Neil Gerrard

Neil Gerrard
Neil Gerrard
Member of Parliament ; for Walthamstow
	In office; 9 April 1992 – 12 April 2010
Preceded by	Hugo Summerson
Succeeded by	Stella Creasy
Personal details
Born	3 July 1942 (age 81); Farnworth, England, UK
Political party	Labour
Spouse	Marion Fitzgerald (m. 1968; div. 1983)
Alma mater	Wadham College, Oxford; London South Bank University

Neil Francis Gerrard (born 3 July 1942) is a British Labour Party politician who was the Member of Parliament (MP) for Walthamstow from 1992 until 2010.

Early life

Gerrard was born in Farnworth, England, and educated at Manchester Grammar School and Wadham College, Oxford where he was awarded a BA degree in natural science in 1964. He later studied at the Chelsea College of Science and Technology where he received a MEd in Education in 1973. He received a Diploma in Professional Studies in Education (DPSE) from the Polytechnic of the South Bank in 1983.

From 1965 he taught at the

Hackney College, where he remained until his election to parliament

He was elected as a councillor in the London Borough of Waltham Forest in 1973; he was the leader of the Labour group from 1983, and the leader of the Council from 1986 until he left the council in 1990.

He was selected to contest the Chingford constituency at the 1979 general election but was defeated by the sitting Conservative MP Norman Tebbit by 12,383 votes. He was elected to the House of Commons at the 1992 general election for Walthamstow, when he unseated the one-term Tory Hugo Summerson by 3,022 votes. He received 45.7% of the vote, compared to his Conservative opponent who received 37.2% of the vote.

He made his maiden speech on 12 May 1992.^[1]

In Parliament he served on the

benefits cuts introduced by the Secretary of State for Social Security Harriet Harman. He served on several select committees and was a member of the administration committee since the 2005 general election

He is a left-winger within the Labour Party, and was a member of the

Gerrard married Marian Fitzgerald in 1968; the couple had two sons, but they divorced in 1983. He has lived in

Walthamstow Dog Track

.

Parliament of the United Kingdom
Preceded by Hugo Summerson	Member of Parliament for Walthamstow 1992 – 2010	Succeeded by Stella Creasy