Richard Ashcroft and then attended Winstanley College, where he met Nick McCabe. His teachers referred to him as "the cancer of the class", though one member of staff recalled him being "incredibly intelligent". Ashcroft was an avid football player, playing junior football for Wigan Athletic. For some time Ashcroft wanted to be a professional football player, idolising George Best, but as he grew older he lost interest in this, turning to music instead. Ashcroft formed The Verve (originally just Verve) in 1990 with McCabe, Jones, and Salisbury. The band signed to Hut Records and became well known for their appetite for both
Jay Ashcroft preferred legislation, which critics say suppresses turnout, is extremely rare. In defending a push for stricter photo-ID laws, Ashcroft cited one instance where a couple illegally voted, but omitted that the photo-ID laws that Ashcroft was advocating for would not have prevented the couple from voting. On July 3, 2017, Ashcroft said that he would comply with the Presidential Advisory Commission on Election Integrity's request for Missourians voting data. At the time, Missouri became one of only three states to comply with the commission. He said he would give out voters’ names, addresses, birthdates, where they voted and when. In