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Daniel Zeichner

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Daniel Zeichner
MP
Official portrait, 2017
Minister of State for Food Security and Rural Affairs
Incumbent
Assumed office
8 July 2024
Prime MinisterKeir Starmer
Preceded byMark Spencer
Member of Parliament
for Cambridge
Incumbent
Assumed office
7 May 2015
Preceded byJulian Huppert
Majority11,078 (26.3%)
Member of South Norfolk District Council
for Long Row
In office
4 May 1995 – 1 May 2003
Preceded byD. Mitchell
Succeeded byKeith Weeks
Personal details
Born
Daniel Stephen Zeichner

(1956-11-09) 9 November 1956 (age 68)
Beckenham, Kent, England
Political partyLabour
Alma materKing's College, Cambridge
WebsiteOfficial website

Daniel Stephen Zeichner (born 9 November 1956) is a British Labour Party politician who has served as Member of Parliament (MP) for Cambridge since 2015.[1] He has served as Minister of State for Food Security and Rural Affairs since July 2024.[2][3]

Early life and career

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Daniel Zeichner was born on 9 November 1956 in Beckenham. His father was an Austrian political refugee whose family fled Vienna in 1938, and his mother was the descendant of agricultural workers from Cambridgeshire.[4] As a teenager, Zeichner was a middle-distance runner.[5]

He attended Trinity School of John Whitgift, a former grammar school, turned private school. After school, Zeichner went to the University of Cambridge, studying history at King's College. He joined the Labour Party in 1979.[5]

Zeichner's first job after graduation was as a trainee computer programmer, working for Cambridgeshire County Council at the register office next to Shire Hall on Castle Hill, Cambridge. He later worked in IT for a number of companies, including Norwich Union in Norfolk, Philips in East Chesterton and Perkins Engines in Peterborough.[5]

In 1992 Zeichner was hired by Norwich South MP John Garrett, working as press officer and parliamentary assistant for Garrett between 1992 and 1997.[6][7] He subsequently worked for Garrett's successor, Charles Clarke, until 1999.[5] In 2002 Zeichner began working for the public sector trade union UNISON as a political officer, a post he held until he was elected to Parliament.

Political career

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Zeichner has served several terms on Labour's National Policy Forum, the Labour Party's top policy-making body. He was first elected to represent the East of England on the body shortly after it was first established by Tony Blair as part of the "Partnership in Power" process.[5]

He was elected as a councillor in Burston, Norfolk, in 1995, a position in which he served until 2003.[8] During this time Zeichner became leader of the Labour group on South Norfolk District Council.

At the 1997 general election, Zeichner stood as the Labour Party candidate in Mid Norfolk, coming second with 37.3% of the vote behind the Conservative candidate Keith Simpson.[9] He stood again in Mid Norfolk at the 2001 general election, again coming second with 36.1% of the vote behind Keith Simpson.[10] At the 2005 general election, Zeichner again came second in Mid Norfolk, with 29.2% of the vote.[11]

In 2006, Zeichner described his politics as "socialist in a modern context".[12]

In the 2010 Labour leadership election, Zeichner supported Ed Miliband.

Parliamentary career

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At the 2010 general election, Zeichner stood in Cambridge, coming third with 24.3% of the vote behind the Liberal Democrat candidate Julian Huppert and the Conservative candidate Nick Hillman.[13]

Zeichner was elected to Parliament as MP for Cambridge at the 2015 general election, with 36% of the vote and a majority of 599.[14][15] He was appointed as a Shadow Minister for Transport in September 2015, responsible for buses, bikes and walking.[16]

In the 2015 Labour leadership election he supported Yvette Cooper.

In July 2016 Zeichner stated his opposition to the renewal of Trident.[17]

At the snap 2017 general election, Zeichner was re-elected as MP for Cambridge with an increased vote share of 51.9% and an increased majority of 12,661.[18][19]

In June 2017 Zeichner resigned as a Shadow Transport Minister in order to vote in favour of an amendment to the government's 2017 Queen's Speech supporting the UK's membership of the single market, in defiance of the party whip. The amendment, which was defeated by 322 votes to 101, was tabled by former Shadow Cabinet Minister Chuka Umunna. In justifying his decision Zeichner explained: "My position on Europe has always been clear. I am a passionate pro-European and a straightforward politician. ... I promised the people of Cambridge I would stick to my principles and I would do right by our city – that means voting with my conscience and doing all I can to oppose the Tories' extreme Brexit which would, in my opinion, damage our economy, our security and our society as a whole".[20]

Zeichner was again re-elected at the 2019 general election, with a decreased vote share of 48% and a decreased majority of 9,639.[21][22]

In January 2020, Zeichner was appointed as a Shadow Farming and Agriculture Minister in the Shadow Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) team.[23][24] He supported Keir Starmer in the 2020 leadership election.[25] Zeichner remained in the Shadow DEFRA team following Keir Starmer's first reshuffle as Labour leader, but gained the fisheries brief from Ruth Jones MP, as Shadow Food, Farming and Fisheries Minister.[26]

In June 2020, Parliament's Standards and Privileges Committee censured Zeichner for misusing public funds relating to stationery and pre-paid House of Commons envelopes during the 2019 general election campaign.[27]

On 30 August 2021, Keir Starmer announced that Zeichner would become acting Shadow Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs in place of Luke Pollard until the 2021 Labour Party Conference to allow Pollard to spend more time with his community after the Plymouth shooting.[28]

At the 2024 general election, Zeichner was again re-elected, with a decreased vote share of 46.6% and an increased majority of 11,078.[29]

Personal life

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Zeichner met Barbara "Budge" Ziolkowska, his partner, when he was a student at King's College, Cambridge, in 1976. They live in Comberton, a village six miles (ten kilometres) southwest of the city of Cambridge.[5]

References

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  1. ^ "Cambridge general election 2015 results: Daniel Zeichner wins the seat from Julian Huppert". Cambridge News. 8 May 2015. Archived from the original on 9 May 2015.
  2. ^ "Ministerial Appointments: July 2024". GOV.UK. Retrieved 8 July 2024.
  3. ^ "Minister of State (Minister for Food Security and Rural Affairs) - GOV.UK". www.gov.uk. Retrieved 24 July 2024.
  4. ^ Gabriel Rath (6 June 2017). ""Es reicht mit dem Brexit": Wahlkampf in Cambridge". Die Presse, Vienna. Retrieved 14 December 2019.
  5. ^ a b c d e f Johnson, Richard; Walsh, Ashley (2012). Camaraderie: One hundred years of the Cambridge Labour Party, 1912–2012. Cambridge: Cambridge Labour Party. pp. 240–3. ISBN 978-0-86117-498-0.
  6. ^ "Daniel Zeichner". Vote2001: Candidates. BBC. Retrieved 14 December 2019.
  7. ^ Matt Green (compiler) (4 June 2017). "Daniel Zeichner, The Labour party". Meet the Candidates. Tab Media Ltd., London. Retrieved 14 December 2019.
  8. ^ "South Norfolk Council Election Results 1973-2011" (PDF). Archived (PDF) from the original on 15 May 2021.
  9. ^ "Election Data 1997". Electoral Calculus. Archived from the original on 15 October 2011. Retrieved 18 October 2015.
  10. ^ "Election Data 2001". Electoral Calculus. Archived from the original on 15 October 2011. Retrieved 18 October 2015.
  11. ^ "Election Data 2005". Electoral Calculus. Archived from the original on 15 October 2011. Retrieved 18 October 2015.
  12. ^ Capel, Grace (27 October 2006). "The lighter touch of Cantab politics". Varsity.
  13. ^ "Cambridge – Statement of Persons Nominated" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 5 March 2012.
  14. ^ "Election Data 2015". Electoral Calculus. Archived from the original on 17 October 2015. Retrieved 17 October 2015.
  15. ^ "Cambridge News – News, Sport and Events from around Cambridge". www.cambridge-news.co.uk. Archived from the original on 14 April 2015.
  16. ^ "Cambridge News – News, Sport and Events from around Cambridge". www.cambridge-news.co.uk. Archived from the original on 25 November 2015. Retrieved 18 September 2015.
  17. ^ Rampen, Julia (19 July 2016). "How Labour MPs voted on Trident". New Statesman. Retrieved 6 August 2020.
  18. ^ "Cambridge Parliamentary constituency". BBC. 9 June 2017. Retrieved 12 June 2017.
  19. ^ "Cambridge - 2017 Election Results". Parliament.uk. Archived from the original on 10 November 2019. Retrieved 10 November 2019.
  20. ^ Pilgrim, Tom (29 June 2017). "Cambridge MP Daniel Zeichner resigns as Shadow Minister". Cambridgeshire Live. Retrieved 30 June 2017.
  21. ^ "Cambridge parliamentary constituency - Election 2019 - BBC News". 13 December 2019.
  22. ^ "General Election 2019 - Cambridge constituency result". cambridge.gov.uk. Archived from the original on 13 December 2019. Retrieved 13 December 2019.
  23. ^ "Luke announces new Shadow DEFRA Team". Luke Pollard MP. Retrieved 13 January 2021.
  24. ^ "Cambridge MP Daniel Zeichner appointed to the shadow front bench". 15 January 2020.
  25. ^ Brackley, Paul (9 January 2020). "Cambridge MP Daniel Zeichner backs Sir Keir Starmer to be the next Labour leader". Cambridge Independent. Retrieved 6 August 2020.
  26. ^ Rodgers, Sienna (9 April 2020). "Shadow ministers appointed as Starmer completes frontbench". LabourList. Retrieved 13 January 2021.
  27. ^ "Committee on Standards Publishes Report on Daniel Zeichner" (PDF). parliament.uk. 10 June 2020. Retrieved 15 June 2020.
  28. ^ Starmer, Keir (30 August 2021). "Today I've agreed a request from @LukePollard to take a step back from his shadow environment role for the next month so he can support his community after the shootings in Keyham. He will return for #Lab21. While away, @DanielZeichner will look after Labour's Defra work". Twitter. Archived from the original on 30 August 2021. Retrieved 30 August 2021.
  29. ^ "Election results for Cambridge Borough UK Parliamentary Election - Thursday, 4th July, 2024". cambridge.gov.uk. 4 July 2024. Retrieved 7 July 2024.
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