Roger Godsiff
Roger Duncan Godsiff (born 28 June 1946) is a British Labour politician, who was the Member of Parliament for Birmingham Sparkbrook and Small Heath from 1992 to 2010, when he became Member of Parliament for Birmingham Hall Green.
Political career
Godsiff was a bank clerk for five years from 1965, and joined the Labour Party in 1966. He was a political officer from 1970 with the trade union Association of Professional, Executive, Clerical and Computer Staff (APEX) and then from 1990 with its successor the GMB Union until his election to Parliament in 1992.
Elected as a councillor in the London Borough of Lewisham in 1971, he became the Mayor of Lewisham in 1977, before quitting the council at the 1990 London Borough elections. He unsuccessfully contested Birmingham Yardley at the 1983 general election where he finished in third place behind the sitting Conservative MP David Gilroy Bevan. He was elected to the House of Commons for Birmingham Small Heath at the 1992 general election following the retirement of Denis Howell. Godsiff held Small Heath with a majority of 13,989 votes and has remained an MP since. His constituency was abolished in 1997 and aided by the retirement of Birmingham Sparkbrook MP Roy Hattersley, Godsiff was elected for the newly combined constituency of Birmingham Sparkbrook and Small Heath at the 1997 general election. At the 2001 general election, six of his seven opponents were Asian Muslims.
The Sparkbrook and Small Heath seat was abolished at the 2010 election, with its constituent parts moving into neighbouring seats. Godsiff was selected for the redrawn Birmingham Hall Green seat in 2008, which includes some of his existing constituency and wards which were formerly in the two Birmingham constituencies of Hall Green and Selly Oak.
Education
Godstiff was educated at Catford Comprehensive School in London.
