Bill Esterson

Bill Esterson is the Labour MP for Sefton Central and the shadow minister for international trade. He trained in accountancy, becoming director at a training consultancy before beginning his political career as Labour councillor on the Rochester-upon-Medway council, and its successor Medway Council. He was first elected to the House of Commons at the 2010 general election, and his majority has drastically increased since then (from 3,862 to 15,122). Since entering parliament, he has sat on several select committees including the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Committee, the Education Committee and the Housing, Communities and Local Government Committee. Esterson became shadow minister for small business following Jeremy Corbyn’s election as leader in 2015, and that year proposed a bill that would mandate labelling of alcoholic drinks to include the potential dangers of drinking during pregnancy. Esterson became shadow minister for international trade in 2016 upon the establishment of the Department for International Trade. After his re-election in 2019, he backed Keir Starmer for the Labour leadership. Recently, Esterson has campaigned against fracking (particularly in Merseyside) and against a return to austerity and a potential public sector pay freeze.