Junior ministerial offices 1997–1999

Minister of State for Transport
In office 27 July 1998 – 17 May 1999
Prime Minister	Tony Blair
Sec. of State	John Prescott
Preceded by	Gavin Strang
Succeeded by	Helen Liddell
Minister of State for the Armed Forces
In office 2 May 1997 – 27 July 1998
Prime Minister	Tony Blair
Sec. of State	George Robertson
Preceded by	Nicholas Soames
Succeeded by	Doug Henderson

Parliamentary offices

Member of the House of Lords Lord Temporal
Incumbent
Assumed office 16 July 2010 Life Peerage
Member of Parliament for Airdrie and Shotts
In office 5 May 2005 – 12 April 2010
Preceded by	Helen Liddell
Succeeded by	Pamela Nash
Member of Parliament for Hamilton North and Bellshill Motherwell North (1987–1997)
In office 11 June 1987 – 12 April 2005
Preceded by	James Hamilton
Succeeded by	Constituency abolished

Personal details

Born

John Reid

8 May 1947 (age 78)
Bellshill Maternity Hospital, North Lanarkshire, Scotland

Political party

Labour (since 1979)

Other political
affiliations

Communist Party of Great Britain (1972–1979)
Young Communist League (1972–1979)

Spouses

Cathie McGowan

(m. 1969; died 1998)
Carine Adler

(m. 2002)

Children

Kevin · Mark

Alma mater

The Open University
University of Stirling
(BA, PhD)

Signature

John Reid, Baron Reid of Cardowan (born 8 May 1947) is a British politician. A politician is someone who works in government. He was a member of the Labour Party. He held many important jobs in the government, called Cabinet positions. He worked for Prime Minister Tony Blair from 1999 to 2007. His last job was Home Secretary from 2006 to 2007. He was also a Member of Parliament (MP) from 1987 to 2010. An MP is someone elected to represent people in Parliament. Since 2010, he has been a member of the House of Lords.

John Reid was born in Bellshill, Scotland. He first got involved in politics in 1972. He joined the Young Communist League. Later, he joined the Labour Party. He worked as a senior researcher for them. In 1987, he was elected to the House of Commons. This is where MPs work. He served as a junior minister from 1997. Then, he was promoted to the Cabinet in 1999. He stayed in the Cabinet until Tony Blair left office in 2007.

After leaving frontline politics in 2007, he became the Chairman of Celtic Football Club. In 2010, he became a member of the House of Lords. He played a big part in campaigns against changing the UK's voting system. He also campaigned against Scottish independence.

Early Life and Education

John Reid was born in Bellshill Maternity Hospital, Scotland. His parents were working-class and Roman Catholic. His mother, Mary, worked in a factory. His father, Thomas, was a postman.

Reid went to St Patrick's Secondary School. As a teenager, he showed leadership skills. He led a student strike to protest a school rule. After school, he worked different jobs. These included construction and insurance. He saw a lot of poverty while working in insurance. This experience made him think more about politics. Soon after, he joined the Labour Party.

He later went to the Open University. He then studied at the University of Stirling. He earned a degree in history. He also got a PhD in economic history.

From 1979 to 1983, Reid worked for the Labour Party in Scotland. He was a research officer. From 1983 to 1985, he advised Labour leader Neil Kinnock. He became an MP in 1987 for Motherwell North. He later represented Hamilton North and Bellshill. Then, he represented Airdrie and Shotts.

Reid was married to Cathie McGowan from 1969 until she passed away in 1998. They had two sons, Kevin and Mark. In 2002, he married film director Carine Adler.

Political Beliefs and Early Career

At university, John Reid was a member of the Communist Party of Great Britain. He became president of the students' union. After university, he became a full-time Labour Party activist. He worked closely with Neil Kinnock.

As an advisor to Neil Kinnock, Reid pushed for changes in the Labour Party. In 1983, after a big election loss, he wrote down what he thought made Labour unpopular. He believed the party needed to update its ideas. He was elected to Parliament in 1987. Within two years, he became a spokesperson for Children. In 1990, Reid became the Defence spokesperson.

Government Roles

Minister of State for the Armed Forces

After the Labour Party won the 1997 election, Reid became the Armed Forces Minister. He worked with the Defence Secretary George Robertson. They reviewed how the UK's defence forces were organised. Reid was praised for cutting military spending. At the same time, he kept the defence leaders happy.

Minister for Transport

In 1998, Reid became the Minister of State for Transport. Prime Minister Tony Blair asked him to help finish the London Underground Jubilee Line Extension. This project was behind schedule and over budget. Reid helped ensure the line was mostly open by the year 2000. He was seen as a strong negotiator and a reliable leader.

Secretary of State for Scotland

Reid became Secretary of State for Scotland in May 1999. This gave him a full role in the cabinet.

Soon after, the Scottish Parliament was re-established. This happened after 300 years. Reid used his position to speak for the government on many issues. He was good at explaining the government's views on TV.

Secretary of State for Northern Ireland

In January 2001, Reid became Secretary of State for Northern Ireland. He was the first Roman Catholic to hold this job. He worked hard to reduce violence between different groups. He talked with all sides to find solutions.

He put pressure on the Provisional Irish Republican Army (IRA) to give up their weapons. He also removed some British Army security bases. This helped improve the security situation. By 2005, the IRA had given up all its weapons. Reid also helped change the RUC police force into the Police Service Northern Ireland.

Chairman of the Labour Party

Reid was appointed Chairman of the Labour Party in October 2002. He also became a Minister Without Portfolio. In this role, he was the government's main spokesperson. He worked to keep trade unions supportive of the government.

Reid and United States Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld answer press questions in Taormina, Sicily (9 February 2006)

Leader of the House of Commons

In March 2003, Reid became Leader of the House of Commons. This happened after Robin Cook resigned. Cook disagreed with Britain's involvement in the Iraq War. Reid held this position for only a short time.

Secretary of State for Health

Reid became Secretary of State for Health in June 2003. He wanted to improve the health service. He brought in private companies to help with operations. This helped treat more patients faster. He also encouraged volunteers to help in the health service.

He faced some criticism for his changes. But he strongly defended his plans. He believed in giving everyone more choices in healthcare.

Secretary of State for Defence

After the 2005 election, Reid became Secretary of State for Defence. He replaced Geoff Hoon.

He sent 3,300 troops to Helmand province, Afghanistan. He said their job was to protect reconstruction efforts. He hoped they would not need to fire a single shot. However, a lot of fighting happened in the first year. Reid also spoke about how international laws should change. He thought they needed to deal with new threats like terrorism.

Reid answers questions at a Pentagon briefing on 7 November 2005.

Home Secretary

Reid was appointed Home Secretary in May 2006. This job is in charge of policing, immigration, and security. He said the Home Office needed big changes. He called it "not fit for purpose." He wanted to make the public feel safer.

He planned many reforms. These included more prison places. He also wanted to reduce staff and improve immigration services. He called for an independent group to set limits on immigrants.

In August 2006, Reid announced a new warning system. This system would tell the public about terror threats. He said the threat level was "Severe." On August 10, he announced the highest security alert. This was after police stopped a plot to blow up planes. He said the plot could have caused many deaths. He also said that many other plots had been stopped.

Leaving Government

In May 2007, John Reid announced he would leave the Cabinet. This was when Tony Blair stepped down as Prime Minister. He said he would support Gordon Brown. Reid left his job as Home Secretary on 27 June 2007. He was replaced by Jacqui Smith.

In September 2007, he said he would not run for MP again. He retired from Parliament in 2010.

Key Votes in Parliament

As an MP, John Reid voted on several important issues.

He voted for a law to introduce compulsory identity cards.
He supported the idea of NHS foundation trusts.
He voted for replacing the Trident nuclear system.
He voted against most changes to the House of Lords. He only supported a fully appointed House of Lords.
In March 2003, he voted for the war in Iraq.
In June 2007, he voted against an independent inquiry into the Iraq War.

Life After Cabinet

On 10 May 2010, John Reid said that David Cameron should become Prime Minister. This was because the Conservative Party won the most votes.

Later that month, he was made a life peer. This means he became a member of the House of Lords for life. He was given the title Baron Reid of Cardowan on 16 July 2010.

In April 2011, he campaigned against changes to the UK's voting system. He worked with Conservative Prime Minister David Cameron. They argued that the alternative vote system was unfair. The public voted against the change.

In 2013, Reid said that the Labour government made mistakes with immigration. In June 2014, he appeared in an advert. He encouraged people to vote against Scottish independence. The vote resulted in Scotland remaining part of the UK.

Other Activities

Football

In September 2007, John Reid became Chairman of Celtic Football Club. He is a lifelong supporter of the club. He said it was a great honour.

University of London

In 2008, Reid became an honorary Professor at University College London. He also became chairman of a new group there. This group was called the Institute of Security and Resilience Studies.

G4S

In December 2008, G4S announced that Reid would work for them. He took on a role as a group consultant.

Top Level Group

Reid is a member of the Top Level Group of UK Parliamentarians. This group works for nuclear disarmament.

Awards

In June 2009, John Reid received an honorary degree from Stirling University. This was for his work in public affairs.

Images for kids

John Reid's signature

John Reid, Baron Reid of Cardowan facts for kids

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