Jane Kennedy (politician)
Encyclopedia
Jane Elizabeth Kennedy is a British
Labour Party
politician, who was the Member of Parliament
(UK) for Liverpool Wavertree from 1992
until she stood down in 2010. Formerly a member of the Government, on 8 June 2009, she returned to the backbenches leaving her position as Minister of State for Farming and the Environment at the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
.
, Cumbria
, on the same day as fellow current female MP Caroline Spelman
. She went to Haughton Comprehensive School (now called Haughton Community School) on Rockwell Avenue in Haughton Le Skerne
, then Queen Elizabeth Sixth Form College
in Darlington. She studied Chemistry at the University of Liverpool
. She worked in social care for Liverpool City Council
from 1979 to 1988 when she became a trade union
organiser for the National Union of Public Employees
(NUPE). In Liverpool she had been prominent in the campaign to drive members of the Militant tendency
out of the Labour Party.
since the 1992 general election
, when she was elected by the Liverpool Broadgreen
constituency. She served as a member of the social security select committee from 1992 to 1994, and in 1995 she was appointed as a Labour whip
.
Her constituency was abolished for the 1997 general election
, but she was returned to Parliament
for the new Liverpool Wavertree constituency.
After Labour's victory in the 1997 election, she served as an assistant government whip until 1998 and as a government whip until 1999, sitting on the House of Commons administration select committee from 1997 to 1999.
On 9 November 2009 she announced she would be standing down at the 2010 general election.
It was announced in January 2010 the Wavertree Labour party had picked Luciana Berger
as her successor. This selection caused some controversy because of Berger's London background, but also because she was resident at Mrs Kennedy's home for a month before the selection, a home Mrs Kennedy shares with her partner Peter Dowling, who is the local Labour party's agent. The postal votes were sent to Mr Dowling at Kennedy's home.
from 1999 until 2001, when she became a Minister of State
in the Northern Ireland Office
with responsibility for security and the justice system. After the suspension of the Northern Ireland Assembly
in October 2002, she also became responsible for education and employment in the province. In 2003, she was made a Privy Councillor
.
She transferred to the Department for Work and Pensions
in 2004 and then to the Department of Health after the 2005 general election
, remaining a Minister of State. She left the government on 5 May 2006 during a wide-ranging reshuffle. She was initially thought by journalists to have been sacked; however, she subsequently said she took the opportunity to resign from the government in light of concerns about the impact of the government's policies on the National Health Service
.
In Gordon Brown's
first government since becoming Prime Minister
, Kennedy was appointed as the Financial Secretary to the Treasury
, becoming the third ranked minister in the Treasury, taking on the ministerial responsibilities of the old Paymaster General, Dawn Primarolo
. On 5 October 2008, Kennedy was promoted to Minister of State
at the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
with the portfolio of Farming and the Environment. She resigned that position in June 2009 in protest at Gordon Brown's Leadership.
; they divorced in 1998. They have two sons, Robert (born 1978) and Alan (born 1983). She currently lives with her partner Peter Dowling.
Kennedy is a member of Labour Friends of Israel
, and was the organisation's chair from 1997-98, 2006-07. She is also a member of the Ramblers' Association and enjoys horse-riding.
Jane Elizabeth Kennedy (born 4 May 1958, as Jane Elizabeth Hodgson) is a British
Labour Party
politician, who was the Member of Parliament
(UK) for Liverpool Wavertree from 1992
until she stood down in 2010. Formerly a member of the Government, on 8 June 2009, she returned to the backbenches leaving her position as Minister of State for Farming and the Environment at the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
.
, Cumbria
, on the same day as fellow current female MP Caroline Spelman
. She went to Haughton Comprehensive School (now called Haughton Community School) on Rockwell Avenue in Haughton Le Skerne
, then Queen Elizabeth Sixth Form College
in Darlington. She studied Chemistry at the University of Liverpool
. She worked in social care for Liverpool City Council
from 1979 to 1988 when she became a trade union
organiser for the National Union of Public Employees
(NUPE). In Liverpool she had been prominent in the campaign to drive members of the Militant tendency
out of the Labour Party.
since the 1992 general election
, when she was elected by the Liverpool Broadgreen
constituency. She served as a member of the social security select committee from 1992 to 1994, and in 1995 she was appointed as a Labour whip
.
Her constituency was abolished for the 1997 general election
, but she was returned to Parliament
for the new Liverpool Wavertree constituency.
After Labour's victory in the 1997 election, she served as an assistant government whip until 1998 and as a government whip until 1999, sitting on the House of Commons administration select committee from 1997 to 1999.
On 9 November 2009 she announced she would be standing down at the 2010 general election.
It was announced in January 2010 the Wavertree Labour party had picked Luciana Berger
as her successor. This selection caused some controversy because of Berger's London background, but also because she was resident at Mrs Kennedy's home for a month before the selection, a home Mrs Kennedy shares with her partner Peter Dowling, who is the local Labour party's agent. The postal votes were sent to Mr Dowling at Kennedy's home.
from 1999 until 2001, when she became a Minister of State
in the Northern Ireland Office
with responsibility for security and the justice system. After the suspension of the Northern Ireland Assembly
in October 2002, she also became responsible for education and employment in the province. In 2003, she was made a Privy Councillor
.
She transferred to the Department for Work and Pensions
in 2004 and then to the Department of Health after the 2005 general election
, remaining a Minister of State. She left the government on 5 May 2006 during a wide-ranging reshuffle. She was initially thought by journalists to have been sacked; however, she subsequently said she took the opportunity to resign from the government in light of concerns about the impact of the government's policies on the National Health Service
.
In Gordon Brown's
first government since becoming Prime Minister
, Kennedy was appointed as the Financial Secretary to the Treasury
, becoming the third ranked minister in the Treasury, taking on the ministerial responsibilities of the old Paymaster General, Dawn Primarolo
. On 5 October 2008, Kennedy was promoted to Minister of State
at the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
with the portfolio of Farming and the Environment. She resigned that position in June 2009 in protest at Gordon Brown's Leadership.
; they divorced in 1998. They have two sons, Robert (born 1978) and Alan (born 1983). She currently lives with her partner Peter Dowling.
Kennedy is a member of Labour Friends of Israel
, and was the organisation's chair from 1997-98, 2006-07. She is also a member of the Ramblers' Association and enjoys horse-riding.
Jane Elizabeth Kennedy (born 4 May 1958, as Jane Elizabeth Hodgson) is a British
Labour Party
politician, who was the Member of Parliament
(UK) for Liverpool Wavertree from 1992
until she stood down in 2010. Formerly a member of the Government, on 8 June 2009, she returned to the backbenches leaving her position as Minister of State for Farming and the Environment at the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
.
, Cumbria
, on the same day as fellow current female MP Caroline Spelman
. She went to Haughton Comprehensive School (now called Haughton Community School) on Rockwell Avenue in Haughton Le Skerne
, then Queen Elizabeth Sixth Form College
in Darlington. She studied Chemistry at the University of Liverpool
. She worked in social care for Liverpool City Council
from 1979 to 1988 when she became a trade union
organiser for the National Union of Public Employees
(NUPE). In Liverpool she had been prominent in the campaign to drive members of the Militant tendency
out of the Labour Party.
since the 1992 general election
, when she was elected by the Liverpool Broadgreen
constituency. She served as a member of the social security select committee from 1992 to 1994, and in 1995 she was appointed as a Labour whip
.
Her constituency was abolished for the 1997 general election
, but she was returned to Parliament
for the new Liverpool Wavertree constituency.
After Labour's victory in the 1997 election, she served as an assistant government whip until 1998 and as a government whip until 1999, sitting on the House of Commons administration select committee from 1997 to 1999.
On 9 November 2009 she announced she would be standing down at the 2010 general election.
It was announced in January 2010 the Wavertree Labour party had picked Luciana Berger
as her successor. This selection caused some controversy because of Berger's London background, but also because she was resident at Mrs Kennedy's home for a month before the selection, a home Mrs Kennedy shares with her partner Peter Dowling, who is the local Labour party's agent. The postal votes were sent to Mr Dowling at Kennedy's home.
from 1999 until 2001, when she became a Minister of State
in the Northern Ireland Office
with responsibility for security and the justice system. After the suspension of the Northern Ireland Assembly
in October 2002, she also became responsible for education and employment in the province. In 2003, she was made a Privy Councillor
.
She transferred to the Department for Work and Pensions
in 2004 and then to the Department of Health after the 2005 general election
, remaining a Minister of State. She left the government on 5 May 2006 during a wide-ranging reshuffle. She was initially thought by journalists to have been sacked; however, she subsequently said she took the opportunity to resign from the government in light of concerns about the impact of the government's policies on the National Health Service
.
In Gordon Brown's
first government since becoming Prime Minister
, Kennedy was appointed as the Financial Secretary to the Treasury
, becoming the third ranked minister in the Treasury, taking on the ministerial responsibilities of the old Paymaster General, Dawn Primarolo
. On 5 October 2008, Kennedy was promoted to Minister of State
at the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
with the portfolio of Farming and the Environment. She resigned that position in June 2009 in protest at Gordon Brown's Leadership.
; they divorced in 1998. They have two sons, Robert (born 1978) and Alan (born 1983). She currently lives with her partner Peter Dowling.
Kennedy is a member of Labour Friends of Israel
, and was the organisation's chair from 1997-98, 2006-07. She is also a member of the Ramblers' Association and enjoys horse-riding.
British people
The British are citizens of the United Kingdom, of the Isle of Man, any of the Channel Islands, or of any of the British overseas territories, and their descendants...
Labour Party
Labour Party (UK)
The Labour Party is a centre-left democratic socialist party in the United Kingdom. It surpassed the Liberal Party in general elections during the early 1920s, forming minority governments under Ramsay MacDonald in 1924 and 1929-1931. The party was in a wartime coalition from 1940 to 1945, after...
politician, who was the Member of Parliament
Member of Parliament
A Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...
(UK) for Liverpool Wavertree from 1992
United Kingdom general election, 1992
The United Kingdom general election of 1992 was held on 9 April 1992, and was the fourth consecutive victory for the Conservative Party. This election result was one of the biggest surprises in 20th Century politics, as polling leading up to the day of the election showed Labour under leader Neil...
until she stood down in 2010. Formerly a member of the Government, on 8 June 2009, she returned to the backbenches leaving her position as Minister of State for Farming and the Environment at the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs is the government department responsible for environmental protection, food production and standards, agriculture, fisheries and rural communities in the United Kingdom...
.
Early life
She was born in WhitehavenWhitehaven
Whitehaven is a small town and port on the coast of Cumbria, England, which lies equidistant between the county's two largest settlements, Carlisle and Barrow-in-Furness, and is served by the Cumbrian Coast Line and the A595 road...
, Cumbria
Cumbria
Cumbria , is a non-metropolitan county in North West England. The county and Cumbria County Council, its local authority, came into existence in 1974 after the passage of the Local Government Act 1972. Cumbria's largest settlement and county town is Carlisle. It consists of six districts, and in...
, on the same day as fellow current female MP Caroline Spelman
Caroline Spelman
Caroline Alice Spelman is a Conservative Party politician in the United Kingdom who has served as the Member of Parliament for Meriden in the West Midlands since 1997...
. She went to Haughton Comprehensive School (now called Haughton Community School) on Rockwell Avenue in Haughton Le Skerne
Haughton Le Skerne
Haughton-le-Skerne is a suburb of Darlington in the ceremonial county of County Durham, England. It is situated in the north east of Darlington. The suburb lies to the west of the River Skerne....
, then Queen Elizabeth Sixth Form College
Queen Elizabeth Sixth Form College
Queen Elizabeth Sixth Form College, or QE, is a sixth form college on Vane Terrace in Darlington, County Durham, England.-History:It was established in 1970 on the site of the old Queen Elizabeth Grammar School, designed by George Gordon Hoskins...
in Darlington. She studied Chemistry at the University of Liverpool
University of Liverpool
The University of Liverpool is a teaching and research university in the city of Liverpool, England. It is a member of the Russell Group of large research-intensive universities and the N8 Group for research collaboration. Founded in 1881 , it is also one of the six original "red brick" civic...
. She worked in social care for Liverpool City Council
Liverpool City Council
Liverpool City Council is the governing body for the city of Liverpool in Merseyside, England. It consists of 90 councillors, three for each of the city's 30 wards. The council is currently controlled by the Labour Party and is led by Joe Anderson.-Domain:...
from 1979 to 1988 when she became a trade union
Trade union
A trade union, trades union or labor union is an organization of workers that have banded together to achieve common goals such as better working conditions. The trade union, through its leadership, bargains with the employer on behalf of union members and negotiates labour contracts with...
organiser for the National Union of Public Employees
National Union of Public Employees
The National Union of Public Employees was a British trade union which represented public sector workers. The union was founded in 1908 as the National Union of Corporation Workers, which split from the Municipal Employees Association, following Albin Taylor's dismissal as General Secretary...
(NUPE). In Liverpool she had been prominent in the campaign to drive members of the Militant tendency
Militant Tendency
The Militant tendency was an entrist group within the British Labour Party based around the Militant newspaper that was first published in 1964...
out of the Labour Party.
Member of Parliament
Kennedy has been a Member of ParliamentMember of Parliament
A Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...
since the 1992 general election
United Kingdom general election, 1992
The United Kingdom general election of 1992 was held on 9 April 1992, and was the fourth consecutive victory for the Conservative Party. This election result was one of the biggest surprises in 20th Century politics, as polling leading up to the day of the election showed Labour under leader Neil...
, when she was elected by the Liverpool Broadgreen
Liverpool Broadgreen (UK Parliament constituency)
Liverpool Broadgreen was a parliamentary constituency centred on the Broadgreen suburb of Liverpool. It returned one Member of Parliament to the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom....
constituency. She served as a member of the social security select committee from 1992 to 1994, and in 1995 she was appointed as a Labour whip
Whip (politics)
A whip is an official in a political party whose primary purpose is to ensure party discipline in a legislature. Whips are a party's "enforcers", who typically offer inducements and threaten punishments for party members to ensure that they vote according to the official party policy...
.
Her constituency was abolished for the 1997 general election
United Kingdom general election, 1997
The United Kingdom general election, 1997 was held on 1 May 1997, more than five years after the previous election on 9 April 1992, to elect 659 members to the British House of Commons. The Labour Party ended its 18 years in opposition under the leadership of Tony Blair, and won the general...
, but she was returned to Parliament
Parliament of the United Kingdom
The Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the supreme legislative body in the United Kingdom, British Crown dependencies and British overseas territories, located in London...
for the new Liverpool Wavertree constituency.
After Labour's victory in the 1997 election, she served as an assistant government whip until 1998 and as a government whip until 1999, sitting on the House of Commons administration select committee from 1997 to 1999.
On 9 November 2009 she announced she would be standing down at the 2010 general election.
It was announced in January 2010 the Wavertree Labour party had picked Luciana Berger
Luciana Berger
Luciana Clare Berger is a British Labour Co-operative politician who has been the Member of Parliament for Liverpool Wavertree since 2010...
as her successor. This selection caused some controversy because of Berger's London background, but also because she was resident at Mrs Kennedy's home for a month before the selection, a home Mrs Kennedy shares with her partner Peter Dowling, who is the local Labour party's agent. The postal votes were sent to Mr Dowling at Kennedy's home.
In government
She was then appointed as a Junior Minister in the Lord Chancellor's DepartmentLord Chancellor's Department
The Lord Chancellor's Department was a United Kingdom government department answerable to the Lord Chancellor with jurisdiction over England and Wales....
from 1999 until 2001, when she became a Minister of State
Minister of State
Minister of State is a title borne by politicians or officials in certain countries governed under a parliamentary system. In some countries a "minister of state" is a junior minister, who is assigned to assist a specific cabinet minister...
in the Northern Ireland Office
Northern Ireland Office
The Northern Ireland Office is a United Kingdom government department responsible for Northern Ireland affairs. The NIO is led by the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, and is based in Northern Ireland at Stormont House.-Role:...
with responsibility for security and the justice system. After the suspension of the Northern Ireland Assembly
Northern Ireland Assembly
The Northern Ireland Assembly is the devolved legislature of Northern Ireland. It has power to legislate in a wide range of areas that are not explicitly reserved to the Parliament of the United Kingdom, and to appoint the Northern Ireland Executive...
in October 2002, she also became responsible for education and employment in the province. In 2003, she was made a Privy Councillor
Privy Council of the United Kingdom
Her Majesty's Most Honourable Privy Council, usually known simply as the Privy Council, is a formal body of advisers to the Sovereign in the United Kingdom...
.
She transferred to the Department for Work and Pensions
Department for Work and Pensions
The Department for Work and Pensions is the largest government department in the United Kingdom, created on June 8, 2001 from the merger of the employment part of the Department for Education and Employment and the Department of Social Security and headed by the Secretary of State for Work and...
in 2004 and then to the Department of Health after the 2005 general election
United Kingdom general election, 2005
The United Kingdom general election of 2005 was held on Thursday, 5 May 2005 to elect 646 members to the British House of Commons. The Labour Party under Tony Blair won its third consecutive victory, but with a majority of 66, reduced from 160....
, remaining a Minister of State. She left the government on 5 May 2006 during a wide-ranging reshuffle. She was initially thought by journalists to have been sacked; however, she subsequently said she took the opportunity to resign from the government in light of concerns about the impact of the government's policies on the National Health Service
National Health Service
The National Health Service is the shared name of three of the four publicly funded healthcare systems in the United Kingdom. They provide a comprehensive range of health services, the vast majority of which are free at the point of use to residents of the United Kingdom...
.
In Gordon Brown's
Gordon Brown
James Gordon Brown is a British Labour Party politician who was the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Labour Party from 2007 until 2010. He previously served as Chancellor of the Exchequer in the Labour Government from 1997 to 2007...
first government since becoming Prime Minister
Prime Minister of the United Kingdom
The Prime Minister of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the Head of Her Majesty's Government in the United Kingdom. The Prime Minister and Cabinet are collectively accountable for their policies and actions to the Sovereign, to Parliament, to their political party and...
, Kennedy was appointed as the Financial Secretary to the Treasury
Financial Secretary to the Treasury
Financial Secretary to the Treasury is a junior Ministerial post in the British Treasury. It is the 4th most significant Ministerial role within the Treasury after the Chancellor of the Exchequer, the Chief Secretary to the Treasury, and the Paymaster General...
, becoming the third ranked minister in the Treasury, taking on the ministerial responsibilities of the old Paymaster General, Dawn Primarolo
Dawn Primarolo
Dawn Primarolo is a British Labour Party politician who has been the Member of Parliament for Bristol South since 1987. She was Minister of State for Children, Young People and Families at the Department for Children, Schools and Families from June 2009 to May 2010 and is now a Deputy Speaker of...
. On 5 October 2008, Kennedy was promoted to Minister of State
Minister of State
Minister of State is a title borne by politicians or officials in certain countries governed under a parliamentary system. In some countries a "minister of state" is a junior minister, who is assigned to assist a specific cabinet minister...
at the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs is the government department responsible for environmental protection, food production and standards, agriculture, fisheries and rural communities in the United Kingdom...
with the portfolio of Farming and the Environment. She resigned that position in June 2009 in protest at Gordon Brown's Leadership.
Expenses row
In 2009 the Houses of Parliament started publishing MP expenses. Her partner Peter Dowling also works at her office handling Research & parliamentary affairs. and is paid out of her parliamentary expenses.Personal life
Jane married Malcolm Kennedy in 1977 in KnowsleyKnowsley
-Places:in England*Knowsley, Merseyside, a village.**Knowsley Safari Park*Metropolitan Borough of Knowsley, a local government district of Merseyside.*Knowsley Safari Park, a zoological tourist attraction....
; they divorced in 1998. They have two sons, Robert (born 1978) and Alan (born 1983). She currently lives with her partner Peter Dowling.
Kennedy is a member of Labour Friends of Israel
Labour Friends of Israel
Labour Friends of Israel is a lobby group promoting support within the British Labour Party for a strong bilateral relationship between Britain and Israel. It also seeks to strengthen ties between the British and the Israeli Labour party...
, and was the organisation's chair from 1997-98, 2006-07. She is also a member of the Ramblers' Association and enjoys horse-riding.
External links
- Jane Kennedy's website
- Guardian Unlimited Politics - Ask Aristotle: Jane Kennedy MP
- TheyWorkForYou.com - Jane Kennedy MP
- BBC Politics
Video clips
Jane Elizabeth Kennedy (born 4 May 1958, as Jane Elizabeth Hodgson) is a British
British people
The British are citizens of the United Kingdom, of the Isle of Man, any of the Channel Islands, or of any of the British overseas territories, and their descendants...
Labour Party
Labour Party (UK)
The Labour Party is a centre-left democratic socialist party in the United Kingdom. It surpassed the Liberal Party in general elections during the early 1920s, forming minority governments under Ramsay MacDonald in 1924 and 1929-1931. The party was in a wartime coalition from 1940 to 1945, after...
politician, who was the Member of Parliament
Member of Parliament
A Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...
(UK) for Liverpool Wavertree from 1992
United Kingdom general election, 1992
The United Kingdom general election of 1992 was held on 9 April 1992, and was the fourth consecutive victory for the Conservative Party. This election result was one of the biggest surprises in 20th Century politics, as polling leading up to the day of the election showed Labour under leader Neil...
until she stood down in 2010. Formerly a member of the Government, on 8 June 2009, she returned to the backbenches leaving her position as Minister of State for Farming and the Environment at the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs is the government department responsible for environmental protection, food production and standards, agriculture, fisheries and rural communities in the United Kingdom...
.
Early life
She was born in WhitehavenWhitehaven
Whitehaven is a small town and port on the coast of Cumbria, England, which lies equidistant between the county's two largest settlements, Carlisle and Barrow-in-Furness, and is served by the Cumbrian Coast Line and the A595 road...
, Cumbria
Cumbria
Cumbria , is a non-metropolitan county in North West England. The county and Cumbria County Council, its local authority, came into existence in 1974 after the passage of the Local Government Act 1972. Cumbria's largest settlement and county town is Carlisle. It consists of six districts, and in...
, on the same day as fellow current female MP Caroline Spelman
Caroline Spelman
Caroline Alice Spelman is a Conservative Party politician in the United Kingdom who has served as the Member of Parliament for Meriden in the West Midlands since 1997...
. She went to Haughton Comprehensive School (now called Haughton Community School) on Rockwell Avenue in Haughton Le Skerne
Haughton Le Skerne
Haughton-le-Skerne is a suburb of Darlington in the ceremonial county of County Durham, England. It is situated in the north east of Darlington. The suburb lies to the west of the River Skerne....
, then Queen Elizabeth Sixth Form College
Queen Elizabeth Sixth Form College
Queen Elizabeth Sixth Form College, or QE, is a sixth form college on Vane Terrace in Darlington, County Durham, England.-History:It was established in 1970 on the site of the old Queen Elizabeth Grammar School, designed by George Gordon Hoskins...
in Darlington. She studied Chemistry at the University of Liverpool
University of Liverpool
The University of Liverpool is a teaching and research university in the city of Liverpool, England. It is a member of the Russell Group of large research-intensive universities and the N8 Group for research collaboration. Founded in 1881 , it is also one of the six original "red brick" civic...
. She worked in social care for Liverpool City Council
Liverpool City Council
Liverpool City Council is the governing body for the city of Liverpool in Merseyside, England. It consists of 90 councillors, three for each of the city's 30 wards. The council is currently controlled by the Labour Party and is led by Joe Anderson.-Domain:...
from 1979 to 1988 when she became a trade union
Trade union
A trade union, trades union or labor union is an organization of workers that have banded together to achieve common goals such as better working conditions. The trade union, through its leadership, bargains with the employer on behalf of union members and negotiates labour contracts with...
organiser for the National Union of Public Employees
National Union of Public Employees
The National Union of Public Employees was a British trade union which represented public sector workers. The union was founded in 1908 as the National Union of Corporation Workers, which split from the Municipal Employees Association, following Albin Taylor's dismissal as General Secretary...
(NUPE). In Liverpool she had been prominent in the campaign to drive members of the Militant tendency
Militant Tendency
The Militant tendency was an entrist group within the British Labour Party based around the Militant newspaper that was first published in 1964...
out of the Labour Party.
Member of Parliament
Kennedy has been a Member of ParliamentMember of Parliament
A Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...
since the 1992 general election
United Kingdom general election, 1992
The United Kingdom general election of 1992 was held on 9 April 1992, and was the fourth consecutive victory for the Conservative Party. This election result was one of the biggest surprises in 20th Century politics, as polling leading up to the day of the election showed Labour under leader Neil...
, when she was elected by the Liverpool Broadgreen
Liverpool Broadgreen (UK Parliament constituency)
Liverpool Broadgreen was a parliamentary constituency centred on the Broadgreen suburb of Liverpool. It returned one Member of Parliament to the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom....
constituency. She served as a member of the social security select committee from 1992 to 1994, and in 1995 she was appointed as a Labour whip
Whip (politics)
A whip is an official in a political party whose primary purpose is to ensure party discipline in a legislature. Whips are a party's "enforcers", who typically offer inducements and threaten punishments for party members to ensure that they vote according to the official party policy...
.
Her constituency was abolished for the 1997 general election
United Kingdom general election, 1997
The United Kingdom general election, 1997 was held on 1 May 1997, more than five years after the previous election on 9 April 1992, to elect 659 members to the British House of Commons. The Labour Party ended its 18 years in opposition under the leadership of Tony Blair, and won the general...
, but she was returned to Parliament
Parliament of the United Kingdom
The Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the supreme legislative body in the United Kingdom, British Crown dependencies and British overseas territories, located in London...
for the new Liverpool Wavertree constituency.
After Labour's victory in the 1997 election, she served as an assistant government whip until 1998 and as a government whip until 1999, sitting on the House of Commons administration select committee from 1997 to 1999.
On 9 November 2009 she announced she would be standing down at the 2010 general election.
It was announced in January 2010 the Wavertree Labour party had picked Luciana Berger
Luciana Berger
Luciana Clare Berger is a British Labour Co-operative politician who has been the Member of Parliament for Liverpool Wavertree since 2010...
as her successor. This selection caused some controversy because of Berger's London background, but also because she was resident at Mrs Kennedy's home for a month before the selection, a home Mrs Kennedy shares with her partner Peter Dowling, who is the local Labour party's agent. The postal votes were sent to Mr Dowling at Kennedy's home.
In government
She was then appointed as a Junior Minister in the Lord Chancellor's DepartmentLord Chancellor's Department
The Lord Chancellor's Department was a United Kingdom government department answerable to the Lord Chancellor with jurisdiction over England and Wales....
from 1999 until 2001, when she became a Minister of State
Minister of State
Minister of State is a title borne by politicians or officials in certain countries governed under a parliamentary system. In some countries a "minister of state" is a junior minister, who is assigned to assist a specific cabinet minister...
in the Northern Ireland Office
Northern Ireland Office
The Northern Ireland Office is a United Kingdom government department responsible for Northern Ireland affairs. The NIO is led by the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, and is based in Northern Ireland at Stormont House.-Role:...
with responsibility for security and the justice system. After the suspension of the Northern Ireland Assembly
Northern Ireland Assembly
The Northern Ireland Assembly is the devolved legislature of Northern Ireland. It has power to legislate in a wide range of areas that are not explicitly reserved to the Parliament of the United Kingdom, and to appoint the Northern Ireland Executive...
in October 2002, she also became responsible for education and employment in the province. In 2003, she was made a Privy Councillor
Privy Council of the United Kingdom
Her Majesty's Most Honourable Privy Council, usually known simply as the Privy Council, is a formal body of advisers to the Sovereign in the United Kingdom...
.
She transferred to the Department for Work and Pensions
Department for Work and Pensions
The Department for Work and Pensions is the largest government department in the United Kingdom, created on June 8, 2001 from the merger of the employment part of the Department for Education and Employment and the Department of Social Security and headed by the Secretary of State for Work and...
in 2004 and then to the Department of Health after the 2005 general election
United Kingdom general election, 2005
The United Kingdom general election of 2005 was held on Thursday, 5 May 2005 to elect 646 members to the British House of Commons. The Labour Party under Tony Blair won its third consecutive victory, but with a majority of 66, reduced from 160....
, remaining a Minister of State. She left the government on 5 May 2006 during a wide-ranging reshuffle. She was initially thought by journalists to have been sacked; however, she subsequently said she took the opportunity to resign from the government in light of concerns about the impact of the government's policies on the National Health Service
National Health Service
The National Health Service is the shared name of three of the four publicly funded healthcare systems in the United Kingdom. They provide a comprehensive range of health services, the vast majority of which are free at the point of use to residents of the United Kingdom...
.
In Gordon Brown's
Gordon Brown
James Gordon Brown is a British Labour Party politician who was the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Labour Party from 2007 until 2010. He previously served as Chancellor of the Exchequer in the Labour Government from 1997 to 2007...
first government since becoming Prime Minister
Prime Minister of the United Kingdom
The Prime Minister of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the Head of Her Majesty's Government in the United Kingdom. The Prime Minister and Cabinet are collectively accountable for their policies and actions to the Sovereign, to Parliament, to their political party and...
, Kennedy was appointed as the Financial Secretary to the Treasury
Financial Secretary to the Treasury
Financial Secretary to the Treasury is a junior Ministerial post in the British Treasury. It is the 4th most significant Ministerial role within the Treasury after the Chancellor of the Exchequer, the Chief Secretary to the Treasury, and the Paymaster General...
, becoming the third ranked minister in the Treasury, taking on the ministerial responsibilities of the old Paymaster General, Dawn Primarolo
Dawn Primarolo
Dawn Primarolo is a British Labour Party politician who has been the Member of Parliament for Bristol South since 1987. She was Minister of State for Children, Young People and Families at the Department for Children, Schools and Families from June 2009 to May 2010 and is now a Deputy Speaker of...
. On 5 October 2008, Kennedy was promoted to Minister of State
Minister of State
Minister of State is a title borne by politicians or officials in certain countries governed under a parliamentary system. In some countries a "minister of state" is a junior minister, who is assigned to assist a specific cabinet minister...
at the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs is the government department responsible for environmental protection, food production and standards, agriculture, fisheries and rural communities in the United Kingdom...
with the portfolio of Farming and the Environment. She resigned that position in June 2009 in protest at Gordon Brown's Leadership.
Expenses row
In 2009 the Houses of Parliament started publishing MP expenses. Her partner Peter Dowling also works at her office handling Research & parliamentary affairs. and is paid out of her parliamentary expenses.Personal life
Jane married Malcolm Kennedy in 1977 in KnowsleyKnowsley
-Places:in England*Knowsley, Merseyside, a village.**Knowsley Safari Park*Metropolitan Borough of Knowsley, a local government district of Merseyside.*Knowsley Safari Park, a zoological tourist attraction....
; they divorced in 1998. They have two sons, Robert (born 1978) and Alan (born 1983). She currently lives with her partner Peter Dowling.
Kennedy is a member of Labour Friends of Israel
Labour Friends of Israel
Labour Friends of Israel is a lobby group promoting support within the British Labour Party for a strong bilateral relationship between Britain and Israel. It also seeks to strengthen ties between the British and the Israeli Labour party...
, and was the organisation's chair from 1997-98, 2006-07. She is also a member of the Ramblers' Association and enjoys horse-riding.
External links
- Jane Kennedy's website
- Guardian Unlimited Politics - Ask Aristotle: Jane Kennedy MP
- TheyWorkForYou.com - Jane Kennedy MP
- BBC Politics
Video clips
Jane Elizabeth Kennedy (born 4 May 1958, as Jane Elizabeth Hodgson) is a British
British people
The British are citizens of the United Kingdom, of the Isle of Man, any of the Channel Islands, or of any of the British overseas territories, and their descendants...
Labour Party
Labour Party (UK)
The Labour Party is a centre-left democratic socialist party in the United Kingdom. It surpassed the Liberal Party in general elections during the early 1920s, forming minority governments under Ramsay MacDonald in 1924 and 1929-1931. The party was in a wartime coalition from 1940 to 1945, after...
politician, who was the Member of Parliament
Member of Parliament
A Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...
(UK) for Liverpool Wavertree from 1992
United Kingdom general election, 1992
The United Kingdom general election of 1992 was held on 9 April 1992, and was the fourth consecutive victory for the Conservative Party. This election result was one of the biggest surprises in 20th Century politics, as polling leading up to the day of the election showed Labour under leader Neil...
until she stood down in 2010. Formerly a member of the Government, on 8 June 2009, she returned to the backbenches leaving her position as Minister of State for Farming and the Environment at the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs is the government department responsible for environmental protection, food production and standards, agriculture, fisheries and rural communities in the United Kingdom...
.
Early life
She was born in WhitehavenWhitehaven
Whitehaven is a small town and port on the coast of Cumbria, England, which lies equidistant between the county's two largest settlements, Carlisle and Barrow-in-Furness, and is served by the Cumbrian Coast Line and the A595 road...
, Cumbria
Cumbria
Cumbria , is a non-metropolitan county in North West England. The county and Cumbria County Council, its local authority, came into existence in 1974 after the passage of the Local Government Act 1972. Cumbria's largest settlement and county town is Carlisle. It consists of six districts, and in...
, on the same day as fellow current female MP Caroline Spelman
Caroline Spelman
Caroline Alice Spelman is a Conservative Party politician in the United Kingdom who has served as the Member of Parliament for Meriden in the West Midlands since 1997...
. She went to Haughton Comprehensive School (now called Haughton Community School) on Rockwell Avenue in Haughton Le Skerne
Haughton Le Skerne
Haughton-le-Skerne is a suburb of Darlington in the ceremonial county of County Durham, England. It is situated in the north east of Darlington. The suburb lies to the west of the River Skerne....
, then Queen Elizabeth Sixth Form College
Queen Elizabeth Sixth Form College
Queen Elizabeth Sixth Form College, or QE, is a sixth form college on Vane Terrace in Darlington, County Durham, England.-History:It was established in 1970 on the site of the old Queen Elizabeth Grammar School, designed by George Gordon Hoskins...
in Darlington. She studied Chemistry at the University of Liverpool
University of Liverpool
The University of Liverpool is a teaching and research university in the city of Liverpool, England. It is a member of the Russell Group of large research-intensive universities and the N8 Group for research collaboration. Founded in 1881 , it is also one of the six original "red brick" civic...
. She worked in social care for Liverpool City Council
Liverpool City Council
Liverpool City Council is the governing body for the city of Liverpool in Merseyside, England. It consists of 90 councillors, three for each of the city's 30 wards. The council is currently controlled by the Labour Party and is led by Joe Anderson.-Domain:...
from 1979 to 1988 when she became a trade union
Trade union
A trade union, trades union or labor union is an organization of workers that have banded together to achieve common goals such as better working conditions. The trade union, through its leadership, bargains with the employer on behalf of union members and negotiates labour contracts with...
organiser for the National Union of Public Employees
National Union of Public Employees
The National Union of Public Employees was a British trade union which represented public sector workers. The union was founded in 1908 as the National Union of Corporation Workers, which split from the Municipal Employees Association, following Albin Taylor's dismissal as General Secretary...
(NUPE). In Liverpool she had been prominent in the campaign to drive members of the Militant tendency
Militant Tendency
The Militant tendency was an entrist group within the British Labour Party based around the Militant newspaper that was first published in 1964...
out of the Labour Party.
Member of Parliament
Kennedy has been a Member of ParliamentMember of Parliament
A Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...
since the 1992 general election
United Kingdom general election, 1992
The United Kingdom general election of 1992 was held on 9 April 1992, and was the fourth consecutive victory for the Conservative Party. This election result was one of the biggest surprises in 20th Century politics, as polling leading up to the day of the election showed Labour under leader Neil...
, when she was elected by the Liverpool Broadgreen
Liverpool Broadgreen (UK Parliament constituency)
Liverpool Broadgreen was a parliamentary constituency centred on the Broadgreen suburb of Liverpool. It returned one Member of Parliament to the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom....
constituency. She served as a member of the social security select committee from 1992 to 1994, and in 1995 she was appointed as a Labour whip
Whip (politics)
A whip is an official in a political party whose primary purpose is to ensure party discipline in a legislature. Whips are a party's "enforcers", who typically offer inducements and threaten punishments for party members to ensure that they vote according to the official party policy...
.
Her constituency was abolished for the 1997 general election
United Kingdom general election, 1997
The United Kingdom general election, 1997 was held on 1 May 1997, more than five years after the previous election on 9 April 1992, to elect 659 members to the British House of Commons. The Labour Party ended its 18 years in opposition under the leadership of Tony Blair, and won the general...
, but she was returned to Parliament
Parliament of the United Kingdom
The Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the supreme legislative body in the United Kingdom, British Crown dependencies and British overseas territories, located in London...
for the new Liverpool Wavertree constituency.
After Labour's victory in the 1997 election, she served as an assistant government whip until 1998 and as a government whip until 1999, sitting on the House of Commons administration select committee from 1997 to 1999.
On 9 November 2009 she announced she would be standing down at the 2010 general election.
It was announced in January 2010 the Wavertree Labour party had picked Luciana Berger
Luciana Berger
Luciana Clare Berger is a British Labour Co-operative politician who has been the Member of Parliament for Liverpool Wavertree since 2010...
as her successor. This selection caused some controversy because of Berger's London background, but also because she was resident at Mrs Kennedy's home for a month before the selection, a home Mrs Kennedy shares with her partner Peter Dowling, who is the local Labour party's agent. The postal votes were sent to Mr Dowling at Kennedy's home.
In government
She was then appointed as a Junior Minister in the Lord Chancellor's DepartmentLord Chancellor's Department
The Lord Chancellor's Department was a United Kingdom government department answerable to the Lord Chancellor with jurisdiction over England and Wales....
from 1999 until 2001, when she became a Minister of State
Minister of State
Minister of State is a title borne by politicians or officials in certain countries governed under a parliamentary system. In some countries a "minister of state" is a junior minister, who is assigned to assist a specific cabinet minister...
in the Northern Ireland Office
Northern Ireland Office
The Northern Ireland Office is a United Kingdom government department responsible for Northern Ireland affairs. The NIO is led by the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, and is based in Northern Ireland at Stormont House.-Role:...
with responsibility for security and the justice system. After the suspension of the Northern Ireland Assembly
Northern Ireland Assembly
The Northern Ireland Assembly is the devolved legislature of Northern Ireland. It has power to legislate in a wide range of areas that are not explicitly reserved to the Parliament of the United Kingdom, and to appoint the Northern Ireland Executive...
in October 2002, she also became responsible for education and employment in the province. In 2003, she was made a Privy Councillor
Privy Council of the United Kingdom
Her Majesty's Most Honourable Privy Council, usually known simply as the Privy Council, is a formal body of advisers to the Sovereign in the United Kingdom...
.
She transferred to the Department for Work and Pensions
Department for Work and Pensions
The Department for Work and Pensions is the largest government department in the United Kingdom, created on June 8, 2001 from the merger of the employment part of the Department for Education and Employment and the Department of Social Security and headed by the Secretary of State for Work and...
in 2004 and then to the Department of Health after the 2005 general election
United Kingdom general election, 2005
The United Kingdom general election of 2005 was held on Thursday, 5 May 2005 to elect 646 members to the British House of Commons. The Labour Party under Tony Blair won its third consecutive victory, but with a majority of 66, reduced from 160....
, remaining a Minister of State. She left the government on 5 May 2006 during a wide-ranging reshuffle. She was initially thought by journalists to have been sacked; however, she subsequently said she took the opportunity to resign from the government in light of concerns about the impact of the government's policies on the National Health Service
National Health Service
The National Health Service is the shared name of three of the four publicly funded healthcare systems in the United Kingdom. They provide a comprehensive range of health services, the vast majority of which are free at the point of use to residents of the United Kingdom...
.
In Gordon Brown's
Gordon Brown
James Gordon Brown is a British Labour Party politician who was the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Labour Party from 2007 until 2010. He previously served as Chancellor of the Exchequer in the Labour Government from 1997 to 2007...
first government since becoming Prime Minister
Prime Minister of the United Kingdom
The Prime Minister of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the Head of Her Majesty's Government in the United Kingdom. The Prime Minister and Cabinet are collectively accountable for their policies and actions to the Sovereign, to Parliament, to their political party and...
, Kennedy was appointed as the Financial Secretary to the Treasury
Financial Secretary to the Treasury
Financial Secretary to the Treasury is a junior Ministerial post in the British Treasury. It is the 4th most significant Ministerial role within the Treasury after the Chancellor of the Exchequer, the Chief Secretary to the Treasury, and the Paymaster General...
, becoming the third ranked minister in the Treasury, taking on the ministerial responsibilities of the old Paymaster General, Dawn Primarolo
Dawn Primarolo
Dawn Primarolo is a British Labour Party politician who has been the Member of Parliament for Bristol South since 1987. She was Minister of State for Children, Young People and Families at the Department for Children, Schools and Families from June 2009 to May 2010 and is now a Deputy Speaker of...
. On 5 October 2008, Kennedy was promoted to Minister of State
Minister of State
Minister of State is a title borne by politicians or officials in certain countries governed under a parliamentary system. In some countries a "minister of state" is a junior minister, who is assigned to assist a specific cabinet minister...
at the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs is the government department responsible for environmental protection, food production and standards, agriculture, fisheries and rural communities in the United Kingdom...
with the portfolio of Farming and the Environment. She resigned that position in June 2009 in protest at Gordon Brown's Leadership.
Expenses row
In 2009 the Houses of Parliament started publishing MP expenses. Her partner Peter Dowling also works at her office handling Research & parliamentary affairs. and is paid out of her parliamentary expenses.Personal life
Jane married Malcolm Kennedy in 1977 in KnowsleyKnowsley
-Places:in England*Knowsley, Merseyside, a village.**Knowsley Safari Park*Metropolitan Borough of Knowsley, a local government district of Merseyside.*Knowsley Safari Park, a zoological tourist attraction....
; they divorced in 1998. They have two sons, Robert (born 1978) and Alan (born 1983). She currently lives with her partner Peter Dowling.
Kennedy is a member of Labour Friends of Israel
Labour Friends of Israel
Labour Friends of Israel is a lobby group promoting support within the British Labour Party for a strong bilateral relationship between Britain and Israel. It also seeks to strengthen ties between the British and the Israeli Labour party...
, and was the organisation's chair from 1997-98, 2006-07. She is also a member of the Ramblers' Association and enjoys horse-riding.
External links
- Jane Kennedy's website
- Guardian Unlimited Politics - Ask Aristotle: Jane Kennedy MP
- TheyWorkForYou.com - Jane Kennedy MP
- BBC Politics