Jeremy Beecham, Baron Beecham

Jeremy Hugh Beecham, Baron Beecham DL (born 14 November 1944)[2] is a British Labour politician and a senior figure in English local government. He was leader of Newcastle City Council and the first Chairman of the Local Government Association. He was the elected Chairman of the National Executive Committee of the Labour Party (October 2005 – September 2006).

The Right Honourable
The Lord Beecham
DL
Leader of the Labour Party on Newcastle City Council
In office
1977–1994
Preceded byTom Collins
Succeeded byTony Flynn
Chairman of the Local Government Association
In office
1997–2010
Preceded byOffice formed
Newcastle City Councillor
for Benwell and Scotswood
Assumed office
11 May 1967[1]
Personal details
Born
Jeremy Hugh Beecham

(1944-11-14) 14 November 1944
Political partyLabour

Beecham was educated at the Royal Grammar School, Newcastle upon Tyne, and University College, Oxford (1962–1965), where he obtained a first class honours degree in law. He became a solicitor. He joined the Labour Party in 1959, and was elected a councillor for Benwell, Newcastle, in the Newcastle City Council elections of 11 May 1967.

He stood for Parliament without success in Tynemouth in 1970. He chaired the Social Services Committee on the council from 1973 to 1977 and was Leader of Newcastle from 1977 to 1994, chairing the Finance Committee from 1979 to 1984.

In 1991, Beecham became Chairman of the Association of Metropolitan Authorities (AMA). When the AMA merged with the Association of District Councils and the Association of County Councils on 1 April 1997 to form the Local Government Association, he became the first chairman of the LGA. He is, as of 2006, the LGA vice-chairman and continues to chair the LGA Labour Group.He was the President of the British Urban Regeneration Association (now folded).[3]

Beecham belongs to Labour Friends of Israel.[4]

Beecham has been a member of many boards and committees in Newcastle and North East England, and advising government. He has been a member of the Labour Party National Executive Committee since 1998 and was its chairman. He became a Knight Bachelor in the 1994 Birthday Honours[5] having the honour conferred by HM The Queen on 22 November 1994.[6]

He was made a Freeman of the City of Newcastle in 1995. He is Deputy Lieutenant for the County of Tyne and Wear and continues to represent Benwell and Scotswood on the City Council. He has been a council member at charity Common Purpose since 1989. He is Jewish, and a board member of the New Israel Fund in the UK.[7]

On 20 July 2010, Beecham was created a life peer as Baron Beecham, of Benwell and Newcastle upon Tyne in the County of Tyne and Wear,[8] and was introduced in the House of Lords on 28 July 2010.[9] He sat on the Labour benches until his retirement in 2021.

References
  1. "Lord Beecham marks 50 years in politics - but has no plans to retire". 11 May 2017. Retrieved 21 June 2021.
  2. http://myparliament.info/member/4181
  3. "BURA- Meet the board". Archived from the original on 19 April 2012.
  4. "LFI Supporters in Parliament". Labour Friends of Israel. 23 March 2018.
  5. "No. 53696". The London Gazette (Supplement). 10 June 1994. p. 1.
  6. "No. 53910". The London Gazette. 10 January 1995. p. 307.
  7. Jennifer Lipman, Peerage for New Israel Fund board member, Jewish Chronicle, 1 June 2010
  8. "No. 59496". The London Gazette. 23 July 2010. p. 14094.
  9. House of Lords Minute of Proceedings, 28 July 2010.
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