Ian Lavery Ian Lavery Ian Lavery (born 6 January 1963) is a British Labour Party politician and former trade union leader from Northumberland who has been the Member of Parliament (MP) for Wansbeck since the 2010 general election. Born and raised in Ashington, Lavery began work in the construction industry after leaving school before becoming a mining apprentice. Noted for being the sole apprentice to refuse to work during the miners' strike of 1984-1985, he gradually rose up the ranks of the National Union of Mineworkers (NUM) and was chosen to succeed Arthur Scargill as NUM President in 2002. Once elected to
Denis Murphy (British politician) President of the National Union of Mineworkers. Denis Murphy (British politician) Denis Murphy (born 2 November 1948) is a Labour Party politician in the United Kingdom who was the Member of Parliament (MP) for Wansbeck from 1997 until 2010. He attended the (Roman Catholic) St Cuthbert's Grammar School on "Gretna Road" in Newcastle upon Tyne. He then attended Northumberland College in Ashington. He had previously led Wansbeck District Council. He is a member of the NUM and was the only member of the 1997 parliamentary intake to be backed by that union. Denis Murphy formerly worked down the mines himself.