Wavertree. This slender victory became well-known and soon after, claims emerged of racist, sexist, and homophobic comments posted on his Facebook.
All these remarks about disability attracted a lot of criticism. All the calls for his resignation were made following this controversy. Nevertheless, shadow chancellor John McDonnell continued to remain supportive of Byrne throughout. He won with 34,117 votes, representing 77.6% of the vote (compared with a nationwide reduction of 7.9% in Labour’s votes).
Position At The Labor Party
Ian was a supporter of Jeremy Corbyn’s leadership of the Labour Party and is on the left of the party. As a member of the Socialist Campaign Group, he supported Rebecca Long-Bailey and Richard Burgon. It was during his time in the Labour leadership election in 2020. During COVID-19, Byrne worked with Fans Supporting Foodbanks to increase food distribution in Liverpool. It was to coordinate local efforts to produce personal protective equipment for frontline NHS and care workers.
Ian voted for the Conservative government’s COVID-19 restrictions on 14 December 2021. It included the expansion of mask mandates and the introduction of vaccine passports. He was one of 22 Labour MPs who voted against mandatory vaccination for NHS staff. In August 2022, Byrne and his staff received a possible death threat.
Controversies & Criticism
Ian attracted criticism from some Labour members over their perceived interest in him. It all took precedence over local matters and national campaigns in his constituency. As a result, West Derby Constituency Labour Party branched. Moreover, the affiliates voted to initiate reselection proceedings for October 2022. The Guardian noted the similarity of Byrne’s struggle to the respective battles of other pro-Jeremy Corbyn MPs. That includes Sam Tarry and Apsana Begum who were forced to face similar stories in their constituencies.
His campaign was endorsed by Andy Burnham and Steve Rotheram. Ian voiced concern about potential breaches of procedure whilst he underwent the reselection process in July 2022. It was more like a threatening legal action due to allegations of intimidation. Despite this, a competing supporter called for an apology from him. In November 2020, he won the reselection battle, but with a very narrow margin.
Personal Life & Net Worth
Ian Byrne doesn’t like to discuss his personal life. He is one of the most influential politicians right now. Due to his successful career and hard work, he earned a good amount of mine. His major source of income comes from his political career. While his total net worth is around $5 million. Ian is a big supporter and a fan of Liverpool F.C. Moreover he is a committee member of the Liverpool supporters’ union Spirit of Shankly.
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Political Achievements
Ian Byrne is a member of the left of the Labour Party and supported Jeremy Corbyn’s leadership. As a member of the Socialist Campaign Group, he supported Rebecca Long-Bailey and Richard Burgon. It happened during the Labour leadership and deputy leadership elections in 2020.
After Stephen Twigg announced he would be standing down at the 2019 general election things changed for him. Byrne was selected as Labour’s candidate for Liverpool West Derby on 3 November 2019. With 34,117 votes, he won the election on 12 December 2019. This represented 77.6% of the vote.
In 2018, Byrne was elected to Liverpool City Council, representing the Everton ward alongside Labour’s Jane Corbett and Frank Prendergast MBE. He continues to serve as a local councilor, donating his councilor’s allowance to Vauxhall Law Centre. If this isn’t enough he founded Fans Supporting Foodbanks in 2015 as a community initiative to combat food poverty. Before becoming an MP, he worked with Dan Carden in Liverpool Walton.