Peter Hain
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Peter Gerald Hain, Baron Hain, (born 16 February 1950), is a British politician who served as
Secretary of State for Northern Ireland The secretary of state for Northern Ireland (; ), also referred to as Northern Ireland Secretary or SoSNI, is a secretary of state in the Government of the United Kingdom, with overall responsibility for the Northern Ireland Office. The offi ...
from 2005 to 2007,
Secretary of State for Work and Pensions The secretary of state for work and pensions, also referred to as the work and pensions secretary, is a secretary of state in the Government of the United Kingdom, with overall responsibility for the business of the Department for Work and P ...
from 2007 to 2008 and twice as Secretary of State for Wales from 2002 to 2008 and from 2009 to 2010. A member of the Labour Party, he was Member of Parliament (MP) for
Neath Neath (; ) is a market town and Community (Wales), community situated in the Neath Port Talbot, Neath Port Talbot County Borough, Wales. The town had a population of 50,658 in 2011. The community of the parish of Neath had a population of 19,2 ...
between
1991 It was the final year of the Cold War, which had begun in 1947. During the year, the Soviet Union Dissolution of the Soviet Union, collapsed, leaving Post-soviet states, fifteen sovereign republics and the Commonwealth of Independent State ...
and
2015 2015 was designated by the United Nations as: * International Year of Light * International Year of Soil __TOC__ Events January * January 1 – Lithuania officially adopts the euro as its currency, replacing the litas, and becomes ...
. Born in
Kenya Colony The Colony and Protectorate of Kenya, commonly known as British Kenya or British East Africa, was part of the British Empire in Africa from 1920 until 1963. It was established when the former East Africa Protectorate was transformed into a Brit ...
to South African parents, Hain came to the United Kingdom from South Africa as a teenager and was a noted anti-fascist and anti-
apartheid Apartheid ( , especially South African English:  , ; , ) was a system of institutionalised racial segregation that existed in South Africa and South West Africa (now Namibia) from 1948 to the early 1990s. It was characterised by an ...
campaigner in the 1970s, and was convicted of criminal conspiracy for leading direct action events. Elected to Parliament at a 1991 by-election, he initially served in
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 ...
's government as a junior minister in the
Wales Office The Wales Office (), known as the Office of the Secretary of State for Wales () between 2017 and 2024, is a department of His Majesty's Government. It replaced the former Welsh Office, which had extensive responsibility for governing Wales p ...
,
Foreign Office Foreign may refer to: Government * Foreign policy, how a country interacts with other countries * Ministry of Foreign Affairs, in many countries ** Foreign Office, a department of the UK government ** Foreign office and foreign minister * United ...
and Department of Trade and Industry. Promoted to the Cabinet as
Welsh Secretary The secretary of state for Wales (), also referred to as the Welsh secretary, is a Secretary of State (United Kingdom), secretary of state in the Government of the United Kingdom, with responsibility for the Wales Office. The incumbent is a me ...
in 2002, he served concurrently as
Leader of the House of Commons The Leader of the House of Commons is a minister of the Crown of the Government of the United Kingdom whose main role is organising government business in the House of Commons of the United Kingdom, House of Commons. The Leader is always a memb ...
from 2003 to 2005 and Northern Ireland Secretary from 2005 to 2007. Hain ran for the deputy leadership of the Labour Party in the 2007 deputy leadership election, coming fifth out of six candidates. He was promoted to
Work and Pensions Secretary The secretary of state for work and pensions, also referred to as the work and pensions secretary, is a Secretary of State (United Kingdom), secretary of state in the Government of the United Kingdom, with overall responsibility for the busin ...
by new leader
Gordon Brown James Gordon Brown (born 20 February 1951) is a British politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Labour Party (UK), Leader of the Labour Party from 2007 to 2010. Previously, he was Chancellor of the Ex ...
, while remaining Welsh Secretary. His failure to declare donations during the deputy leadership contest led to his resignation from both roles in 2008. He later returned to the Cabinet from 2009 to 2010 as Welsh Secretary. After Labour was defeated at the 2010 general election, Hain was Shadow Welsh Secretary in the Shadow Cabinet of Ed Miliband from 2010 until 2012, when he announced his retirement from frontline politics. In June 2014 he announced that he would stand down as MP for Neath at the 2015 general election and was subsequently nominated for a
life peer In the United Kingdom, life peers are appointed members of the peerage whose titles cannot be inherited, in contrast to hereditary peers. Life peers are appointed by the monarch on the advice of the prime minister. With the exception of the D ...
age in the 2015 Dissolution Honours.


Early life

Whilst his father was working temporarily there, Hain was born in Nairobi in what was then
Kenya Colony The Colony and Protectorate of Kenya, commonly known as British Kenya or British East Africa, was part of the British Empire in Africa from 1920 until 1963. It was established when the former East Africa Protectorate was transformed into a Brit ...
, but he moved to the
Union of South Africa The Union of South Africa (; , ) was the historical predecessor to the present-day South Africa, Republic of South Africa. It came into existence on 31 May 1910 with the unification of the British Cape Colony, Cape, Colony of Natal, Natal, Tra ...
when his parents returned about a year later. His South African parents, Walter Vannet Hain and Adelaine Hain (''née'' Stocks), were anti-apartheid activists in the Liberal Party of South Africa, for which they were made "banned persons", briefly imprisoned, and prevented from working. Hain's paternal grandparents, civil engineer Walter Vannet Hain of Dundee, and Mary Hain née Gavin of Glasgow, married in 1919, leaving Shettleston,
Lanarkshire Lanarkshire, also called the County of Lanark (; ), is a Counties of Scotland, historic county, Lieutenancy areas of Scotland, lieutenancy area and registration county in the Central Lowlands and Southern Uplands of Scotland. The county is no l ...
, on 17 September 1920 on the ''
Edinburgh Castle Edinburgh Castle is a historic castle in Edinburgh, Scotland. It stands on Castle Rock (Edinburgh), Castle Rock, which has been occupied by humans since at least the Iron Age. There has been a royal castle on the rock since the reign of Malcol ...
'' with their newborn baby William Ayers Vannet Hain, sailing from Southampton to South Africa. Hain's father, later to become an architect, was born there on 29 December 1924. Hain's maternal grandparents were of 1820 Settler British South African stock. His 4th great-grandfather was George Southey (1776–1831) who hailed from
Devon Devon ( ; historically also known as Devonshire , ) is a ceremonial county in South West England. It is bordered by the Bristol Channel to the north, Somerset and Dorset to the east, the English Channel to the south, and Cornwall to the west ...
. Hain descends from his daughter, Sophia Stirk (''née'' Southey), whose brother George helped to track and kill the Xhosa tribal chief Hintsa kaKhawuta (ca. 1790 – 1835). A brother of Sophia and George Southey was Sir Richard Southey, a British colonial administrator, cabinet minister and landowner in South Africa. When Hain was 10, he was awoken in the early hours by police officers searching his bedroom for 'incriminating documents'. Aged 11 he was again awoken to be told his parents had been imprisoned for leafleting in support of
Nelson Mandela Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela ( , ; born Rolihlahla Mandela; 18 July 1918 – 5 December 2013) was a South African Internal resistance to apartheid, anti-apartheid activist and politician who served as the first president of South Africa f ...
's campaign; they were released without charge after fourteen days' detention. At 15, Hain spoke at the funeral of John Frederick Harris, an anti-apartheid activist who was hanged for murder for the bombing of the Johannesburg main railway station, injuring 23 people and killing one. Hain and his parents strongly opposed the bombing but stood by Harris and his wife Ann and baby son David, who were family friends. As a result of security police harassment, Hain's father was unable to continue his work as an architect, and the family, deprived of an income, was forced to leave for the United Kingdom in 1966.


Life in South Africa and London

Hain was educated in South Africa at Hatfield Primary School and Pretoria Boys High School and in London at
Emanuel School Emanuel School is a private, co-educational day school in Battersea, south-west London. The school was founded in 1594 by Anne Sackville, Lady Dacre and Queen Elizabeth I and today occupies a 12-acre (4.9 ha) site close to Clapham Junction ...
, a state school, Queen Mary College, University of London, graduating with a first class
bachelor's degree A bachelor's degree (from Medieval Latin ''baccalaureus'') or baccalaureate (from Modern Latin ''baccalaureatus'') is an undergraduate degree awarded by colleges and universities upon completion of a course of study lasting three to six years ...
in Economics and
Political science Political science is the scientific study of politics. It is a social science dealing with systems of governance and Power (social and political), power, and the analysis of political activities, political philosophy, political thought, polit ...
in 1973, and at the
University of Sussex The University of Sussex is a public university, public research university, research university located in Falmer, East Sussex, England. It lies mostly within the city boundaries of Brighton and Hove. Its large campus site is surrounded by the ...
, obtaining an MPhil. After university, Hain worked as a researcher for the Union of Communication Workers from September 1976, later rising to become their head of research. During this time, Hain wrote several articles that harshly criticised Israel, including a 1976 piece in ''The Guardian'' newspaper where he stated that Israel needed to be dismantled to make way for a secular, democratic Palestinian state.


Anti-apartheid activism

Having joined the British
Anti-Apartheid Movement The Anti-Apartheid Movement (AAM) was a British organisation that was at the centre of the international movement opposing the South African apartheid system and supporting South Africa's non-white population who were oppressed by the policies ...
at aged 17 in 1967, when Hain was 19 he became chairman of the ''Stop The '70 Tour'' campaign which disrupted tours by the South African
rugby union Rugby union football, commonly known simply as rugby union in English-speaking countries and rugby 15/XV in non-English-speaking world, Anglophone Europe, or often just rugby, is a Contact sport#Terminology, close-contact team sport that orig ...
and
cricket Cricket is a Bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball game played between two Sports team, teams of eleven players on a cricket field, field, at the centre of which is a cricket pitch, pitch with a wicket at each end, each comprising two Bail (cr ...
teams in 1969 and
1970 Events January * January 1 – Unix time epoch reached at 00:00:00 UTC. * January 5 – The 7.1 1970 Tonghai earthquake, Tonghai earthquake shakes Tonghai County, Yunnan province, China, with a maximum Mercalli intensity scale, Mercalli ...
. In 1971 director John Goldschmidt produced a film for
Granada Granada ( ; ) is the capital city of the province of Granada, in the autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Andalusia, Spain. Granada is located at the foot of the Sierra Nevada (Spain), Sierra Nevada mountains, at the confluence ...
's ''
World in Action ''World in Action'' was a British investigative current affairs programme made by Granada Television for ITV from 7 January 1963 until 7 December 1998. Its campaigning journalism frequently had a major impact on events of the day. Its product ...
'' programme featuring Hain debating "Apartheid in South Africa" at the
Oxford Union The Oxford Union Society, commonly referred to as the Oxford Union, is a debating society in the city of Oxford, England, whose membership is drawn primarily from the University of Oxford. Founded in 1823, it is one of Britain's oldest unive ...
. The film was transmitted on the ITV network. In 1972 a private prosecution resulted in his conviction for
criminal conspiracy In criminal law, a conspiracy is an agreement between two or more people to commit a crime at some time in the future. Criminal law in some countries or for some conspiracies may require that at least one overt act be undertaken in furtherance ...
at the
Old Bailey The Central Criminal Court of England and Wales, commonly referred to as the Old Bailey after the street on which it stands, is a criminal court building in central London, one of several that house the Crown Court of England and Wales. The s ...
for which he was fined £200. The prosecution was funded largely from apartheid-supporting whites in South Africa due to his campaign against white-only South African sports tours. He was acquitted of three other conspiracy counts after defending himself in the four week trial described in the book edited by
Derek Humphry Derek Humphry (29 April 1930 – 2 January 2025) was a British and American journalist and author. He was a proponent of legal assisted suicide and the right to die. In 1980 he co-founded the Hemlock Society and in 2004 after the Society dissol ...
, ''Cricket Conspiracy'' (1975, ). In 1972, the South African Security Services were suspected of sending him a
letter bomb A letter bomb is an explosive device sent via the postal service, and designed with the intention to injure or kill the recipient when opened. They have been used in terrorist attacks such as those of the Unabomber. Some countries have agenc ...
that failed to explode because of faulty wiring. In 1976 Hain was tried for, and acquitted of, a 1975 bank theft, having been framed by the South African Bureau of State Security (BOSS) according to his 1987 book, ''A Putney Plot''.


Joining the Liberal and Labour Parties

In 1968, he joined the
Liberal Party The Liberal Party is any of many political parties around the world. The meaning of ''liberal'' varies around the world, ranging from liberal conservatism on the right to social liberalism on the left. For example, while the political systems ...
and was elected chairperson in 1971 and then in 1975 president of the Young Liberals, but in 1977 switched to Labour. The same year, he was a founder of the Anti-Nazi League.


Homosexual equality

In the 1970s, Hain was also Honorary Vice-president of the Campaign for Homosexual Equality when he clashed with lobbying interests from the Paedophile Information Exchange (PIE).


Member of Parliament

He contested
Putney Putney () is an affluent district in southwest London, England, in the London Borough of Wandsworth, southwest of Charing Cross. The area is identified in the London Plan as one of 35 major centres in Greater London. History Putney is an ...
in the
1983 1983 saw both the official beginning of the Internet and the first mobile cellular telephone call. Events January * January 1 – The migration of the ARPANET to TCP/IP is officially completed (this is considered to be the beginning of the ...
and
1987 Events January * January 1 – Bolivia reintroduces the Boliviano currency. * January 2 – Chadian–Libyan conflict – Battle of Fada: The Military of Chad, Chadian army destroys a Libyan armoured brigade. * January 3 – Afghan leader ...
general elections but was defeated on both occasions by Conservative
David Mellor David John Mellor (born 12 March 1949) is a British broadcaster, barrister, and former politician. As a member of the Conservative Party, he served in the Cabinet of Prime Minister John Major as Chief Secretary to the Treasury (1990–1992) ...
. Having already been selected as Labour's candidate for the Neath constituency at the 1992 general election, Hain was elected to the
House of Commons The House of Commons is the name for the elected lower house of the Bicameralism, bicameral parliaments of the United Kingdom and Canada. In both of these countries, the Commons holds much more legislative power than the nominally upper house of ...
at the by-election in April 1991 that followed the death of the sitting member, Donald Coleman, who had announced his intention to retire at the next election. In 1995 he became a Labour
whip A whip is a blunt weapon or implement used in a striking motion to create sound or pain. Whips can be used for flagellation against humans or animals to exert control through pain compliance or fear of pain, or be used as an audible cue thro ...
and in 1996 became a shadow employment minister.


In government

Following Labour's victory in the 1997 general election he joined the government, first at the
Welsh Office The Welsh Office () was a department in the Government of the United Kingdom with responsibilities for Wales. It was established in April 1965 to execute government policy in Wales, and was headed by the Secretary of State for Wales, a post wh ...
1997–1999, then as minister of state at the
Foreign and Commonwealth Office The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) is the ministry of foreign affairs and a Departments of the Government of the United Kingdom, ministerial department of the government of the United Kingdom. The office was created on 2 ...
from 1999 to 2001 with responsibility for Africa, the Middle East and South Asia. In November 1999, as Africa minister he met Robert Mugabe in London; Mugabe told him "I know you are not one of them, Peter; you are one of us," But the following day, following an attempt by
Gay Rights Rights affecting lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer (LGBTQ) people vary greatly by country or jurisdiction—encompassing everything from the legal recognition of same-sex marriage to the death penalty for homosexuality. Not ...
campaigner Peter Tatchell to carry out a
citizen's arrest A citizen's arrest is an arrest made by a private citizen – a person who is not acting as a sworn Police officer, law-enforcement official. In common law jurisdictions, the practice dates back to medieval England and the English common law, in wh ...
on Mugabe, Mugabe accused Hain of being Tatchell's "wife". In October 2000 he set up a war avoidance team to carry messages back and forth between himself and the then-Minister of Foreign Affairs in
Iraq Iraq, officially the Republic of Iraq, is a country in West Asia. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to Iraq–Saudi Arabia border, the south, Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq border, the east, the Persian Gulf and ...
,
Tariq Aziz Tariq Aziz (, , 28 April 1936 – 5 June 2015) was an Iraq, Iraqi politician who served as the Deputy Prime Minister, Deputy Prime Minister of Iraq from 1979 to 2003 and Minister of Foreign Affairs (Iraq), Minister of Foreign Affairs from 1983 ...
(a matter then confidential, which has since been put on public record in an interview with Hain by the ''Today'' programme). Team members who travelled repeatedly to Iraq on Hain's behalf included William Morris, Burhan Chalabi (an Iraqi-born British businessman), and Nasser al-Khalifa (the then-Qatari Ambassador to the UK). He voted for the invasion of Iraq in 2003, later calling it a "fringe issue" compared to other government priorities. However he subsequently described the Iraq invasion as a 'disaster' and said 'I believed the evidence shown me on weapons of mass destruction later discovered to be entirely false.' In 2001, Hain moved briefly to the Department of Trade and Industry before returning to the
Foreign Office Foreign may refer to: Government * Foreign policy, how a country interacts with other countries * Ministry of Foreign Affairs, in many countries ** Foreign Office, a department of the UK government ** Foreign office and foreign minister * United ...
as Minister for Europe, being sworn into the Privy Council the same year. He was vocal in advocating joint sovereignty of
Gibraltar Gibraltar ( , ) is a British Overseas Territories, British Overseas Territory and British overseas cities, city located at the southern tip of the Iberian Peninsula, on the Bay of Gibraltar, near the exit of the Mediterranean Sea into the A ...
with Spain. In October 2002, he joined the Cabinet as Secretary of State for Wales, but continued to represent the UK at the Convention on the Future of Europe. In June 2003 he was made
Leader of the House of Commons The Leader of the House of Commons is a minister of the Crown of the Government of the United Kingdom whose main role is organising government business in the House of Commons of the United Kingdom, House of Commons. The Leader is always a memb ...
and
Lord Privy Seal The Lord Privy Seal (or, more formally, the Lord Keeper of the Privy Seal) is the fifth of the Great Officers of State (United Kingdom), Great Officers of State in the United Kingdom, ranking beneath the Lord President of the Council and abov ...
in a cabinet reshuffle, but retained the Wales portfolio. In November 2004 he caused controversy among his political rivals when he claimed that "If we are tough on crime and on terrorism, as Labour is, then I think Britain will be safer under Labour". On 6 May 2005, following the 2005 general election, Hain was appointed as
Secretary of State for Northern Ireland The secretary of state for Northern Ireland (; ), also referred to as Northern Ireland Secretary or SoSNI, is a secretary of state in the Government of the United Kingdom, with overall responsibility for the Northern Ireland Office. The offi ...
by Prime Minister
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 ...
, also retaining his Welsh position. He was responsible for negotiating the settlement which brought former enemies Sinn Féin and the Democratic Unionist Party into a power-sharing Northern Irish government from May 2007. Although previously a supporter of Irish unity, he has since retreated from this position. On 28 June 2007, he was appointed as Secretary of State for Work and Pensions in addition to retaining responsibility for Wales. He was a proponent of the "tough love" measures designed to force claimants, including the sick and disabled, back to work. He saw it as an anti-poverty, full-employment agenda. He resigned from his post when the issue of donations made to his campaign funds were referred to the police. He set a level of compensation for the taxpayer funded Financial Assistance Scheme similar to that of the Industry funded
Pension Protection Fund The 'Pension Protection Fund'' (PPF) is a statutory corporation, set up by the Pensions Act 2004, and has been protecting members of eligible defined benefit (DB) pension schemes across the United Kingdom since 2005. It protects close to 9 mill ...
(PPF) for those whose schemes had collapses before the establishment of the PPF. Referring to the long running Pensions Action Group campaign and speaking on the
BBC Radio 4 BBC Radio 4 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC. The station replaced the BBC Home Service on 30 September 1967 and broadcasts a wide variety of spoken-word programmes from the BBC's headquarters at Broadcasti ...
''Moneybox'' program on the day compensation was announced, pensions expert Ros Altmann, credited Hain and Mike O'Brien with "having been very different to deal with than their predecessors and..willing and eager to engage and find a way to sort this out."


Deputy leadership bid

On 12 September 2006, he announced his candidacy for the position of Deputy Leader of the Labour Party. In January 2007, Hain gave an interview to the ''
New Statesman ''The New Statesman'' (known from 1931 to 1964 as the ''New Statesman and Nation'') is a British political and cultural news magazine published in London. Founded as a weekly review of politics and literature on 12 April 1913, it was at first c ...
'' in which he made his pitch for the Deputy Leadership and referred to the  Bush administration as "the most right-wing American administration, if not ever, then in living memory" and argued that "the neo-con agenda for America has been rejected by the people and I hope that will be the case for the future". Hain was eliminated in the second round of the Deputy Leadership election, coming fifth out of the six candidates, with
Harriet Harman Harriet Ruth Harman, Baroness Harman, (born 30 July 1950), is a British politician and solicitor who served as Deputy Leader of the Labour Party (UK), Deputy Leader of the Labour Party and Chair of the Labour Party (UK), Chair of the Labour Pa ...
being the successful candidate.


Resignation following Labour party deputy leadership donations scandal

In January 2008, ''
The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in Manchester in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'' and changed its name in 1959, followed by a move to London. Along with its sister paper, ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardi ...
'' reported that Hain had failed to declare some 20 donations worth a total of over £100,000 during his deputy leadership campaign and would be investigated by the
Electoral commission An election commission is a body charged with overseeing the implementation of electioneering process of any country. The formal names of election commissions vary from jurisdiction to jurisdiction, and may be styled an electoral commission, a c ...
. Hain admitted "deeply regrettable administrative failings" but faced questioning on whether the oversight was due to changes in campaign manager possibly causing "chaos" during the campaign or the desire of some donors to remain private. Phil Taylor, the first campaign manager, said that Hain insisted on knowing who had donated and that it was legal. His campaign only reported a separate £82,000 of donations and ''The Guardian'' believes he stopped taking a personal interest in funding once the campaign ended though there was no evidence that he deliberately broke the law. Taylor's successor was Steve Morgan, and it later emerged that four donations were channelled through a non-operating think tank, the Progressive Policies Forum (PPF) which may be connected with Morgan, who was named as a donor. On 12 January, Hain released a statement saying that he wanted to get on with his job and it was absurd to think he had deliberately hidden anything. John Underwood, a trustee of the PPF, said that the donations and loans were "entirely permissible", though Hain said he would pay back a £25,000 interest-free loan. On 24 January 2008, he resigned from several posts including his position as Work and Pensions secretary, after the
Electoral Commission An election commission is a body charged with overseeing the implementation of electioneering process of any country. The formal names of election commissions vary from jurisdiction to jurisdiction, and may be styled an electoral commission, a c ...
referred the failure to report donations to Metropolitan Police. He cited a desire to "clear his name" as the reason for his resignation. Hain was the first person to resign from
Gordon Brown James Gordon Brown (born 20 February 1951) is a British politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Labour Party (UK), Leader of the Labour Party from 2007 to 2010. Previously, he was Chancellor of the Ex ...
's cabinet. He was replaced as Secretary of State for Wales by Paul Murphy, and as Secretary for Work and Pensions by James Purnell in a forced cabinet reshuffle. Hain's campaign had properly declared some £100,000 of donations but failed to declare £103,156 of donations, contrary to electoral law. On 3 July 2008, the Metropolitan Police announced that they had referred Hain's case to the
Crown Prosecution Service The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) is the principal public agency for conducting criminal prosecutions in England and Wales. It is headed by the Director of Public Prosecutions. The main responsibilities of the CPS are to provide legal adv ...
. On 5 December 2008 the CPS announced that Hain would not be charged because Hain was not responsible and did not control the members' association ''Hain4Labour'' that funded his campaign. He returned to the Cabinet as Secretary of State for Wales the following year.


In opposition

Hain was re-appointed Shadow Welsh Secretary in Ed Miliband's Shadow Cabinet after Miliband's election as leader in 2010. He was a supporter of the unsuccessful
Alternative Vote Instant-runoff voting (IRV; ranked-choice voting (RCV), preferential voting, alternative vote) is a single-winner ranked voting election system where one or more eliminations are used to simulate runoff elections. When no candidate has a ...
system in the May 2011 referendum. In May 2012, he announced his retirement from front-line politics.


Attempted prosecution for contempt of court

On 27 March 2012, the
Attorney General for Northern Ireland The Attorney General for Northern Ireland is the chief legal adviser to the Northern Ireland Executive for both civil and criminal matters that fall within the devolved powers of the Northern Ireland Assembly. The Attorney General for Northern Irel ...
, John Larkin QC obtained leave from Lord Justice Higgins to bring proceedings against Hain and "Biteback Publishing" for
contempt of court Contempt of court, often referred to simply as "contempt", is the crime of being disobedient to or disrespectful toward a court of law and its officers in the form of behavior that opposes or defies the authority, justice, and dignity of the co ...
. Although Hain's book ''Outside In'' had already been passed by the Cabinet Office and the Northern Ireland Office prior to publication, the alleged contempt related to statements about Lord Justice Girvan's disposal of an application for judicial review while Hain was Secretary of State. Hain's remarks had previously been strongly criticised by the
Lord Chief Justice of Northern Ireland The Lord Chief Justice of Northern Ireland is a judge who presides over the courts of Northern Ireland and is the head of the Northern Ireland, Northern Irish judiciary. The present Lord Chief Justice of Northern Ireland is Siobhan Keegan, Dame ...
, Declan Morgan though the decision to charge Hain with "scandalising the court", using a law already obsolete in 1899 drew ridicule in Westminster and strong criticism from senior DUP ministers. According to the Attorney General, Hain's statements prejudiced the administration of justice and amounted to an unjustifiable attack on the judiciary. At a preliminary hearing before a Divisional Court of the Queen's Bench Division of the
High Court of Justice The High Court of Justice in London, known properly as His Majesty's High Court of Justice in England, together with the Court of Appeal (England and Wales), Court of Appeal and the Crown Court, are the Courts of England and Wales, Senior Cour ...
on 24 April 2012, Hain's counsel suggested that the action had no basis in
common law Common law (also known as judicial precedent, judge-made law, or case law) is the body of law primarily developed through judicial decisions rather than statutes. Although common law may incorporate certain statutes, it is largely based on prece ...
and was contrary to the
European Convention on Human Rights The European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR; formally the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms) is a Supranational law, supranational convention to protect human rights and political freedoms in Europe. Draf ...
. The trial was intended to take place on 19 June 2012 but the case was dropped on 17 May 2012 after Hain agreed to clarify comments to show he didn't question Girvan's motives or his handling of the judicial review.


House of Lords

In June 2014, Hain announced he would stand down as the MP for Neath at the 2015 general election. He was nominated for a
life peer In the United Kingdom, life peers are appointed members of the peerage whose titles cannot be inherited, in contrast to hereditary peers. Life peers are appointed by the monarch on the advice of the prime minister. With the exception of the D ...
age in the 2015 Dissolution Honours. Writing in the ''Guardian'', he subsequently outlined his views on House of Lords reform. He was created a
life peer In the United Kingdom, life peers are appointed members of the peerage whose titles cannot be inherited, in contrast to hereditary peers. Life peers are appointed by the monarch on the advice of the prime minister. With the exception of the D ...
taking the title Baron Hain, ''of
Neath Neath (; ) is a market town and Community (Wales), community situated in the Neath Port Talbot, Neath Port Talbot County Borough, Wales. The town had a population of 50,658 in 2011. The community of the parish of Neath had a population of 19,2 ...
in the County of West Glamorgan'', on 22 October 2015. He is a member of
Labour Friends of Israel Labour Friends of Israel (LFI) is a group in the Parliament of the United Kingdom that advocates a strong bilateral relationship between the United Kingdom and Israel, and seeks to strengthen ties between the British Labour Party (UK), Labour ...
. He remains a prominent supporter of Unite Against Fascism today and is vice-president of Action for Southern Africa. On 25 October 2018, he used
parliamentary privilege Parliamentary privilege is a legal immunity enjoyed by members of certain legislatures, in which legislators are granted protection against civil or criminal liability for actions done or statements made in the course of their legislative duties ...
in the House of Lords to name Sir Philip Green as the businessman accused of sexual and racial harassment by
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 found ...
. A legal
injunction An injunction is an equitable remedy in the form of a special court order compelling a party to do or refrain from doing certain acts. It was developed by the English courts of equity but its origins go back to Roman law and the equitable rem ...
had prevented the newspaper from naming him. Following Hain's statement, the accusations made against Green were widely published in the media. Hain is a remunerated adviser to the law firm acting for the alleged victims, and Green subsequently announced that, due to this conflict of interest, he would lodge a complaint with the House of Lords. Hain is a member of the Steering Committee of the Constitution Reform Group (CRG), a cross-party organisation chaired by Robert Gascoyne-Cecil, 7th Marquess of Salisbury, which seeks a new constitutional settlement in the UK by way of a new Act of Union. The Constitution Reform Group's new Act of Union Bill was introduced as a
Private member's bill A private member's bill is a bill (proposed law) introduced into a legislature by a legislator who is not acting on behalf of the executive branch. The designation "private member's bill" is used in most Westminster system jurisdictions, in wh ...
by Lord Lisvane in the
House of Lords The House of Lords is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Like the lower house, the House of Commons of the United Kingdom, House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminster in London, England. One of the oldest ext ...
on 9 October 2018, when it received a formal first reading. The Bill was described by the
BBC The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved into its current sta ...
as "one to watch" in that session of Parliament.


Political thought

Hain has written in support of
libertarian socialist Libertarian socialism is an anti-authoritarian and anti-capitalist political current that emphasises self-governance and workers' self-management. It is contrasted from other forms of socialism by its rejection of state ownership and from other ...
arguments,Hain, Peter (July/August 2000)
"Rediscovering our libertarian roots"
''Chartist''. Retrieved 7 January 2020.
arguing that the traditional revolutionary-reformist axis obscures an important statist-libertarian axis, such that as well as statist socialism with " Marxist–Leninists at the revolutionary end nd
social democrats Social democracy is a social, economic, and political philosophy within socialism that supports political and economic democracy and a gradualist, reformist, and democratic approach toward achieving social equality. In modern practice, s ...
at the reformist end", there is the libertarian "bottom-up vision of socialism, with anarchists at the
revolutionary A revolutionary is a person who either participates in, or advocates for, a revolution. The term ''revolutionary'' can also be used as an adjective to describe something producing a major and sudden impact on society. Definition The term—bot ...
end and
democratic socialists Democratic socialism is a left-wing economic and political philosophy that supports political democracy and some form of a socially owned economy, with a particular emphasis on economic democracy, workplace democracy, and workers' self-manage ...
uch as himselfat its
reformist Reformism is a political tendency advocating the reform of an existing system or institution – often a political or religious establishment – as opposed to its abolition and replacement via revolution. Within the socialist movement, ref ...
end". Hain has argued for "encouraging
industrial democracy Industrial democracy is an arrangement which involves workers making decisions, sharing responsibility and authority in the workplace. While in participative management organizational designs workers are listened to and take part in the deci ...
. This is one of the keys to the high productivity, investment and wealth needed for economic success, by helping generate greater team working and commitment which is such an important requirement of complex modern production systems."


Business and charity interests

The renewed campaign for construction of the Severn Barrage by Hafren Power was led by Hain in 2012, until Hafren Power wound up in 2014. In May 2013 he joined Amara Mining as non-executive director until its takeover by Perseus Mining in May 2016. On 28 October 2015, Hain was appointed to the Board of AIM listed fertiliser company, African Potash, as non-executive Director, but resigned in November 2017. He is Global and Governmental Adviser to Gordon Dadds PLC. Since 2014 he has been chair of Trustees of the Donald Woods Foundation, a charity working in the poverty stricken Transkei, Eastern Cape, near Nelson Mandela's homeland. He is also a Trustee of the Listen Charity. In 2016-17 he chaired the OR Tambo Centenary Organising Committee. From 2014 he has been Visiting Professor at the University of South Wales. In September 2016 he was appointed Visiting Professor at Witwatersrand University Business School and in September 2017 was appointed Visiting Fellow at Henley Business School.


Alternative medicine

He is a member of the Advisory Council for the College of Medicine, an
alternative medicine Alternative medicine refers to practices that aim to achieve the healing effects of conventional medicine, but that typically lack biological plausibility, testability, repeatability, or supporting evidence of effectiveness. Such practices are ...
lobbying organisation set up following the disbanding of King Charles III, then Prince of Wales's Foundation for Integrated Health in the wake of a fraud investigation. Describing its mission as "to take forward the vision of HRH the Prince of Wales" and originally called "The College of Integrated Health", several commentators, writing in ''
The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in Manchester in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'' and changed its name in 1959, followed by a move to London. Along with its sister paper, ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardi ...
'', '' The British Medical Journal'' and in the
blogosphere The blogosphere is made up of all blogs and their interconnections. The term implies that blogs exist together as a connected community (or as a collection of connected communities) or as a social networking service in which everyday authors can pu ...
, say this organisation is simply a re-branding of the Foundation. It continues to act as an alternative medicine lobby group. The college has been referred to as "Hamlet without the Prince".


Personal life

Hain lives in
Resolven Resolven () is a small village and community in Neath Port Talbot county borough, Wales. It is located in the Vale of Neath. Location The village is situated in the Vale of Neath, north east of the town of Neath, next to the A465 ''Heads o ...
in the Neath Valley. He married his first wife Patricia Western in 1975, and they have two sons. In June 2003, he married his second wife, Welsh businesswoman, Elizabeth Haywood, in Neath Register Office.


Publications

* *''Radical Liberalism and Youth Politics'', Peter Hain, 1973, Liberal Publications Department *''Radical Regeneration'' Peter Hain, 1975, Quartet Books * *''Mistaken Identity: The Wrong Face of the Law'', Peter Hain, 1976, Quartet Books * *''Policing the Police'', edited by Peter Hain, 1979, J Calder * *''Neighbourhood Participation'', Peter Hain, 1980, M. T. Smith *''Policing the Police'', edited by Peter Hain, 1980, J Calder * * * * *''Proportional Misrepresentation'', Peter Hain, 1986, Gower Publishing Ltd * * * * * *''New Designs for Europe'', Katinkya Barysch, Steven Everts, Heather Grabbe et al., introduction by Peter Hain, 2002, Centre for European Reform * *''Outside in'' (autobiography), Biteback (23 January 2012), *''Ad & Wal: values, duty, sacrifice in apartheid South Africa'', Biteback (January 2014), *''Back to the future of socialism'', Policy Press (26 January 2015), *


References


External links


Peter Hain MP
''official constituency website''
Profile
at the Welsh Labour Party *
Article archive
in ''
New Statesman ''The New Statesman'' (known from 1931 to 1964 as the ''New Statesman and Nation'') is a British political and cultural news magazine published in London. Founded as a weekly review of politics and literature on 12 April 1913, it was at first c ...
''
Confronting ISIL's Terror Threat
A Public lecture given by Peter Hain fro
USW iTunesU
* , - , - , - , - , - , - , - , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Hain, Peter 1950 births Living people Alumni of Pretoria Boys High School Alumni of Queen Mary University of London Alumni of the University of Sussex Anti-apartheid activists British agnostics British politicians convicted of crimes European democratic socialists Labour Friends of Israel Labour Co-operative life peers Leaders of the House of Commons of the United Kingdom Welsh LGBTQ rights activists Liberal Party (UK) politicians Libertarian socialists Life peers created by Elizabeth II Lords Privy Seal Members of the Privy Council of the United Kingdom People acquitted of crimes People educated at Emanuel School Politicians from Nairobi People from Northern Ireland of South African descent Secretaries of State for Northern Ireland Secretaries of State for Wales Secretaries of state for work and pensions South African emigrants to the United Kingdom UK MPs 1987–1992 UK MPs 1992–1997 UK MPs 1997–2001 UK MPs 2001–2005 UK MPs 2005–2010 UK MPs 2010–2015 Welsh Labour MPs Welsh people of South African descent Welsh socialists British republicans Recipients of the Order of the Companions of O. R. Tambo People from Resolven New Labour One Nation Labour