Michael Clapham

Labour politician

Michael Clapham was a coal miner for 12 years before gaining a degree in Sociology and a PGCE at Leeds, and a MPhil in Industrial Relations. He then became a lecturer before joining the National Union of Mineworkers and becoming its Head of Industrial Relations. He was Labour MP for Barnsley West and Penistone from 1992 to 2010.

He served on the Trade and Industry Select Committee, was a member of the NATO Parliamentary Assembly, and is an Honorary Vice-President of the Institution of Occupational Safety and Health. He is a member of the Socialist Campaign Group and has been an officer of the local Anti-Nazi League and CND. He was Chair of the All-Party Occupational Safety and Health Group, Chair of the All-Party Coal Fields Communities Group, Vice-Chair of the All-Party Fire Safety Group and a member of the North Atlantic Assembly.

A brief biography can be found on Wikipedia at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michael_Clapham