Malcolm Wicks

The Right Honourable Malcolm Wicks MP
Member of Parliament for Croydon North Croydon North West (1992-1997)
Incumbent
Assumed office 9 April 1992
Preceded by	Humfrey Malins
Majority	16,481 (31.9%)
Personal details
Born	1 July 1947 (1947-07-01) (age 64) Hatfield, Hertfordshire, England
Nationality	British
Political party	Labour
Spouse(s)	Margaret Wicks
Residence	Croydon, London, England
Alma mater	University of North London, London School of Economics

Malcolm Hunt Wicks (born 1 July 1947) is a British Labour Party politician who has been the Member of Parliament (MP) for Croydon North since 1997. He was MP for Croydon North West from 1992 to 1997.

Early life and education

Wicks was born in Hatfield, Hertfordshire to Arthur Wicks, a Labour member of the London County Council and later Greater London Council. He was educated at the independent Elizabeth College, Guernsey; North West London Polytechnic and the London School of Economics gaining a BSc in Sociology.

Early career

From 1968-70, he was a research fellow of the Department of Social Administration at the University of York, then a research worker at the Centre for Environmental Studies from 1970-2. Wicks worked in the Urban Deprivation Unit (abolished in 1978) of the Home Office as a social policy analyst from 1974–77, and was a lecturer in Social Administration at Brunel University from 1970-74. From 1977-8, he was a lecturer in Social Policy at the Civil Service College (now called the National School of Government) in Ascot, then research director and secretary of the Study Commission on the Family from 1978-83. He was later Director of the Family Policy Studies Centre from 1983-92. He has been the author and co-author of many publications, including a work on hypothermia, Old and Cold: hypothermia and social policy and A Future for All: Do we need the Welfare State? His keen concern about fuel poverty led to him to act as a Trustee of the National Energy Foundation (1988–94).

He was involved in politics in Croydon, chairing his local Constituency Labour Party and standing for election to Croydon Council before his election to parliament.

Parliamentary career

He was first elected in 1992 for Croydon North West after having previously contested the seat unsuccessfully in 1987.

Wicks' Private Member's Bill reached the statute books, becoming the Carers (Recognition & Services) Act 1995, recognising the needs of family carers.

He was Chairman of the Education Select Committee from 1998 until his July 1999 appointment as Minister for Lifelong Learning in the Department for Education and Employment. In July 2001 he moved to the Department for Work and Pensions, where he spent four years, first as Parliamentary Under Secretary of State, and then as Minister of State, for Pensions. In May 2005, he was appointed as Minister for Energy at the Department of Trade and Industry in the post-election Cabinet reshuffle. In a mini-reshuffle on 10 November 2006, following the retirement of Lord Sainsbury, Wicks was appointed as Minister of State for Science and Innovation in the same department.

In Gordon Brown's first reshuffle on 28 June 2007, Wicks was moved to the Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform, which replaced the Department of Trade and Industry, to resume his old role as Minister for Energy. He is a vice-president of Carers UK and the Alzheimer's Society. Wicks stood down from the government in October 2008, accepting an appointment to the Privy Council and becoming the Prime Minister's special representative on international energy issues.

Wicks was re-elected as the MP for Croydon North on 6 May 2010 with an increased majority of 16,483.

He married Margaret Baron in 1968 and they have a son and two daughters.

Current Political Issues

As Minister for Energy, Malcolm Wicks was not averse to political controversy. Conservationists have strongly objected to the UK government allowing oil and gas prospecting in the Moray Firth. This they claim has put precarious populations of cetaceans at risk. A coalition of conservation groups including WWF, The Wildlife Trust, the Marine Conservation Society and the RSPB have written to Malcolm Wicks "urging him to abandon the plans," which they claim could have "potentially lethal impacts" on various species including the most northerly population of Bottlenose Dolphins in the world.^[1][2]

The government claims that in deciding to proceed with a 25th offshore licensing round BERR excluded a number of blocks on the basis of recommendations of previous Strategic Environmental Assessments (SEA). Those in the process of Appropriate Assessment consultation, have also not been offered.

The SEA recommended that the blocks in or overlapping with the boundaries of the Moray Firth and Cardigan Bay Special Areas of Conservation should also be withheld from licensing for the present whilst the further assessments initiated following the 24th Licensing Round applications are concluded. The government therefore excluded 11 blocks in the Cardigan bay area and 10 in the Moray Firth.

Further, any licences awarded in the 25th Round will contain conditions to protect environmental interests and those of other sea users. Activities carried out under the licences will be subject to a range of legislation designed to protect the marine environment, including legislation that implements the Environmental Impact Assessment Directive and the Habitats and Wild Birds Directives in respect of offshore oil and gas activities.

References

1. ^ Edwards, Rob (18 November 2007) "Famous Moray dolphins at risk as Whitehall fails to block oil and gas works". Glasgow. The Sunday Herald.
2. ^ "Moray Firth Dolphins: Factfile" Moray Firth Partnership. Retrieved 24 November 2007.

External links

• Malcolm Wicks official site
• Guardian Unlimited Politics - Ask Aristotle: Malcolm Wicks MP
• TheyWorkForYou.com - Malcolm Wicks MP
• Hansard 1803–2005: contributions in Parliament by Malcolm Wicks
• Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform - Malcolm Wicks, Minister of State for Energy Biography
• BBC Politics

Articles by Malcolm Wicks

• Tackling Two Challenges: Climate Change and Secure Supply in the United Kingdom - World Energy Magazine Vol. 9 No. 2
• One on one interview with Malcom Wicks and World Energy Television
• "Doctor Who can help save science, says minister" 8 January 2007
• Obituary for Arthur Wicks, by Malcolm Wicks 5 December 2006

Parliament of the United Kingdom
Preceded by Humfrey Malins	Member of Parliament for Croydon North West 1992–1997	Constituency abolished
New constituency	Member of Parliament for Croydon North 1997–present	Incumbent

Persondata
Name	Wicks, Malcolm
Alternative names
Short description
Date of birth	1 July 1947
Place of birth	Hatfield, Hertfordshire, England
Date of death
Place of death