Thomas Docherty (politician)

Thomas Docherty (born 28 January 1975) is a British Labour Party politician who served as Member of Parliament (MP) for Dunfermline and West Fife from 2010 until 2015.

Thomas Docherty
Docherty in 2010
Shadow Deputy Leader of the House of Commons
In office
15 April 2014 – 30 March 2015
LeaderEd Miliband
Preceded byAngela Smith
Succeeded byMelanie Onn
Member of Parliament
for Dunfermline and West Fife
In office
6 May 2010 – 30 March 2015
Preceded byWillie Rennie
Succeeded byDouglas Chapman
Personal details
Born (1975-01-28) 28 January 1975
NationalityBritish
Political partyLabour
RelationsKatie Docherty (wife)

Early life

Before becoming an MP, Docherty was an Account Director with a communications consultancy, having previously worked for Network Rail, BNFL and as a research assistant to Scott Barrie, the former Scottish Labour MSP for Dunfermline West.[1]

Parliamentary career

Docherty was elected as the Member of Parliament for Dunfermline and West Fife in the May 2010 general election with a 5,470 majority.[2] In 2011, he was a member of the special Select Committee set up to scrutinise the Bill that became the Armed Forces Act 2011.[3] He was also a member of the Public Bill Committee for the Defence Reform Act 2014.[4] Docherty proposed a Private Member's Bill aimed at banning discrimination against members of the Armed Forces and their families in 2014. The proposal was backed by shadow defence secretary Vernon Coaker but failed to progress[5] Ed Miliband later suggested that a Labour government might introduce legislation along similar lines[6]

Docherty also sat on the Administration Committee, Procedure Committee and the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Committee at various times during the 2010-15 Parliament[7] He was a shadow minister with responsibility for environment, food and rural affairs between 2013 and 2014, and in 2014 was appointed Shadow Deputy Leader of the House of Commons.[7]

Having previously worked in political lobbying, he proposed a private member's bill in early 2013 which would have required lobbyists to sign a public register and code of conduct[8] He criticised the government's own plans when they were unveiled later that year for excluding law firms.[9] After the government's Transparency of Lobbying, Non-party Campaigning and Trade Union Administration Bill passed, Docherty introduced a private member's bill aiming at repealing it.[10]

In January 2015, Docherty wrote to Culture Secretary Sajid Javid on Holocaust Memorial Day, suggesting a debate over banning Mein Kampf by Adolf Hitler. Docherty advocated for a national debate to put "limits on the freedom of expression." He said he didn't necessarily think it should be banned but thought it was important that such a debate took place.[11]

Docherty was defeated at the 2015 general election, losing to Douglas Chapman, the Scottish National Party (SNP) candidate.[12]

Personal life

Docherty has lived in Dunfermline with his wife Katie and their children and been a member of Dunfermline Round Table and supporter of Dunfermline Athletic F.C.[1] In January 2017, after Jamie Reed announced his resignation as MP for Copeland, Docherty put his name forward to stand in the following by-election.[13] He is a Roman Catholic.[14]

References
  1. "Biography". Thomas Docherty. Retrieved 8 April 2015.
  2. "Election 2010: Jim Murphy's joy as Scotland says no to David Cameron". Daily Record. 8 May 2010. Retrieved 6 September 2011.
  3. "Select Committee on the Armed Forces Bill". parliament.uk. Retrieved 20 September 2013.
  4. "House of Commons Public Bill Committee on the Defence Reform Bill 2013-14". Parliament.uk. Retrieved 17 September 2013.
  5. "Forces discrimination bill backed by shadow minister". BBC. 24 January 2014. Retrieved 8 April 2015.
  6. Merrick, Jane (9 March 2014). "Labour promises anti-abuse law for armed forces". Independent. Retrieved 8 April 2015.
  7. "Thomas Docherty". Parliament UK. Retrieved 8 April 2015.
  8. Jowit, Juliette (1 February 2013). "Lobbyists' code of conduct bill to be debated for first time in parliament". Guardian. Retrieved 8 April 2015.
  9. Hyde, John (16 September 2013). "MPs attack lobbying bill". Law Gazette. Retrieved 8 April 2015.
  10. Ricketts, Andy (9 July 2014). "Labour MP introduces bill to repeal the lobbying act". Third Sector. Retrieved 8 April 2015.
  11. "UK should consider ban on Mein Kampf, says Scottish Labour MP". The Guardian. 26 January 2015. Retrieved 28 January 2015.
  12. "Dunfermline & West Fife parliamentary constituency - Election 2019". BBC News. Retrieved 11 July 2020.
  13. Payne, Adam (9 January 2017). "A Labour heavyweight has put himself forward for the crucial Copeland by-election". Business Insider. Retrieved 24 June 2020.
  14. Profile, catholicherald.co.uk; accessed 8 May 2015.
Parliament of the United Kingdom
Preceded by
Willie Rennie		 Member of Parliament for Dunfermline and West Fife
2010–2015		 Succeeded by
Douglas Chapman
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