The Right Honourable Dame Diana Johnson | |
---|---|
Minister of State for Policing, Fire and Crime Prevention | |
Assumed office 8 July 2024 | |
Prime Minister | Keir Starmer |
Preceded by | Chris Philp |
Chair of the Home Affairs Select Committee | |
In office 15 December 2021 –30 May 2024 | |
Preceded by | Tim Loughton (acting) |
Succeeded by | Karen Bradley |
Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Schools | |
In office 5 June 2009 –11 May 2010 | |
Prime Minister | Gordon Brown |
Preceded by | Sarah McCarthy-Fry |
Succeeded by | The Lord Hill of Oareford |
Assistant Government Whip | |
In office 28 June 2007 –9 June 2009 | |
Leader | Gordon Brown |
Preceded by | Ian Cawsey |
Succeeded by | Mary Creagh |
Member of Parliament for Kingston upon Hull North and Cottingham Kingston upon Hull North (2005–2024) | |
Assumed office 5 May 2005 | |
Preceded by | Kevin McNamara |
Majority | 10,679 (27.9%) |
Member of the London Assembly for the Labour Party | |
In office 1 March 2003 –10 June 2004 | |
Preceded by | Trevor Phillips |
Succeeded by | Murad Qureshi |
Personal details | |
Born | Diana Ruth Johnson 25 July 1966 Northwich,Cheshire,England |
Political party | Labour |
Spouse | Kevin Morton [1] |
Alma mater | Queen Mary University of London |
Occupation | Barrister |
Website | Official website |
Dame Diana Ruth Johnson DBE (born 25 July 1966) is a British politician who has served as the Member of Parliament (MP) for Kingston upon Hull North since the 2005 general election. A member of the Labour Party,she has served as Minister of State for Policing,Fire and Crime Prevention since July 2024. [2] [3]
During the Brown ministry,she served as Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Schools in the Department for Children,Schools and Families,as well as being an Assistant Government Whip.
Johnson was born in Northwich,Cheshire. After returning from wartime service in the Navy her father,Eric Johnson,founded the Eric Johnson electrical engineering company in Little Leigh near Northwich,Cheshire (now continued by his son). She passed the Eleven plus and attended the Northwich County Grammar School for Girls (later the County High School Leftwich). At sixth form level she studied at Sir John Deane's College from 1982 to 1984 where she studied History,English and Economics. [4]
She gained an LLB in Law from Queen Mary University of London. [5] She became a barrister in 1991. From 1999 to 2005,she was a Barrister in Law at Paddington Law Centre.
Johnson was a councillor in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets from 1994 to 2002,serving as Chair of Social services. She became a member of the London Assembly on 1 March 2003 after the resignation of Trevor Phillips who became chair of the Commission for Racial Equality,having been next on the list of London-wide members at the 2000 election. She did not stand for re-election in 2004.
She stood unsuccessfully in Brentwood and Ongar at the 2001 general election. [6]
At the 2005 general election,she was elected Labour Member of Parliament for the Kingston upon Hull North constituency,succeeding veteran Labour MP Kevin McNamara. She is Hull's first female MP.
In November 2005 Johnson was appointed as a Parliamentary Private Secretary to the Minister of State for Pensions Reform,Stephen Timms. In 2007 she left this role to become an assistant Government Whip. She took on the additional role of Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Schools in the reshuffle of June 2009.
During the United Kingdom parliamentary expenses scandal it was revealed that Johnson had claimed £987 in architects fees for her second home,which she voluntarily repaid,and had a £563 claim for crockery rejected as "excessive" [7]
In the 2010 general election Johnson polled 39.2% of the vote and held onto the Hull North constituency for Labour with her majority reduced to 641 votes. [8]
In 2014,Johnson proposed a Bill under the Ten Minute Rule that would require sex and relationships education,including discussions around issues such as consent,to be made a compulsory part of the National Curriculum [9]
Johnson was appointed in September 2015 by Jeremy Corbyn,shortly after he became Labour party leader,as a shadow minister in the Foreign and Commonwealth team. [10] In late June 2016,along with colleagues,she resigned as a shadow minister,unhappy at Corbyn's leadership following the 'leave' vote in the European membership referendum. [11] She supported Owen Smith in the 2016 Labour leadership election. [12]
She is co-chair of the APPG on Haemophilia and Contaminated Blood, [13] campaigned on the Contaminated Blood Scandal and,in November 2018,received the Political Studies Association's 'Backbencher of the Year' award in recognition of her efforts. [14]
In September 2019,Johnson became the first Labour MP to face a full reselection process by her local party after members voted that she should face a challenge. [15] On 25 October 2019,Johnson's local party voted by 292 votes to 101 to reselect her as the candidate for the next election. [16] She was re-elected in the 2019 general election. [17]
On 9 December 2020,Johnson introduced a Ten Minute Rule bill that would introduce the Nordic model approach to prostitution,which would criminalise those paying for sex and criminalise websites which advertise prostitution. The bill was strongly criticised and opposed by sex workers including the English Collective of Prostitutes group,women's rights organisations,trade unions,Amnesty International and thousands of individuals,who argued that this legislation would push the industry underground and put sex workers in danger. [18] [19]
In September 2020,Johnson was appointed a vice-chair of Labour Friends of Israel. [20]
In November 2021,Johnson in the Jewish News wrote an article supporting a speech by Keir Starmer that opposed the Boycott,Divestment and Sanctions of Israel. She said "Rejecting anti-Zionist antisemitism means opposing the BDS movement which demonises and delegitimises Israel,singling it out for boycotts and sanctions." [21]
In July 2021,Diana Johnson proposed an amendment that would liberalise abortion in England and Wales. [22] Proponents of the amendment suggested this would bring English and Welsh law in line with recent legislative changes in Northern Ireland. However,Johnson was strongly criticised for not clarifying whether this would allow for abortion up until birth. It has also been suggested by pro-life organisations that this would have removed the requirement for a doctor to be involved,allow for sex selective abortion and removed conscience protections for those medical professionals who object to abortion. [23]
Johnson was also criticised by 800 medical professionals in a letter that suggested such an amendment would remove legal safeguards for both the mother and child and pointed out that extensions to the 24 week limit were only supported by 1% of the UK population according to a recent Savanta ComRes poll. Johnson received little support in Parliament for the amendment and was also criticised by some pro-choice politicians [ citation needed ]. Johnson declined to take the amendment to a vote. [24]
In 2024,Johnson's amendment to the Criminal Justice Bill,which would decriminalise women themselves in relation to their own pregnancies but would leave the rest of abortion law and regulation unchanged,has been backed by the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists,the British Medical Association,Mumsnet,and many groups who work with survivors of gender based violence such as Women's Aid and Karma Nirvana. [25] Conservative Chancellor Jeremy Hunt,who has previously backed a reduction in abortion time limits,has indicated he may support her amendment. [26] The Health Secretary Victoria Atkins has also suggested she may vote for the amendment. [27]
Johnson supported the indicative Parliamentary votes on Brexit and her local paper Hull Live reported that she had been threatened along with fellow Hull MP Emma Hardy on social media with being "shot and hanged" for this position. [28]
In 2017,Johnson co-sponsored a Bill in Parliament that would have granted 16-year-olds the right to vote in Parliamentary elections. [29]
Johnson was appointed Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire (DBE) in the 2020 New Year Honours for charitable and political service, [30] in part for her campaigning on contaminated blood transfusions. [31] She was appointed to the Privy Council on 10 March 2021. [32]
Diane Julie Abbott is a British Labour Party politician who has served as Member of Parliament (MP) for Hackney North and Stoke Newington since 1987. She served in the Shadow Cabinet of Jeremy Corbyn as Shadow Home Secretary from 2016 to 2020 and is an advisor to the Privy Council. She was the first black woman elected to parliament and is the longest-serving black MP.
Sir Christopher John Bryant is a British politician and former Anglican priest who has served as Member of Parliament (MP) for Rhondda and Ogmore,and previously Rhondda,since 2001. A member of the Labour Party,he has been the Minister of State for Data Protection and Telecoms and Minister of State for Creative Industries,Arts and Tourism since 2024.
Harriet Ruth Harman,Baroness Harman,,is a British politician and solicitor. She was a member of Parliament (MP) for more than 40 years,from 1982 to 2024,making her one of the longest-serving MPs in British history. Harman was MP for Camberwell and Peckham from 1997 to 2024 and MP for Peckham from 1982 to 1997. A member of the Labour Party,she served in various Cabinet and Shadow Cabinet positions. She has been a member of the House of Lords since 2024.
Sir Edward Julian Egerton Leigh is a British Conservative Party politician who has been serving as the Member of Parliament (MP) for Gainsborough,previously Gainsborough and Horncastle,since 1983. As the longest serving MP in Parliament,since 2024 Leigh is the incumbent Father of the House.
Dianne Fae Yates is a former New Zealand politician. She was a Labour Party Member of Parliament from 1993 to 2008.
Nadine Vanessa Dorries is a British author and a former politician who served as Secretary of State for Digital,Culture,Media and Sport from 2021 to 2022. She was Member of Parliament (MP) for Mid Bedfordshire from 2005 to 2023 for the Conservative Party.
The Abortion Act 1967 is an act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that legalised abortion in Great Britain on certain grounds by registered practitioners,and regulated the tax-paid provision of such medical practices through the National Health Service (NHS).
Michael Lee Amesbury is a British Labour politician who has served as the Member of Parliament (MP) for Runcorn and Helsby,previously Weaver Vale,since 2017. He has served as Shadow Minister for Building Safety and Homelessness since 2023. He previously served as Shadow Minister for Employment from 2018 to 2020,Shadow Minister for Housing from 2020 to 2021 and Shadow Minister for Local Government from 2021 to 2022.
The Prostitution Reform Act 2003 is an Act of Parliament that decriminalised prostitution in New Zealand. The Act also gave new rights to sex workers. It has attracted international attention,although its reception has been mixed. The Act repealed the Massage Parlours Act 1978 and the associated regulations.
Louisa Hareruia Wall is a New Zealand former double international sportswoman,former politician,and human rights advocate. She represented New Zealand in both netball as a Silver Fern from 1989 to 1992 and in rugby union as a member of the Black Ferns from 1995 to 2001,including as a member of the 1991 World Netball Championships runner-up team and 1998 Women's Rugby World Cup winning team.
Caroline Fiona Ellen Nokes is a British Conservative Party politician who has been the Member of Parliament (MP) for Romsey and Southampton North since 2010. Elected as a Conservative,Nokes had the Conservative whip removed on 3 September 2019 and sat as an independent politician until the whip was restored to her on 29 October.
Stella Judith Creasy is a British Labour and Co-operative politician who has been Member of Parliament (MP) for Walthamstow since 2010.
Fiona Claire Bruce is a former British Conservative Party politician who served as the Member of Parliament (MP) for Congleton from 2010 to 2024.
Maria Colette Caulfield is a former British politician. She served as Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Mental Health and Women's Health Strategy and Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Women from October 2022 to July 2024.
Antonia Louise Antoniazzi is a Welsh Labour Party politician who has been the Member of Parliament (MP) for Gower since 2017.
Anahila Lose Kanongata'a is a New Zealand social worker and politician. She served as a Member of Parliament for the Labour Party from 2017 to 2023.
Ruth Lorraine Jones is a British Labour Party politician who has served as the Member of Parliament (MP) for Newport West and Islwyn since 2024. Before the 2024 constituency boundary change,she had been the MP for Newport West since winning the seat at a by-election in April 2019.
The Abortion Legislation Act 2020 is an Act of Parliament in New Zealand allowing unrestricted access to abortion within the first 20 weeks of pregnancy,and repealing sections of the Crimes Act 1961 related to unlawful abortion. After the 20-week period,women seeking an abortion must consult a qualified health practitioner who will assess their physical health,mental health,and well-being. The Act also provides provisions for conscientious objection rights for medical practitioners and exempts abortion services from certain Crimes Act provisions,while extending the definition of health services to include abortion services under the Health and Disability Commissioner Act 1994.
The Northern Ireland Act 2019,colloquially known as the 2019 Northern Ireland Act,is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that provided for the extension of the period for forming a Northern Ireland executive until 13 January 2020. The Act also extended the powers of the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland during this time whilst imposing several conditions. The Act requires that the Secretary of State report regularly to Parliament,designed to limit the ability of the sovereign to prorogue parliament,as well as providing for the legalisation of same-sex marriage and opposite-sex civil partnership in Northern Ireland and the liberalisation of abortion laws if no executive was formed by midnight on 21 October 2019. After the deadline passed,abortion was decriminalised automatically by repeal of Sections 58 and 59 of the Offences Against the Person Act 1861;in December 2019 the British Government passed regulations legalising same-sex marriage and opposite-sex civil partnerships on 13 January 2020. Further regulations governing abortion came into force on 31 March 2020.
Brendan Clarke-Smith is a British politician and former teacher. A member of the Conservative Party,he served as the Member of Parliament (MP) for Bassetlaw from 2019 to 2024. He served under Rishi Sunak as a deputy chairman of the Conservative Party from November 2023 to January 2024,under Liz Truss as Parliamentary Secretary for the Cabinet Office from September and October 2022,and under Boris Johnson as Parliamentary Private Secretary to the Minister without Portfolio and Minister of State from February 2022 to July 2022,and as Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Children and Families from July to September 2022.
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)