Stephen Hepburn

Stephen Hepburn (born 6 December 1959) is a British Labour politician, who has been the Member of Parliament for Jarrow since 1997.

Early life and family
Stephen Hepburn was born in Jarrow, Tyneside, the son of a shipyard worker, and educated at Springfield School, Jarrow (now Jarrow School) and the University of Newcastle upon Tyne where he was awarded a Bachelor of Arts degree. He worked as a personal assistant to the MP for Jarrow Donald Dixon from 1979 until he succeeded Dixon as the local MP.

Career
He was elected as a councillor to the South Tyneside Borough Council in 1985, becoming the deputy leader for seven years in 1990, and he has remained a councillor whilst serving as an MP. He served as the chairman of the Tyne and Wear Pensions for eight years from 1989. In the 1990s Hepburn was fined £75 for an assault on fellow councillor Iain Malcolm.

Parliamentary life
He was elected to the British House of Commons for Jarrow following Dixon's retirement at the 1997 General Election. Hepburn won the seat with a majority of 21,933 and has remained the MP there since. He made his maiden speech on 21 May 1997, in which he mentioned Ellen Wilkinson and the 1936 Jarrow March.

In parliament he served on both the administration and the defence select committees for four years from 1997. He joined the Accommodation and Works Committee in 2003 until the 2005 General Election, since when he has served on the Northern Ireland select committee. He also serves as the chairman of the all party group on shipbuilding and ship repair, and is secretary of the all party group on football.