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Kevin Brennan (politician)

For other people with the same name, see Kevin Brennan (disambiguation).

Kevin Denis Brennan (born 16 October 1959) is a Welsh Labour politician who served as the Member of Parliament (MP) for Cardiff West from 2001 to 2024. He served as a Minister of State at both the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills and the Department for Children, Schools and Families from 2009 to 2010. Brennan held several junior ministerial offices from 2006 to 2009 at the Treasury, Cabinet Office and Department for Children, Schools and Families. In opposition, he served in various shadow ministerial positions from 2010 to 2020 as a Shadow Minister for BIS, Education, and Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS). He was Shadow Minister for Victims and Sentencing between September 2023 and his retirement from frontline politics at the 2024 election.[1]

Kevin Brennan
Official portrait, 2020
Shadow Minister for Victims and Sentencing
In office
5 September 2023 – 5 May 2024
LeaderKeir Starmer
Preceded byAnna McMorrin
Minister of State for Further Education, Skills, Apprenticeships and Consumer Affairs
In office
9 June 2009 – 6 May 2010
Prime MinisterGordon Brown
Preceded byOffice established
Succeeded byJohn Hayes
Minister for the Third Sector
In office
5 October 2008 – 9 June 2009
Prime MinisterGordon Brown
Preceded byPhil Hope
Succeeded byAngela Smith
Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Children, Young People and Families
In office
29 June 2007 – 5 October 2008
Prime MinisterGordon Brown
Preceded byParmjit Dhanda
Succeeded byThe Baroness Morgan of Drefelin
Lord Commissioner of the Treasury
In office
5 May 2006 – 28 June 2007
Prime MinisterTony Blair
Preceded byJoan Ryan
Succeeded bySteve McCabe
Member of Parliament
for Cardiff West
In office
7 June 2001 – 30 May 2024
Preceded byRhodri Morgan
Succeeded byAlex Barros-Curtis
Personal details
Born
Kevin Denis Brennan

(1959-10-16) 16 October 1959 (age 65)
Cwmbran, Wales, UK
Political partyLabour
Spouse
Amy Lynn Wack
​
(m. 1988)​
Children1
Alma materPembroke College, Oxford
Cardiff University
University of South Wales
WebsiteOfficial website

Early life and career

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Brennan was born in Cwmbran, South Wales, the son of a steelworker and a school dinner lady. He was educated at St Alban's RC High School in Pontypool and Pembroke College, Oxford, graduating with a degree in Philosophy, Politics and Economics in 1982. Brennan was elected President of the Oxford Union in the same year with support from William Hague, who preferred Brennan's candidacy over those from the left of the Conservative faction in the Union. After graduation, he returned to Wales to study at the University College of Wales, Cardiff, where he qualified as a teacher with a Postgraduate Certificate in Education in history in 1985. He finished his education with a master's degree in Education Management at the University of Glamorgan (now the University of South Wales) in 1992.

In 1982, Brennan joined the Cwmbran Community Press as a journalist. He joined the National Union of Teachers in 1984 before becoming a teacher at Radyr Comprehensive School in 1985. He became the Head of the Economics Department before leaving in 1994. Between 1991 and 2001, Brennan was a member of Cardiff Council representing the ward of Canton, Cardiff. During this time he served as Chair of the Finance Committee, Chair of the Economic Scrutiny Committee and Vice-Chair of Economic Development.[2]

Parliamentary career

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Following Rhodri Morgan's decision to step down as the Member of Parliament for Cardiff West in order to concentrate on being the First Minister of Wales, Brennan was selected as the Labour candidate for the constituency and became the MP for Cardiff West at the 2001 general election. He won with a majority of 11,321 votes, (33.3%).[3][4]

In July 2002, Brennan appeared in the House of Commons without a tie and called for Westminster to have "dress down" Thursdays, stating that Billy Bragg had complained Parliamentarians gave a "besuited image that's male, pale and stale".[5] It provoked jeers from some Conservative MPs. Michael Fabricant expressed concern about Brennan not wearing a tie and made a point of order to the Speaker, Michael Martin, who agreed with Fabricant. Brennan was forced to leave the chamber to retrieve a tie from his office.[6][7][8]

Brennan was re-elected as the MP for Cardiff West at the 2005 general election with a reduced majority of 8,167 (23.6%). This included a −4.8% swing from Brennan to the Conservative Party candidate.[9][10] After the general election, he was promoted to Tony Blair's government as an Assistant Government Whip.

In June 2007, Blair's successor Gordon Brown appointed Brennan as Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Children, Young People and Families in the new Department for Children, Schools and Families, replacing Parmjit Dhanda. Brennan was replaced in this role by Lady Morgan following the government reshuffle in October 2008. He was moved to Minister for the Third Sector at the Cabinet Office before being promoted in 2009, becoming the Minister of State for Further Education, Skills, Apprenticeships and Consumer Affairs, with responsibilities in both the Department for Education and the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills.[11] Following the 2010 General Election, he continued this role in a Shadow Ministerial capacity before Ed Miliband's decision to appoint Brennan to the position of Shadow Minister for Schools.[12][13]

At the 2010 general election, Brennan was again re-elected as the MP for Cardiff West with a reduced majority of 4,750 votes.[14][15]

In 2010, Brennan became the first MP to win the British Computer Society's (BCS) Social Media MP of the year award, beating Nick Clegg and Jeremy Corbyn, who both finished as runners-up.[16]

At the 2015 general election, Brennan was again re-elected as the MP for Cardiff West with an increased majority of 6,789 votes.[17][18][19]

Brennan was made Shadow Minister for Trade, Investment, and Intellectual Property by Jeremy Corbyn in September 2015.[20] He resigned from this position on 28 June 2016, following a motion of no confidence in Corbyn which was passed overwhelmingly by Labour MPs, 172–40, in a vote which was not binding.[21] Brennan supported Owen Smith in the failed attempt to replace Jeremy Corbyn in the 2016 Labour leadership election.[22]

At the snap 2017 general election, Brennan was again re-elected as MP for Cardiff West with an increased majority of 12,551 votes.[23][24]

At the 2019 general election, Brennan was again re-elected as the MP for Cardiff West with a reduced majority of 10,986 votes.[25]

Brennan supported Lisa Nandy in the 2020 Labour leadership election.[26]

In the 2023 British shadow cabinet reshuffle, he returned to the frontbench as Shadow Minister for Victims and Sentencing.[1]

On 27 May 2024, Brennan announced his retirement at the 2024 general election.[27]

Allied Steel and Wire

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In July 2002, the steel manufacturer Allied Steel and Wire (ASW) entered receivership, and many of their employees were told they would not receive their full company pensions because of a fund shortfall.[28] Brennan, who had many former workers of Allied Steel & Wire as constituents, tabled an early day motion in the Commons in November calling for compensation, and threatened to table an amendment to the Pensions Bill if the government did not offer any help.[29] After Brennan carried out his threat to table the amendment, The Independent newspaper reported that Tony Blair faced the "biggest backbench rebellion" of his career.[30] Ultimately, Brennan was successful. The BBC said he was "instrumental in extracting the government's commitment to establish a £400 million fund to provide compensation for workers who lost their pensions when their firms went bankrupt".[7]

Expenses

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In 2009, Brennan came under scrutiny during the Expenses scandal for claiming questionable items, including a £450 television claimed for his London second home which was delivered to this family home in Cardiff. He claimed for bunk beds for his daughter while the expenses system was intended exclusively for items for the MPs' use. Brennan said he bought from businesses in his constituency but the items were for use in his second home, calling the story a "smear with no basis in fact".[31][32]

Guitars for prisoners

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In 2014, Brennan led a campaign with musician Billy Bragg to lift a blanket ban on prisoners having access to guitars. They were backed in their campaign by musicians including Johnny Marr, David Gilmour and Richard Hawley.[33] Brennan held a Westminster Hall debate on the subject to try and get the government to overturn the ban, citing the importance and the efficacy of music as a means for the rehabilitation for prisoners.[34] The Government agreed and prisoners can now have access to the instruments.[35]

Personal life

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Brennan has been married to Amy Lynn Wack since 1988; the couple have one daughter. Brennan supports Cardiff City Football Club and the Cardiff Blues rugby team. He is also a member of a parliamentary rock band MP4 with fellow politicians Ian Cawsey, Pete Wishart and Greg Knight.[36] They have helped to raise over £1 million for charity as well as releasing an album and an EP. They were the house band on the television show Unspun with Matt Forde.[36] He released his first solo album in 2021, a folk album titled The Clown and the Cigarette Girl, which featured Glen Matlock on bass.[37]

Friends of Jo Cox

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In 2016, following the murder of Jo Cox, the MP for Batley and Spen, Brennan put together the 'Friends of Jo Cox' to record a charity single to raise money for the Jo Cox Foundation which had been set up in her memory.[38] The Friends of Jo Cox included the parliamentary rock band MP4, the House of Commons choir, MPs from other parties and a group of musicians including David Gray, KT Tunstall, Ricky Wilson and Steve Harley.[39] The song was a cover of The Rolling Stones' "You Can't Always Get What You Want", with the Rolling Stones waiving their royalties for the Jo Cox Foundation.[40] The single made the iTunes Top 10, and narrowly missed out on the top 100 UK Singles chart before Christmas Day. The single raised more than £35,000.[41]

References

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  1. ^ a b "Meet our Shadow Cabinet". The Labour Party. Retrieved 9 September 2023.
  2. ^ Biography Archived 17 November 2011 at the Wayback Machine kevinbrennan.co.uk
  3. ^ "Election Data 2001". Electoral Calculus. Archived from the original on 15 October 2011. Retrieved 18 October 2015.
  4. ^ "BBC NEWS > Cardiff West". Vote 2001. BBC News. 7 June 2001. Retrieved 22 January 2011.
  5. ^ "Tie move gets MP in a knot". BBC News. Archived from the original on 9 September 2017. Retrieved 11 June 2017.
  6. ^ "Dressing down for rebel MP who dared to dress down". 5 July 2002. Archived from the original on 19 May 2017. Retrieved 11 June 2017.
  7. ^ a b "Kevin Brennan". news.bbc.co.uk. 18 October 2002. Archived from the original on 9 September 2017. Retrieved 11 June 2017.
  8. ^ "Who, what, why: What is the parliamentary dress code?". BBC News. 30 October 2014. Archived from the original on 9 March 2017. Retrieved 11 June 2017.
  9. ^ "Election Data 2005". Electoral Calculus. Archived from the original on 15 October 2011. Retrieved 18 October 2015.
  10. ^ "Cardiff West parliamentary constituency – Election 2005" – via www.bbc.co.uk.
  11. ^ Ministerial Responsibilities Archived 28 July 2009 at the Wayback Machine dbis.gov.uk
  12. ^ "Parliamentary career for Kevin Brennan – MPs and Lords – UK Parliament". members.parliament.uk. Retrieved 3 August 2021.
  13. ^ ""All pupils must study maths to 18"". Tes. Retrieved 3 August 2021.
  14. ^ "Election Data 2010". Electoral Calculus. Archived from the original on 26 July 2013. Retrieved 17 October 2015.
  15. ^ Cardiff West BBC Election – Cardiff West
  16. ^ "BCS announces winners of MP Web Awards". www.bcs.org. Archived from the original on 24 April 2017. Retrieved 11 June 2017.
  17. ^ "Election Data 2015". Electoral Calculus. Archived from the original on 17 October 2015. Retrieved 17 October 2015.
  18. ^ "Cardiff Central result". Election results for Cardiff West. City of Cardiff Council. 7 May 2015. Retrieved 21 September 2015.
  19. ^ "Cardiff Central Parliamentary constituency". Election 2015. BBC News. Retrieved 18 January 2020.
  20. ^ "New Shadow Ministerial role for Cardiff West MP". 25 September 2015. Archived from the original on 2 October 2015. Retrieved 1 October 2015.
  21. ^ "Corbyn a narcissist, says Labour Islwyn MP Chris Evans". BBC News. 28 June 2016. Retrieved 19 August 2021.
  22. ^ "Full list of MPs and MEPs backing challenger Owen Smith". LabourList. 21 July 2016. Archived from the original on 15 July 2019. Retrieved 15 July 2019.
  23. ^ "Cardiff West Parliamentary constituency". BBC News. Retrieved 11 June 2017.
  24. ^ Election results for Cardiff West, UK Parliamentary Election – Thursday, 8th June, 2017, cardiff.gov.uk, 8 June 2017, retrieved 18 January 2020
  25. ^ "Cardiff West Parliamentary constituency Election 2019". BBC Politics. Archived from the original on 1 December 2019. Retrieved 13 December 2019.
  26. ^ "Here are the 23 MPs backing Wigan's Lisa Nandy in the Labour Party leadership contest". www.wigantoday.net. 10 January 2020. Retrieved 9 February 2020.
  27. ^ "Labour MP Kevin Brennan says he is standing down". BBC News. 27 May 2024. Retrieved 28 May 2024.
  28. ^ "Pensions hope for steelworkers". BBC News. 13 February 2003. Archived from the original on 9 September 2017. Retrieved 11 June 2017.
  29. ^ "MPs call for pension compensation". The Guardian. 6 April 2004. Archived from the original on 19 May 2017. Retrieved 11 June 2017.
  30. ^ "Blair U-turn in bid to stave off pensions revolt". 22 April 2004. Archived from the original on 19 May 2017. Retrieved 11 June 2017.
  31. ^ Prince, Rosa (10 May 2009). "Kevin Brennan had £450 for television delivered to family home on MPs' expenses". The Daily Telegraph. Archived from the original on 10 September 2017. Retrieved 11 June 2017.
  32. ^ "MP dismisses expenses abuse claim". BBC News. Archived from the original on 9 September 2017. Retrieved 11 June 2017.
  33. ^ Michaels, Sean (29 July 2014). "Campaigners win bid to grant prisoners access to steel-string guitars". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 19 May 2017. Retrieved 11 June 2017.
  34. ^ "Music in Prisons – Hansard Online". hansard.parliament.uk. Archived from the original on 24 April 2017. Retrieved 11 June 2017.
  35. ^ "Billy Bragg campaign successfully sees prisoners allowed steel-string guitars – NME". NME. 28 July 2014. Archived from the original on 19 May 2017. Retrieved 11 June 2017.
  36. ^ a b "MP4 strike a chord with voters". BBC News. Archived from the original on 25 September 2015. Retrieved 11 June 2017.
  37. ^ Hoffman, Noa (23 September 2021). "Constituency work inspired musical MP's debut album". Politics Home. Retrieved 28 January 2022.
  38. ^ McCarthy, James (3 December 2016). "MP Kevin Brennan part of charity single in memory of murdered MP Jo Cox". Wales Online. Archived from the original on 19 May 2017. Retrieved 11 June 2017.
  39. ^ White, Adam (15 December 2016). "Who's behind the Jo Cox charity single? Plus, everything else you need to know". The Telegraph. Archived from the original on 7 June 2017. Retrieved 11 June 2017.
  40. ^ "Rolling Stones waive their royalties on Jo Cox tribute single". The Guardian. 16 December 2016. Archived from the original on 9 June 2017. Retrieved 11 June 2017.
  41. ^ "Jo Cox charity single misses out on Christmas No 1 spot". ITV News. Archived from the original on 21 May 2017. Retrieved 11 June 2017.
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