Colin Pickthall, Date of Birth, Place of Birth
TweetColin Pickthall
British politician
Date of Birth: 13-Sep-1944
Place of Birth: Dalton-in-Furness, England, United Kingdom
Profession: politician
Nationality: United Kingdom
Zodiac Sign: Virgo 
About Colin Pickthall
- Colin Pickthall (born 13 September 1944 in Dalton-in-Furness, Lancashire) is a politician in the United Kingdom.
- He was Labour Member of Parliament (MP) for West Lancashire.
- He was first elected to the House of Commons in 1992, and retired at the 2005 General Election. Pickthall's father was a shipyard fitter.
- He attended Ulverston Grammar School, and the University of Wales, obtaining a B.A.
- Hons.
- English Literature and History.
- He then went on to the University of Lancaster, where he obtained an M.A.
- with the thesis "The Influence of Socialism on 20th Century British Poetry".
- He became a member of the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament, and the Labour Party in 1963. He married a Canadian, Judith Ann in 1973; they have two daughters, Alisoun and Jenny.
- He initially worked as an English lecturer in the Ruffwood Comprehensive School and Edge Hill College of H.E.
- (where he became the Head of European Studies) At the 1987 General Election, Pickthall ran for Parliament in West Lancashire, but lost to a Conservative by 1353 votes.
- Later, in 1989, he won the Ormskirk seat on Lancashire County Council, by a very small margin.
- However, this was sufficient for the Labour Party to take control of the County Council by one seat.
- At the 1992 General Election, he took the West Lancashire parliamentary seat and in the following elections, in 1997 and 2001, he retained the seat with a substantial majority.
- In 1992, he became a member of the Select Committee on Agriculture, a post that he maintained until 1997.
- In 1997, he was appointed parliamentary private secretary (PPS) to Alun Michael MP, later serving Jack Straw MP. He resigned as PPS in 2000, in response to a police investigation into his election expenses.
- He was later reinstated when the police investigation concluded there had been no wrongdoing.
- In 2001, he was transferred to the Foreign Office, where he continued as Jack Straw's PPS. Pickthall is considered a leftist, frequently campaigning about animal welfare and environmental issues.
- He is opposed to hare coursing (the Waterloo Cup took place at Great Altcar in his constituency) and hunting.
- His support for the hunting ban led to pro hunt supporters leaving a dead fox on his doorstep in February 2005.
- He retired from the House of Commons at the 2005 General Election. Colin Pickthall is a supporter of Humanists UK.
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