Jim was first elected to Ards Borough Council in 1985 and served as Mayor in 1991/92. He was elected as a member of the Northern Ireland Forum for Political Dialogue in 1996 until it completed its work in 1998. He was then subsequently elected to the Northern Ireland Assembly representing Strangford. Within the NI Assembly Jim served on both the Public Accounts Committee and Agriculture Committee. He was re-elected in both 2003 and 2007, stepping down from the NI Assembly in 2010. Jim was elected to Parliament at the General Election of 2010 where he received nearly 15,000 votes, with the next ..read more

Tom Blenkinsop was born  in Middlesbrough, brought-up in Marton and graduated from Teesside University with a BSc in Philosophy, Politics and Economics, and the University of Warwick with an MA in Continental philosophy. Tom joined  the Army Reserve in 2017 in the Royal Military Police in which he still serves today, and was an MP whilst training to be an RMP, something we explore in this episode. Tom worked as a constituency researcher for Ashok Kumar, Labour MP for Middlesbrough South and East Cleveland, from 2002 to 2008. He became a campaign manager for the Community Trade Unio ..read more

About this week's guest: Dr. Sebastian Gorka is a Talk Show Host on the Salem Radio Network Platform, and began his show AMERICA FIRST on New Years Day, 2019.  With parents who had lived as children under fascism and then escaped Communist Hungary, Sebastian was raised to love freedom. And his love of talk-radio developed early. As a child he would listen late into the night to the shows of the London Broadcasting Company with a small transistor radio under his pillow. It was with this special family background, and growing up under the influence of Margaret Thatcher, that Sebastian learn ..read more

About this week's guest: Dr. Sebastian Gorka is a Talk Show Host on the Salem Radio Network Platform, and began his show AMERICA FIRST on New Years Day, 2019.  With parents who had lived as children under fascism and then escaped Communist Hungary, Sebastian was raised to love freedom. And his love of talk-radio developed early. As a child he would listen late into the night to the shows of the London Broadcasting Company with a small transistor radio under his pillow. It was with this special family background, and growing up under the influence of Margaret Thatcher, that Sebastian learn ..read more

The Rt Hon Dr Andrew Murrison MP is a Minister at the MOD and we were excited to record this episode in the heart of our nation's Defence HQ at MOD Main Building.  We talk about the Invictus Games, Ukraine, his service in the Royal Navy as a doctor, both regular and reserve, his family, Defence and the various ministerial roles he has served in. We also share a special message this Christmas time to all those from the Armed Forces serving over the break. Big thanks to the MOD for their help in delivery this episode. About the Minister Dr Andrew Murrison was appointed Parliamentary Un ..read more

Royston Smith GM MP is an RAF veteran, former council leader and George Medal recipient and our latest guest on Veterans In Politics Podcast. He has been the Member of Parliament for Southampton Itchen since 2015 and is the former Leader of Southampton City Council, having served as the Councillor for Harefield Ward – where he was born – from 2000 until 2016. He has worked in both the private and public sectors, which offers useful experience to his approach to the key issues that face Southampton most effectively. His career spans four decades – starting by serving in the Royal Air Force as ..read more

Veterans In Politics- Season 6, Episode 4- Heston Russell- Australian Special Forces veteran on purpose, his sexuality and righting wrongs. In our second episode with an Australian veteran (Heston makes a dig about this fact!) we sit down with one of our most fascinating guests yet!  We talk veterans, purpose, sexuality and masculinity and much, much more in this must listen!   And here's a little about Heston: Following his graduation from the Royal Military College of Duntroon, Heston was posted as a platoon leader with the 2nd Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment (2 RAR), where h ..read more

Veterans In Politics- Season 5, Episode 7 with Former Councillor Louise Harbour Louise Harbour served in the RAF Engineering Branch as one of the few women at that time.  She grew up in the North West, and has returned home to serve her community.  Sadly, since recording this episode, Louise lost her seat on the council in the local elections, and with it, her position as Deputy Leader.  But we are certain she will be back!   In fact, she was Knowsley Council’s first ever female deputy leader and joined the council’s Cabinet for the first time, taking on the new Adult Soci ..read more

Veterans In Politics- Season 5, Episode 5 with Councillor Alex Lee We sit down this week with Alex Lee, a former soldier of both the Princess of Wales's Royal Regiment (PWRR) and the Royal Signals.  Joining the army shortly before 9/11 Alex's career was highly operational.  From Kosovo to Iraq to Afghanistan.   In this episode, he bravely shares his experience of mental health and PTSD following an incident during a mortar attack. Since leaving the military, Alex has enjoyed a successful civilian life and is now an elected councillor having failed at his first go.  His p ..read more

'All Political careers end in failure' Enoch Powell MP Said by probably one of our most controversial figures, what is undisputed is the accuracy of this statement.  From Neville Chamberlain, to Churchill, to Boris, and even Powell himself, failure is a constant in politics. This season 5 of Veterans In Politics, we explore failure AND success, proving that failure can often make you resilient. We have 8 amazing guests, beginning with Sir Jeffrey Donaldson MP, Leader of the DUP and covering off no less than 3 political parties. You do not want to miss this, and dont forget to hit subs ..read more