The Right Honourable The Lord Murphy of Torfaen KCMCO KSG PC |
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Murphy (centre) with David Manning and George W. Bush at the White House for St. Patrick's Day (2005)
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Secretary of State for Wales | |
In office 24 January 2008 – 5 June 2009 |
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Prime Minister | Gordon Brown |
Preceded by | Peter Hain |
Succeeded by | Peter Hain |
In office 28 July 1999 – 24 October 2002 |
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Prime Minister | Tony Blair |
Preceded by | Alun Michael |
Succeeded by | Peter Hain |
Chairperson of the Intelligence and Security Committee | |
In office 6 May 2005 – 24 January 2008 |
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Preceded by | Ann Taylor |
Succeeded by | Margaret Beckett |
Secretary of State for Northern Ireland | |
In office 24 October 2002 – 6 May 2005 |
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Prime Minister | Tony Blair |
Preceded by | John Reid |
Succeeded by | Peter Hain |
Member of Parliament for Torfaen |
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In office 11 June 1987 – 30 March 2015 |
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Preceded by | Leo Abse |
Succeeded by | Nick Thomas-Symonds |
Personal details | |
Born |
Usk, Monmouthshire, Wales, UK |
25 November 1948
Political party | Labour |
Alma mater | Oriel College, Oxford |
Religion | Roman Catholicism |
Website | Constituency website |
Paul Peter Murphy, Baron Murphy of Torfaen KCMCO, KSG, PC (born 25 November 1948) is a British Labour Party politician who was the Member of Parliament (MP) for Torfaen from 1987 to 2015, and served in the Cabinet as both Northern Irish and Welsh Secretary. He previously held the position of Minister of State for Northern Ireland from February 1997 until 1999, when he was promoted to Secretary of State for Wales. He was nominated for a life peerage in the 2015 Dissolution Honours.
Paul Peter Murphy was born to Ronald and Marjorie (née Gough) Murphy. He has a younger brother, Neil. Murphy's father, Ronald, was a miner of Irish descent. The family was devoutly Catholic. His mother, Marjorie (née Gough), was English, and her family were businesspeople.
Paul Murphy attended St Francis Roman Catholic School, Abersychan and West Monmouth School, Pontypool. He later attended Oriel College, Oxford to study History. He was a management trainee with the CWS, before becoming a lecturer in Government and History at Ebbw Vale College of Further Education, now part of Coleg Gwent. He has never married. Murphy once said in an interview "I have so many books, there's only enough room for me".