Born in Salford, Sutcliffe was educated in Bradford at Cardinal Hinsley Grammar School, but left aged sixteen, and then worked as a salesman and for a printers company, becoming a deputy branch secretary of the print workers trade union SOGAT. He was a member of Bradford City Council from 1982 to 1994, serving as the council's leader from 1992 to 1994.
When Bradford South's Labour MP Bob Cryer was killed in a car crash in April 1994, Sutcliffe was selected as the Labour candidate for the resulting by-election. He won the by-election with 55% of the vote,[1] and held the seat until he stood down in 2015.
In Parliament, he served on the Public Accounts Committee from 1996 to 1998, and was a member of the Unopposed Bills Panel from 1997 to 1999.
As Minister for Sport at the time of the Beijing Olympics he entered a wager with his Australian counterpart Kate Ellis that Great Britain would finish above Australia in the final medal table, with each Minister promising to wear the opposite nation's colours to a sporting event if they lose.[2] Sutcliffe won the bet, with Britain finishing fourth and Australia sixth.
Sutcliffe supported Andy Burnham in the 2010 Labour Party leadership election and acted as Burnham's campaign manager. From 2010 until 2011, Sutcliffe served as Shadow Minister for Immigration.[3][4] In May 2014, Sutcliffe announced that he would stand down at the following general election.[5] He is a member of Unite the Union.
References
^Webster, Philip (10 June 1994). "Tories face crisis of confidence". The Times. No. 64977. p. 1. ISSN0140-0460.
