After time spent working in Denmark, Doughty returned to the UK, where he became an advisor to Labour MP Douglas Alexander.[11] He then worked in various roles for Oxfam International, before becoming the head of Oxfam Cymru in 2011.[12]
Doughty and his father had been long-time family friends of Cardiff South and Penarth Labour MP Alun Michael. Michael said, "Stephen Doughty’s father and I first met 40 years ago when I was a youth worker and he was involved with an Army youth group. I have known Stephen since he was a baby."[13] After Michael's intervention Doughty's name was included in the final short list along with four other candidates, Kate Groucutt, Karen Wilkie, Nick Thomas-Symonds and Jeremy Miles. Doughty was selected in a vote by constituency Labour Party members on 14 July 2012.[14]
Doughty was re-elected as MP for Cardiff South and Penarth at the 2015 general election with a decreased vote share of 42.8% and an increased majority of 7,453.[18][19][20]
In October 2015, he was moved to a position as a Shadow Foreign Office Minister with responsibility for Africa, South Asia and International Organisations, under Shadow Foreign SecretaryHilary Benn.[23]
In December 2015 Doughty supported air strikes against Syria, a decision for which he was criticised by many of his constituents and political activists via social media. He called the police to deal with the "personal threats" he had received.[24]
At the snap 2017 general election, Doughty was again re-elected, with an increased vote share of 59.5% and an increased majority of 14,864.[26][27][28] He was again re-elected at the 2019 general election, with a decreased vote share of 54.1% and a decreased majority of 12,737.[29][30][31]
In May 2021, Doughty apologised for asking a constituent to provide him with diazepam, a Class C-controlled drug, without a prescription for anxiety ahead of a flight in 2019.[34]South Wales Police did not take further action because they determined that the allegation he possessed a controlled substance "cannot be proved in these circumstances". The Parliamentary Commissioner for Standards ruled in October 2021 that he had not broken the MPs' code of conduct.[35] The constituent who was cautioned for supplying the diazepam complained to the Independent Office for Police Conduct, who asked South Wales Police to re-examine the case in May 2022.[36] They announced in December 2022 that they stood by their original decision.[35]
In January 2016, Doughty announced that he had resigned as a shadow Foreign Minister on the live Daily Politics programme, saying that he supported the sacked Pat McFadden's views on terrorism and accusing members of the Labour leadership team of lying about the reasons for McFadden's sacking.[38] According to McFadden, he was sacked for comments in the debate on the Paris bombings which condemned "the view that sees terrorist acts as always being a response or a reaction to what we in the west do".[39]
Doughty's appearance on Daily Politics became contentious after it emerged that Laura Kuenssberg, the BBC's political editor, had arranged for Doughty to make his public announcement on the programme just before Prime Minister's Questions. According to Labour's spokesman, it was an "unacceptable breach of the BBC's role and statutory obligations. By the BBC's own account, BBC journalists and presenters proposed and secured the resignation of a shadow minister on air ... apparently to ensure maximum news and political impact."[40] The Labour Party's Director of Communications, Seumas Milne, made a formal complaint to the BBC.[41] The BBC's head of live political programmes, Robbie Gibb, wrote to Milne: "Neither the programme production team, nor Laura, played any part in his decision to resign. As you know it is a long standing tradition that political programmes on the BBC, along with all other news outlets, seek to break stories. It is true that we seek to make maximum impact with our journalism which is entirely consistent with the BBC’s editorial guidelines and values."[41][42] Doughty said on Twitter that he had resigned "shortly before I did the interview so there was not time for spin doctors to start smearing me".[41]
Personal life
Doughty lives in the Splott area of Cardiff. He has been a Cub and Scout leader since 2004, and is a Cardiff Cityseason ticket holder.[43] He features in the Pinc List of leading Welsh LGBT figures.[44] Doughty is a Christian.[45] He came out as gay to family and friends in his late 20s.[46]
Notes
^2015-2016 Africa, South Asia and International Organisations 2020-2021 Africa and International Development 2021-2024 Europe, North America and the Overseas Territories
^"Cardiff South and Penarth result". Election results for Cardiff South and Penarth. City of Cardiff Council. 2 October 2014. Retrieved 18 January 2020.
