{{Short description|British Independent politician}} {{Use dmy dates|date=October 2019}} {{Use British English|date=October 2019}} {{Infobox officeholder | honorific_prefix = | name = Stephen Hepburn | honorific_suffix = | image = Official portrait of Mr Stephen Hepburn crop 2.jpg | caption = Official portrait, 2017 | alt = | office = Member of Parliament <br /> for Jarrow | parliament = | predecessor = Donald Dixon | successor = Kate Osborne | term_start = 1 May 1997 | term_end = 6 November 2019 | birth_date = {{Birth date and age|1959|12|6|df=yes}} | birth_place = Jarrow, County Durham, England, UK | death_date = | death_place = | spouse = | party = Independent (October 2019-present) | other_party = Labour (until October 2019) | alma_mater = Newcastle University | website = {{URL|http://stephenhepburn-mp.org.uk/}} }}
'''Stephen Hepburn''' (born 6 December 1959) is a British politician, who was the Member of Parliament (MP) for Jarrow from 1997 to 2019. Hepburn was a member of the Labour Party until 7 October 2019, when he was suspended from the party following an accusation of sexual harassment. He then sat as an independent and was barred by the party from standing as a Labour candidate.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/election-2019-50319044|title=General Election 2019: Labour bans three former MPs from standing again|publisher=BBC News|date=6 November 2019}}</ref>
==Early life== Stephen Hepburn was born on 6 December 1959 to Peter and Margaret Hepburn<ref>{{cite book|url=https://www.ukwhoswho.com/view/10.1093/ww/9780199540884.001.0001/ww-9780199540884-e-19885|title=Hepburn, Stephen|publisher=UK Who's Who|doi=10.1093/ww/9780199540884.013.U19885 |isbn=978-0-19-954088-4 }}</ref> in Jarrow, South Tyneside. He was educated at Springfield School, Jarrow (now Jarrow School) and the University of Newcastle upon Tyne where he studied politics. He worked as a personal assistant to Donald Dixon, his predecessor as MP for Jarrow.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.thejournal.co.uk/news/north-east-news/jarrow-election-candidate-profiles-4459399|publisher=The Journal|date=12 April 2010|title=Jarrow election candidate profiles}}</ref>
==Early career== He was elected as a councillor to South Tyneside Borough Council in 1985, becoming the deputy leader for seven years in 1990, and he remained a councillor whilst serving as an MP. Hepburn served as the chairman of Tyne and Wear Pensions for eight years from 1989. In the 1990s, he was fined £75 for an assault on fellow councillor Iain Malcolm.<ref>{{cite news|last=McSmith|first=Andy|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/1329831/Blair-aide-heads-for-safe-seat-as-David-Clark-quits.html|title=Blair aide heads for safe seat as David Clark quits|newspaper=The Daily Telegraph|date=11 May 2001|accessdate=11 September 2016}}</ref>
==Parliamentary career== He was elected to the British House of Commons for Jarrow following Dixon's retirement at the 1997 general election.<ref>{{Cite news | url=https://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/politics/2118266.stm |title = Stephen Hepburn|date = 22 October 2002}}</ref> Hepburn won the seat with a majority of 21,933. He made his maiden speech on 21 May 1997, in which he mentioned Ellen Wilkinson and the 1936 Jarrow March.<ref>{{cite web|author=Department of the Official Report (Hansard), House of Commons, Westminster |url=https://publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm199798/cmhansrd/vo970521/debtext/70521-07.htm#70521-07_spnew0|title=House of Commons Hansard Debates for 21 May 1997 (pt 7)|website=Publications.parliament.uk|date=21 May 1997|accessdate=11 September 2016}}</ref>
He served on both the administration and the defence select committees for four years from 1997.{{citation needed|date=June 2017}} He was on the Accommodation and Works Committee from 2003 until the 2005 general election, following which he served on the Northern Ireland select committee. He also served as chairman of the All Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) on shipbuilding and ship repair, and was secretary of the APPG on football.{{citation needed|date=June 2017}}
In 2003, Hepburn was one of three Labour MPs to vote against repealing Section 28, along with Joe Benton and David Crausby.<ref>https://www.publicwhip.org.uk/division.php?date=2003-03-10&number=109</ref> Unlike Benton and Crausby, however, Hepburn voted in favour of the Marriage (Same Sex Couples) Act 2013, legalising same-sex marriage in England and Wales.
On 7 October 2019, Hepburn was suspended from the Labour Party pending an investigation into alleged sexual harassment of a female party member in 2005. He denied the allegation.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-tyne-49962434|title=Stephen Hepburn: Labour MP suspended amid sexual harassment inquiry|publisher=BBC News|date=7 October 2019}}</ref>
==References== {{Reflist}}
==External links== *{{UK MP links | parliament = mr-stephen-hepburn/520 | publicwhip = Stephen_hepburn | theywork = Stephen_hepburn}}
{{s-start}} {{s-par|uk}} {{s-bef|before=Don Dixon}} {{s-ttl|title=Member of Parliament for Jarrow|years=1997–2019}} {{s-aft|after=Kate Osborne}} {{s-end}} {{Authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hepburn, Stephen}} Category:1959 births Category:Living people Category:People from Jarrow Category:Politicians from Tyne and Wear Category:Labour Party (UK) MPs for English constituencies Category:English politicians convicted of crimes Category:English people convicted of assault Category:Alumni of Newcastle University Category:UK MPs 1997–2001 Category:UK MPs 2001–2005 Category:UK MPs 2005–2010 Category:UK MPs 2010–2015 Category:UK MPs 2015–2017 Category:UK MPs 2017–2019 Category:Independent members of the House of Commons of the United Kingdom