Peter Kilfoyle

Labour MP Liverpool Walton

Date of birth

9 June 1946

Political profile

Peter Kilfoyle has long been a well-known figure in Liverpool; he was the most dedicated and ferocious of Militant's opponents throughout the 1980s, and was renowned for his organising skills as a full-time Labour official.

He won a 1991 by-election against a Militant candidate to take the late Eric Heffer's seat.

Mr Kilfoyle established a reputation as an ebullient and passionate debater, as harsh on his own party's failings as the governments.

He entered the government in 1997 as minister for Public Service; he was a possible candidate for Chief Whip when Nick Brown was moved to agriculture, but instead went to the Cabinet Office and the Ministry of Defence.

In 2000, he resigned from the government, saying that it had ignored its traditional voters in favour of the middle class, and that he would prefer to work from the backbenches as a "friendly critic".

Mr Kilfoyle regards the leadership as acting in an autocratic manner, taking the party away from its members.

He has also organised opposition within the party to American proposals for National Missile Defence.

Contact

Commons office: 020 7219 2591
Constituency office: 0151 284 4150