Hazel Blears is no longer a Member of Parliament. This page has not been updated since 2015.
Biography:
Hazel Blears was elected MP for Salford and Eccles in May 2010 with a majority of 5,725 votes.
Hazel Blears was born and brought up in Salford. She was educated at Wardley Grammar School in Swinton and Eccles Sixth Form College.
She studied law at Nottingham Trent University and Chester College of Law. She had a dual career as a senior solicitor and a North West Councillor and was Chair of the Salford Community Health Council from 1992 to 1996.
She was elected Member of Parliament for Salford in 1997.
She was PPS for Alan Milburn when he was Minister of State at the Health Dept in 1998 and when he was Chief Secretary to the Treasury between Jan and Oct 1999.
She was appointed Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Health in June 2001, and promoted within the Department of Health to the role of Minister for Public Health, in May 2002.
In June 2003 She moved to the Home Office, promoted to Minister of State and had responsibility for crime reduction, policing, community safety and counter-terrorism.
In May 2006, she was appointed Chair of the Labour Party and Minister without Portfolio at the Cabinet Office.
In June 2007, she was appointed Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government. She resigned in 2009.
During the 1997-2001 Parliament, she was Vice President of the Local Government Association, Vice Chair of the Home Affairs Select Committee, Party Development Co-ordinator and a member of the Health and Culture Media and Sport backbench committees.
She have chaired the North West Group of Labour MPs and remain involved in what is the largest Political Group in Parliament.
She has played an active role in a number of All-Party Parliamentary Groups, including the Rugby League Group being a keen supporter of the Salford Reds.
She was Secretary to the Community Health Councils, Chair of the Motor Cycling Group and a member of others including, Sustainable Energy, Homelessness and Housing Needs, Public Health and Primary Care.
She is a member of TGWU, Usdaw and Co-operative Action. She is a former member of the Labour Party’s National Policy Forum. She was appointed to the National Executive Committee of the Labour Party in October 2003.
She has authored of the following publications:
The Politics of Decency (Mutuo 2004)
Communities in Control (Fabian Society 2003)
Making Health Care Mutual (Mutuo 2002)
Constituency: Salford and Eccles
Constituency Address: Jubilee House, 51 The Crescent, Salford, Greater Manchester, M5 4WX.
Constituency Tel: 0161 925 0705
Date of Birth: 14 May 1956
Party: Labour
Personal Website: http://www.hazelblears.co.uk/home
