John Yorke Denham (born 15 July 1953) is an English politician who served as Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills from 2007 to 2009 and

Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government The secretary of state for housing, communities and local government is a secretary of state in the Government of the United Kingdom and is the Cabinet minister responsible for the overall leadership and strategic direction of the Ministry of Ho ...

from 2009 to 2010. A member of the Labour Party, he was Member of Parliament (MP) for Southampton Itchen from 1992 to 2015. Denham served in government under

Prime Minister A prime minister or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. A prime minister is not the head of state, but r ...

Tony Blair Sir Anthony Charles Lynton Blair (born 6 May 1953) is a British politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1997 to 2007 and Leader of the Labour Party (UK), Leader of the Labour Party from 1994 to 2007. He was Leader ...

from 1997 to 2003, as a Parliamentary under-secretary of state from 1997 to 1998 and a

Minister of State Minister of state is a designation for a government minister, with varying meanings in different jurisdictions. In a number of European countries, the title is given as an honorific conferring a higher rank, often bestowed upon senior minister ...

from 1998 to 2003. He resigned from government over the

Iraq War The Iraq War (), also referred to as the Second Gulf War, was a prolonged conflict in Iraq lasting from 2003 to 2011. It began with 2003 invasion of Iraq, the invasion by a Multi-National Force – Iraq, United States-led coalition, which ...

in 2003, and subsequently became Chair of the

Home Affairs Select Committee The Home Affairs Select Committee is a departmental select committee of the House of Commons of the United Kingdom, House of Commons in the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Remit The Home Affairs Committee is one of the House of Commons Select ...

. Denham returned to government in 2007 as a Member of Prime Minister Gordon Brown's Cabinet, which he served in until Labour's election defeat in 2010. He was briefly Shadow

in 2010, and appointed by opposition leader

Ed Miliband Edward Samuel Miliband (born 24 December 1969) is a British politician who has served as Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero since July 2024. He has been Member of Parliament (United Kingdom), Member of Parliament (MP) for D ...

Shadow Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills A shadow is a dark area on a surface where light from a light source is blocked by an object. In contrast, shade (shadow), shade occupies the three-dimensional volume behind an object with light in front of it. The cross section (geometry), cros ...

later in the same year. Denham announced in 2011 that he would be standing down from Parliament at the next election, and held his final front bench position as Parliamentary private secretary to Miliband from 2011 to 2013.

Early life

John Denham was born in

Seaton, Devon Seaton () is a seaside town, fishing harbour and civil parish in East Devon on the south coast of England, between Axmouth (to the east) and Beer (to the west). It faces onto Lyme Bay and is on the Jurassic Coast, a World Heritage Site. A se ...

, and attended Woodroffe School in

Lyme Regis Lyme Regis ( ) is a town in west Dorset, England, west of Dorchester, Dorset, Dorchester and east of Exeter. Sometimes dubbed the "Pearl of Dorset", it lies by the English Channel at the Dorset–Devon border. It has noted fossils in cliffs and ...

, Dorset, and the

University of Southampton The University of Southampton (abbreviated as ''Soton'' in post-nominal letters) is a public university, public research university in Southampton, England. Southampton is a founding member of the Russell Group of research-intensive universit ...

, where he was awarded a

Bachelor of Science A Bachelor of Science (BS, BSc, B.S., B.Sc., SB, or ScB; from the Latin ') is a bachelor's degree that is awarded for programs that generally last three to five years. The first university to admit a student to the degree of Bachelor of Scienc ...

degree in

Chemistry Chemistry is the scientific study of the properties and behavior of matter. It is a physical science within the natural sciences that studies the chemical elements that make up matter and chemical compound, compounds made of atoms, molecules a ...

, and served as president of the

students' union A students' union or student union, is a student organization present in many colleges, universities, and high schools. In higher education, the students' union is often accorded its own building on the campus, dedicated to social, organizat ...

in the academic year 1976–77. After leaving education in 1977 he became an advice worker at the Energy Advice Agency in Durham, before becoming a transport campaigner with

Friends of the Earth Friends of the Earth International (FoEI) is an international network of grassroots environmental organizations in 73 countries. About half of the member groups call themselves "Friends of the Earth" in their own languages; the others use other ...

in 1978. He was Head of Youth Affairs at the

British Council The British Council is a British organisation specialising in international cultural and educational opportunities. It works in over 100 countries: promoting a wider knowledge of the United Kingdom and the English language (and the Welsh lang ...

from 1979 until 1983, and was responsible for public education and advocacy for

War on Want War on Want is an anti-poverty charity based in London. War on Want works to challenge the root causes of poverty, inequality and injustice through partnership with social movements in the global South and campaigns in the UK. War on Want's slo ...

from 1984 to 1988. He subsequently worked for

Christian Aid Christian Aid is a relief and development charity of 41 Christian (Protestant and Orthodox) churches in Great Britain and Ireland, and works to support sustainable development, eradicate poverty, support civil society and provide disaster rel ...

Oxfam Oxfam is a British-founded confederation of 21 independent non-governmental organizations (NGOs), focusing on the alleviation of global poverty, founded in 1942 and led by Oxfam International. It began as the Oxford Committee for Famine Relief ...

and other development agencies until his election to

Westminster Westminster is the main settlement of the City of Westminster in Central London, Central London, England. It extends from the River Thames to Oxford Street and has many famous landmarks, including the Palace of Westminster, Buckingham Palace, ...

Councillor

Prior to being elected as an MP, Denham served as a local councillor, initially as a member of the

Hampshire County Council Hampshire County Council (HCC) is the upper-tier local authority for the non-metropolitan county of Hampshire in England. The council was created in 1889. The county council provides county-level services to eleven of the thirteen districts geo ...

in 1981, where he remained until 1989, when he was elected as a councillor on Southampton City Council, on which he served until 1993 and was the chairman of the city's Housing Committee. He was selected to contest the Southampton Itchen seat at the 1983 general election following the defection to the

Social Democratic Party The name Social Democratic Party or Social Democrats has been used by many political parties in various countries around the world. Such parties are most commonly aligned to social democracy as their political ideology. Active parties Form ...

of the sitting Labour MP Bob Mitchell. The election proved to be a close-run affair, with Denham coming in third place, Mitchell in second, and the victor was the

Conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy and ideology that seeks to promote and preserve traditional institutions, customs, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civiliza ...

Christopher Chope Sir Christopher Robert Chope (born 19 May 1947) is a British politician and former barrister who has served as the Member of Parliament (MP) for Christchurch in Dorset since 1997. A member of the Conservative Party, he was first elected in ...

who gained the seat with a majority of 5,290. Denham again contested the seat at the 1987 general election, he overtook Mitchell into second place but was still behind Chope, who held his seat with a majority of 6,716.

Member of Parliament

Denham took the seat at the third attempt at the 1992 general election, when he defeated Chope by just 551 votes and remained an MP for 23 years (since 1997 Chope has been MP for the safe Conservative seat of

Christchurch Christchurch (; ) is the largest city in the South Island and the List of cities in New Zealand, second-largest city by urban area population in New Zealand. Christchurch has an urban population of , and a metropolitan population of over hal ...

Dorset Dorset ( ; Archaism, archaically: Dorsetshire , ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South West England. It is bordered by Somerset to the north-west, Wiltshire to the north and the north-east, Hampshire to the east, t ...

.). Mitchell did not fight the election this time. Denham 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 20 May 1992, reminding people that the

Pilgrim Fathers The Pilgrims, also known as the Pilgrim Fathers, were the English settlers who travelled to North America on the ship ''Mayflower'' and established the Plymouth Colony at what now is Plymouth, Massachusetts, United States. John Smith had named ...

left from Southampton, and not

Plymouth Plymouth ( ) is a port city status in the United Kingdom, city and unitary authority in Devon, South West England. It is located on Devon's south coast between the rivers River Plym, Plym and River Tamar, Tamar, about southwest of Exeter and ...

as is widely thought, on their historic voyage to North America (Plymouth was a later port-of-call). Denham has held the following positions: *1995–1997: Shadow Minister for Social Security *1997–1998: Parliamentary under Secretary of State at the

Department of Social Security A ministry of social security or department of social security is a government entity responsible for social security affairs. It may be a ministry office, a department, or, as in the United States, a nominally independent agency. Notable ones ar ...

*1998–1999: Minister of State at the

*1999–2001: Minister of State for Health Services *2001–2003: Minister of State for Policing *2003–2007: Chairman of the

*2007–2009: Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills *2009–2010:

*2010–2011:

*2011–2013: Parliamentary private secretary to the

Leader of the Opposition The Leader of the Opposition is a title traditionally held by the leader of the Opposition (parliamentary), largest political party not in government, typical in countries utilizing the parliamentary system form of government. The leader of the ...

In government

Denham became a member of the Environment Select committee in 1993, and was promoted to the opposition frontbench by

in 1995. He was a Shadow Minister for

Social Security Welfare spending is a type of government support intended to ensure that members of a society can meet basic human needs such as food and shelter. Social security may either be synonymous with welfare, or refer specifically to social insurance ...

from 1995 to 1997, responsible for pensions and long-term care. Following the 1997 general election he entered the Blair government as the Parliamentary under-secretary of state at the

, being promoted within the department to the rank of

in 1998. Following the promotion to the cabinet of

Alan Milburn Alan Milburn (born 27 January 1958) is a British politician who was Member of Parliament (MP) for Darlington from 1992 to 2010. A member of the Labour Party, he served for five years in the Cabinet, first as Chief Secretary to the Treasury f ...

, Denham moved to the

Department of Health A health department or health ministry is a part of government which focuses on issues related to the general health of the citizenry. Subnational entities, such as states, counties and cities, often also operate a health department of their o ...

in 1999.

Resignation over Iraq War

Following the 2001 general election he became a

at the

Home Office The Home Office (HO), also known (especially in official papers and when referred to in Parliament) as the Home Department, is the United Kingdom's interior ministry. It is responsible for public safety and policing, border security, immigr ...

, until he resigned in March 2003 over the

. After his resignation, Denham was appointed in July 2003 as chairman of the influential

. Despite speculation following the 2005 general election that he would return as a member of the Government, he did not do so, although in the post-election reshuffle there were reports that he was offered – and accepted – the cabinet post of

Chief Secretary to the Treasury The Chief Secretary to the Treasury is a senior ministerial office in the government of the United Kingdom and is the second most senior ministerial office in HM Treasury, after the Chancellor of the Exchequer. The office holder is always a full ...

, before being told that the post had been assigned instead to

Des Browne Desmond Henry Browne, Baron Browne of Ladyton, (born 22 March 1952) is a Scottish politician who served in the Cabinet of the United Kingdom under Tony Blair and Gordon Brown as Secretary of State for Defence 2006 to 2008 and Secretary of ...

. Though regarded as a Blairite, Denham was a regular critic of the Blair administration as chair of the Home Affairs committee.

Return to Government

Following Brown's installation as Prime Minister in June 2007, Denham was named to take over the new post of Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills. In September 2007, he announced funding for students taking second degrees would be re-allocated to allow more students to take first degrees: adult and continuing education institutions such as the

Open University The Open University (OU) is a Public university, public research university and the largest university in the United Kingdom by List of universities in the United Kingdom by enrolment, number of students. The majority of the OU's undergraduate ...

Birkbeck, University of London Birkbeck, University of London (formally Birkbeck College, University of London), is a Public university, public research university located in London, England, and a constituent college, member institution of the University of London. Establ ...

, and lifelong learning departments throughout the country, have voiced angry protest at the proposals. During Denham's tenure as Secretary of State, he also announced an extension of maintenance grants to students from households earning up to £60,000 a year. The changes mean that an additional 50,000 students would be entitled to a full grant and an additional 100,000 students would be entitled to a partial grant. As part of the Cabinet reshuffle on 5 June 2009, Denham was appointed to the role of Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government. He replaced

Hazel Blears Hazel Anne Blears (born 14 May 1956) is a British former Labour Party politician, who served as the Member of Parliament (MP) successively for the constituencies of Salford and Salford and Eccles between 1997 and 2015. One of 101 female ...

who had resigned from the post on 3 June 2009. On 7 October 2011, Denham announced that he would be standing down at the 2015 general election. In June 2012, Denham said that Labour knew as early as 2005 that the immigration estimates they had relied on were "vastly wrong". He was seen as a government loyalist and

University of Southampton Students' Union The University of Southampton Students' Union, branded and commonly known as SUSU (a contraction of Southampton University Students' Union), is the students' union at the University of Southampton in southern England, United Kingdom. SUSU operate ...

had revoked his lifetime membership for his support of tuition fees.

Post-parliamentary career

Denham is Chair of the Southern Policy Centre, which he co-founded with Professor Francis Davis, as a think tank responding to challenges and opportunities for southern England with specialisms in open data research and new forms of public participation in politics. Denham is director of the English Labour Network and a Professorial Fellow on English Identity and Politics at Southampton University.

Honours

Denham was sworn in as a member of the

Privy Council of the United Kingdom The Privy Council, formally His Majesty's Most Honourable Privy Council, is a privy council, formal body of advisers to the sovereign of the United Kingdom. Its members, known as privy counsellors, are mainly senior politicians who are curre ...

in 2000, giving him the honorific title "

The Right Honourable ''The Right Honourable'' (abbreviation: The Rt Hon. or variations) is an honorific Style (form of address), style traditionally applied to certain persons and collective bodies in the United Kingdom, the former British Empire, and the Commonwealt ...

" for life. He is also a

Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts The Royal Society for the Encouragement of Arts, Manufactures and Commerce, commonly known as the Royal Society of Arts (RSA), is a learned society that champions innovation and progress across a multitude of sectors by fostering creativity, s ...

, giving him the Post Nominal Letters "FRSA".

Personal life

He married Ruth Eleanor Dixon and they have two children; they have now divorced. He has another child born in 2005. In an interview with the ''

Daily Telegraph ''The Daily Telegraph'', known online and elsewhere as ''The Telegraph'', is a British daily broadsheet conservative newspaper published in London by Telegraph Media Group and distributed in the United Kingdom and internationally. It was foun ...

'', Denham stated that he was a

secular humanist Secular humanism is a philosophy, belief system, or life stance that embraces human reason, logic, secular ethics, and philosophical naturalism, while specifically rejecting religious dogma, supernaturalism, and superstition as the basi ...

, although he also said he learnt a lot from his

Church of England The Church of England (C of E) is the State religion#State churches, established List of Christian denominations, Christian church in England and the Crown Dependencies. It is the mother church of the Anglicanism, Anglican Christian tradition, ...

upbringing.

Notes

References

External links

John Denham MP
Former official site
University of Southampton biography
* , - , - , - , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Denham, John 1953 births Living people Alumni of the University of Southampton Councillors in Hampshire English humanists Labour Party (UK) MPs for English constituencies Members of the Fabian Society Members of Hampshire County Council Members of the Privy Council of the United Kingdom People from Seaton, Devon UK MPs 1992–1997 UK MPs 1997–2001 UK MPs 2001–2005 UK MPs 2005–2010 UK MPs 2010–2015 New Labour One Nation Labour