Neil Gordon Kinnock

Neil Gordon Kinnock , 1942-, British politician, b. Tredegar, Wales. The son of a miner, he studied at University College, Cardiff. In 1970 he was elected to Parliament as a Labour party member. After Labour's defeat in the 1979 elections, he became party education spokesperson. He became party leader after Labour's overwhelming defeat in the 1983 elections. A gifted orator, Kinnock persuaded the party to abandon some of its traditional left-wing positions, such as unilateral disarmament and widespread nationalization, and adopt more moderate policies. In 1992, the Conservatives again defeated Labour in a national election in which the electorate's questioning of Kinnock's ability to lead the nation was a major factor. After this loss, he resigned the party leadership. He remained in Parliament until 1995, when he was appointed to the European Union's European Commission ; he served as its vice president from 1999 to 2004. He was created Baron Kinnock of Bedwellty in 2005.

Bibliography: See R. Harris, The Making of Neil Kinnock (1984).

Kinnock, Neil Gordon (1942– ) British Labour politician and Leader of the Opposition (1983–92). Elected to Parliament in 1970, in 1978 he became a member of the National Executive Committee of the Labour Party, and after his party lost office in 1979, he was an effective opposition spokesman for Education. In 1983 he was elected Leader of his Party and thus led the Opposition to Thatcher's second administration. Following Labour's electoral defeats in 1987 and 1992 Kinnock resigned. In 1994 he became a European Commissioner.