Des Turner

{{Short description|British politician (born 1939)}} {{More footnotes needed |date=November 2022 }} {{Use dmy dates |date=February 2018 }} {{Use British English |date=February 2018 }} {{Infobox officeholder | image =  | honorific_prefix = | name = Des Turner | honorific_suffix = | office = Member of Parliament <br /> for Brighton Kemptown | parliament = | majority = | predecessor = Andrew Bowden | successor = Simon Kirby | term_start = 2 May 1997 | term_end = 12 April 2010 | birth_date = {{Birth date and age|1939|07|17|df=yes}} | birth_place = Southampton, Hampshire, UK | death_date = | death_place = | spouse = Lynn Rogers | party = Labour | relations = | children = | alma_mater = Imperial College London, University College, London | occupation = | profession = | signature = | website = }} '''Desmond Stanley Turner''' (born 17 July 1939) is a British Labour Party politician who was the Member of Parliament (MP) for Brighton Kemptown from 1997 to 2010.

==Early life== He was born in Southampton<ref name="Ask Aristotle biography">{{cite news |url=http://politics.guardian.co.uk/person/biography/0,9312,-5265,00.html |title=Ask Aristotle: Dr Des Turner: biography |work=Guardian Unlimited Politics |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20010725193016/http://politics.guardian.co.uk/person/biography/0,9312,-5265,00.html |date= |archive-date=2001-07-25 |access-date=2024-06-14 }}</ref> and educated at Luton Grammar School<ref name="Ask Aristotle biography"/> (now known as Luton Sixth Form College) on Bradgers Hill Road in Luton. At Imperial College London,<ref name="Ask Aristotle biography"/> he gained a BSc and MSc. At University College, London,<ref name="Ask Aristotle biography"/> he gained a PhD, researching Biochemistry. At Brighton Polytechnic, he got a PGCE, and subsequently became a teacher. He also became a partner in an independent brewery. He has been a lecturer at the University of Surrey and the University of Sussex.<ref name="Ask Aristotle biography"/>

Turner was a Councillor on East Sussex County Council 1985–1997, and on Brighton Borough Council 1994–1996 and its successor Brighton and Hove City Council 1996–97.

==Parliamentary career== He contested Mid-Sussex in 1979.

In 2001, Turner put forward a private member's bill in an attempt to better regulate home heating and energy efficiency in rented houses of multiple occupancy,<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.ukace.org/pubs/nletters/nl39.htm |title=New Bill will deliver warm, safe energy-saving homes |work=The Fifth Fuel |publisher=Association for the Conservation of Energy |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070625010400/http://www.ukace.org/pubs/nletters/nl39.htm |date=Summer 2001 |archive-date=2007-06-25 }}</ref> but he had to withdraw the bill in July 2002 after government opposition to an amendment passed calling for energy savings of 30% by 2010.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.theargus.co.uk/news/6755933.mps-conservation-bill-scrapped/ |title=MP's conservation Bill scrapped |work=The Argus |date=2002-07-18 |access-date=2024-06-14 }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.insidehousing.co.uk/news/mps-fight-on-after-double-bill-failure-4324 |title=MPs fight on after double bill failure |work=Inside Housing |date=2002-07-21 |access-date=2024-06-14 }}</ref>

During the passage of the Equality Act 2006, Turner led an early day motion<ref>{{cite web |url=http://edmi.parliament.uk/EDMi/EDMDetails.aspx?EDMID=29000&SESSION=875 |title=EDM 710:Equality Bill and provision of goods and services |publisher=Parliament of the United Kingdom |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060514000226/http://edmi.parliament.uk/EDMi/EDMDetails.aspx?EDMID=29000&SESSION=875 |date=2005-10-01 |archive-date=2006-05-14 |access-date=2024-06-14 }}</ref> which, with Waheed Alli's amendment in the House of Lords,<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.theyworkforyou.com/lords/?id=2005-11-09c.620.9#g627.3 |title=Equality Bill [HL]: 9 Nov 2005 |publisher=TheyWorkForYou |date=2005-11-09 |access-date=2024-06-14 }}</ref> led the government to extend the bill's anti-discrimination protections to LGBTQ+ people<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.theyworkforyou.com/debates/?id=2005-11-21b.1236.4#g1273.0 |title=Equality Bill [Lords] — Order for Second Reading |publisher=TheyWorkForYou |date=2005-11-21 |access-date=2024-06-14 }}</ref> by providing the statutory power to issue the Equality Act (Sexual Orientation) Regulations 2007 and the Equality Act (Sexual Orientation) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2006.

Turner stood down at the 2010 general election, with the local Labour Party selecting Simon Burgess as their candidate to succeed him.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.labouronline.org/wibs/165220/news?PageId=13b40802-4350-9a54-3515-8ed5b6d81c0a |title=Simon Burgess chosen to fight Kemptown |publisher=Brighton Kemptown & Peacehaven Labour Party |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110727012129/http://iwc2.labouronline.org/165220/13b40802-4350-9a54-3515-8ed5b6d81c0a |date=2010 |archive-date=2011-07-27 |access-date=24 November 2022 }}</ref> Burgess did not win the seat, with Simon Kirby holding the seat until 2017.

==Personal life== His second wife is Lynn Rogers, whom he married in September 1997 in Brighton. He has a daughter from his first marriage<ref name="Ask Aristotle biography"/> to Lynette Gwyn-Jones, the former Leader of Brighton and Hove Council.

== References == {{Reflist}}

==External links== {{UK MP links |parliament=23 |publicwhip=Desmond_Turner |theywork=10608 |hansard=dr-des-turner }} * {{cite news |url=http://politics.guardian.co.uk/person/0,9290,-5265,00.html |work=Guardian Unlimited Politics |title=Ask Aristotle: Desmond Turner MP |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20010525104622/http://politics.guardian.co.uk/person/0,9290,-5265,00.html |url-status=dead |date= |archive-date=2001-05-25 |access-date=2024-06-14 }} * {{cite news |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/shared/mpdb/html/95.stm |title=Dr Des Turner |publisher=BBC Politics |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080528144321/http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/shared/mpdb/html/95.stm |date=2006-03-30 |archive-date=28 May 2008 }}

{{s-start}} {{s-par|uk}} {{s-bef |before=Sir Andrew Bowden }} {{s-ttl |title=Member of Parliament for Brighton Kemptown |years=1997–2010 }} {{s-aft |after=Simon Kirby }} {{s-end}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Turner, Des}} Category:1939 births Category:Living people Category:Labour Party (UK) MPs for English constituencies Category:Members of East Sussex County Council Category:UK MPs 1997–2001 Category:UK MPs 2001–2005 Category:UK MPs 2005–2010 Category:Academics of the University of Surrey Category:Academics of the University of Sussex Category:Alumni of Imperial College London Category:Alumni of University College London Category:Alumni of the University of Brighton Category:Politicians from Brighton and Hove