There is one politician in Birmingham whom people either love or hate. She is well known and has left the Labour Party on more than one occasion because she has had the presence of mind to stand up for what she believes is right.
Whatever your view of Clare Short, it would be wrong to assume that she is just another politician who toes the party line and says what people want to hear. She does not practise that kind of politics — and many would say that is refreshing.
Clare Short is an Independent Member of Parliament for Birmingham Ladywood. She was born in Birmingham to Irish Catholic parents from Northern Ireland and has long supported peace talks with Sinn Féin, even at the height of IRA violence.
She has always been a controversial figure, campaigning against topless photographs in national newspapers while also calling for the legalisation of cannabis.
From humble beginnings as a private secretary to a Conservative minister, she came to believe she could do better. In 1983 she became the Labour MP for Ladywood, the area where she grew up.
Clare Short is one of the few MPs to have resigned on principle, objecting to the 1990 Gulf War. In 2003 she again opposed Britain going to war with Iraq without a United Nations mandate.
She later wrote the book An Honourable Deception?, published in 2004, which examines New Labour, Iraq, and the misuse of power. It provides a personal account of her relationships with fellow ministers, Tony Blair, and the lead-up to the invasion of Iraq.
In 2006, Short stood down as Labour representative and announced that she would sit as an Independent MP. In more recent years she has spoken at rallies in Birmingham supporting the people of Gaza against Israeli persecution.
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