Chris Ruane
{{short description|Welsh Labour politician}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=November 2016}}
{{Use British English|date=November 2016}}
{{Infobox officeholder
| image = Official portrait of Chris Ruane crop 2.jpg
| caption = Official portrait, 2017
| honorific-prefix =
| name = Chris Ruane
| honorific-suffix =
| office = Shadow Minister for Wales
| leader = Jeremy Corbyn
| termstart = 3 July 2017
| termend = 6 November 2019
| predecessor = Gerald Jones
| successor = Gerald Jones (2020)
| office1 = Member of Parliament
for Vale of Clwyd
| predecessor1 = James Davies
| successor1 = James Davies
| term_start1 = 8 June 2017
| term_end1 = 6 November 2019
| predecessor2 = Constituency established
| successor2 = James Davies
| term_start2 = 1 May 1997
| term_end2 = 30 March 2015
| birth_date = {{Birth date and age|1958|07|18|df=yes}}
| birth_place = Rhyl, Flintshire, Wales
| nationality = British
| spouse = Gill Roberts
| party = Labour
| relations =
| children = 2
| residence =
| alma_mater = University College Wales, Aberystwyth
University of Liverpool
}}
Christopher Shaun Ruane (born 18 July 1958) is a Welsh Labour politician who served as the Member of Parliament (MP) for the Vale of Clwyd from 1997 to 2015 and 2017 to 2019.{{cite web|url=http://www.parliament.uk/biographies/commons/chris-ruane/534|title=Chris Ruane MP|website=UK Parliament}}
Early life
Ruane attended Ysgol Mair Roman Catholic primary school in Rhyl. He then attended the Blessed Edward Jones Catholic High School on Cefndy Road, also in Rhyl.{{citation needed|date=January 2022}}
At the University of Wales College, Aberystwyth, he gained a BSc in Economics in 1979. From the University of Liverpool he gained a PGCE in 1980. He was a town councillor from 1988 and the Chairman of West Clwyd NUT region.{{citation needed|date=January 2022}}
He was a primary school teacher from 1982 to 1997, and a deputy head from 1991 to 1997.{{Who's Who | title=Ruane, Christopher Shaun| id = U33364| volume = 2018 | edition = February 2018 online | access-date = 14 February 2018 }}
Parliamentary career
{{BLP sources section|date=January 2022}}
Ruane contested Clwyd North West in 1992.
He was Parliamentary Private Secretary to Peter Hain from 2003 until his resignation in March 2007 in protest against the decision to replace Trident.{{Cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/wales/6453843.stm|title=MP Ruane steps down over Trident|date=15 March 2007|via=news.bbc.co.uk}} In 2003, Ruane voted in favour of the Iraq War.
He lost his seat to Conservative James Davies in the 2015 General Election. However, he successfully stood for re-election in the Vale of Clwyd constituency in the 2017 election.{{Cite news|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-wales-politics-39744752|title=General Election: Ex-Labour Clwyd MPs bid for Commons return|work=BBC News|date=28 April 2017}} before losing it again.
Ruane was opposed to Brexit prior to the 2016 referendum and supported a second referendum.{{Cite web|url=https://www.theneweuropean.co.uk/brexit-news/peoples-vote-indicative-votes-43918|title=How did my MP vote on a second referendum?|first=Jonathon|last=Read|date=27 March 2019|website=The New European|access-date=29 July 2021|archive-date=29 July 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210729232938/https://www.theneweuropean.co.uk/brexit-news/peoples-vote-indicative-votes-43918|url-status=dead}} From 2017 until the 2019 General Election, Ruane served as Labour's Shadow Wales Minister. In his role, he regularly campaigned for the need for greater transparency around the Government's proposed replacement of European Union funding post-Brexit, on the basis that Wales had historically been a net recipient of funding.
As a Parliamentarian, Ruane tabled written parliamentary questions extensively and has regularly been one of the most prolific users of the procedure amongst Members of Parliament. He used written parliamentary questions to highlight the fall in the number of registered voters from 2001 onwards.
In 2013, he worked with Lord Layard and the Oxford Mindfulness Centre to establish mindfulness practice in the UK Parliament. Since then 260 UK parliamentarians and 460 members of their staff have received mindfulness training. In his period out of office, 2015–17, working with the Mindfulness Initiative (MI), he developed links with politicians and mindfulness advocates in 39 legislatures around the world and has helped to establish mindfulness practice in 13 of those legislatures. In 2018, he re-established the All Party Parliamentary Group on Wellbeing Economics in conjunction with former Chief Secretary to the Treasury Lord Gus O'Donnell and Lord Layard and has been a consistent campaigner for embedding wellbeing considerations in public policy formulation and decision making.
In 2019, he again lost his seat to Conservative James Davies in the General Election in December of that year.
Expenses
In October 2012, the Commons Speaker, John Bercow, blocked the release of data showing which MPs were renting their homes in London to other MPs for financial gain. However, a study of parliamentary records was published in The Daily Telegraph.{{Cite web|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/mps-expenses/9619022/Expenses-scandal-27-MPs-let-one-home-and-claim-for-another.html|title=Expenses scandal: 27 MPs let one home and claim for another|website=www.telegraph.co.uk|date=18 October 2012 }} The study showed that 27 MPS, including Ruane{{Cite web|url=https://www.dailypost.co.uk/news/north-wales-news/|title=North Wales News - Latest news, pictures, video - North Wales Live|website=www.dailypost.co.uk}} receive rental income from their homes in London while simultaneously claiming rental income from the taxpayer to live at another residence. Ruane owns a flat in London which he bought through the use of parliamentary expenses. Ruane claimed £1,906 a month for his London flat. He also owns a flat about three minutes' walk away. He said: "I have acted completely within the rules."{{cite web|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/mps-expenses/10161087/MPs-use-children-to-claim-more-expenses.html|title=MPs use children to claim more expenses|first=By Holly Watt, Claire Newell, Charles Young and Ben|last=Bryant|date=4 July 2013 }}
Between January and June 2018, Ruane claimed £9,760.{{Cite web|url=https://www.dailypost.co.uk/news/north-wales-news/guto-bebb-wales-most-expensive-15394274|title=Guto Bebb is Wales' most expensive MP|first1=Joel|last1=Leaver|first2=Michael|last2=Goodier|date=9 November 2018|website=North Wales Live}} making him the lowest claiming of MPs in North Wales.
Personal life
Ruane is married to Gill Roberts and has two children.{{cite web|last=Commons|first=House of|title=House of Commons - The Register of Members' Financial Interests - Part 2: Part 2|url=https://publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm/cmregmem/110124/part2.htm}}
References
{{reflist}}
External links
- [https://web.archive.org/web/20110627085916/http://www.chrisruane.org/ Chris Ruane MP] official constituency website
- [https://moderngov.denbighshire.gov.uk/mgUserInfo.aspx?UID=180&LLL=0 Chris Ruane MP] Welsh Labour Party profile
- {{UK MP links | parliament = chris-ruane/534 | hansard = mr-chris-ruane | hansardcurr = 488 | guardian = 4556/chris-ruane | publicwhip = Chris_Ruane | theywork = chris_ruane | record = Christopher-Ruane/Vale-of-Clwyd/511 | bbc = 25363.stm | journalisted = }}
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{{s-par|uk}}
{{s-new | constituency}}
{{s-ttl
| title = Member of Parliament for Vale of Clwyd
}}
{{s-aft|after=James Davies}}
{{s-bef|before=James Davies}}
{{s-ttl
| title = Member of Parliament for Vale of Clwyd
| years = 2017–present
}}
{{s-aft|after=James Davies}}
{{s-end}}
{{Authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ruane, Chris}}
Category:People educated at Blessed Edward Jones RC High School
Category:Welsh people of Irish descent
Category:Alumni of the University of Liverpool