Simon Henig | |
---|---|
Born |
Simon Antony Henig June 1969 (age 48) Lancaster |
Residence | Chester-le-Street, Co Durham, England |
Education | Lancaster Royal Grammar School |
Alma mater | Corpus Christi College, Oxford University |
Spouse(s) | Katherine Henig |
Children | 2 |
Parent(s) | Stanley Henig and Ruth Henig |
Simon Antony Henig CBE (born June 1969) is a British politician, leader of Durham County Council, and since 15 April 2014, chair of the North East Combined Authority (NECA). He is a lecturer in politics at the University of Sunderland.
Simon Henig was born in June 1969, the son of the former Labour MP and Lancaster council leader Stanley Henig, and the historian Ruth Henig. Simon's grandfather, Sir Mark Henig, served as Lord Mayor of Leicester and led the English Tourist Board. He was educated at Moorside Primary School, Lancaster, Lancaster Royal Grammar School and Corpus Christi College, University of Oxford.
In 1999, Henig was first elected as a councillor in the County Durham town of Chester-le-Street.
From 2001 to 2008, Henig was the agent for North Durham CLP, and chair of the North East Regional Board. In 2007, Henig was runner-up to be the Labour candidate to replace Tony Blair as MP forSedgefield.
Since May 2008, Henig has been Leader of Durham County Council. In 2013, Henig led his local Labour Party to a substantially increased majority and a council group of 94, the largest in the UK. He is the chair of the Association of Labour Councillors. Henig is chair of the Co Durham Partnership Board, a member of Labour's National Policy Forum and Chair of the Regional Board.
Henig was appointed Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) in the 2016 New Year Honours.
Henig is a lecturer in politics at the University of Sunderland, specialising in psephology, the branch of political science which deals with the study and scientific analysis of elections.