Linda Riordan
Encyclopedia
Linda June Riordan is an English
Labour
Co-operative
politician who has been the Member of Parliament
(MP) for Halifax
since 2005
.
and graduated from the University of Bradford
.
Riordan, served as a Calderdale
councillor for eleven years, representing the Ovenden
ward from 1995 to 2006, when she stood down to devote herself full time to her role as an MP. She worked as private secretary for the previous Halifax MP Alice Mahon
, and was active in the local Co-operative Party as secretary and treasurer. She was selected as the Labour candidate from an all-women shortlist but her candidature was at first opposed by the Party's ruling National Executive Committee
due to concerns about the way she had been chosen. She was later allowed to stand.
and has often rebelled against the Party leadership. Riordan serves on the Environmental Audit Select Committee and the all-Party Crossrail Committee.
On 13 August 2007, it was confirmed that Riordan had been overwhelmingly reselected to fight the next general election, winning the support of every branch and affiliated trades union.
at the age of 65.
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
Labour
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...
Co-operative
Co-operative Party
The Co-operative Party is a centre-left political party in the United Kingdom committed to supporting and representing co-operative principles. The party does not put up separate candidates for any UK election itself. Instead, Co-operative candidates stand jointly with the Labour Party as "Labour...
politician who has been 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,...
(MP) for Halifax
Halifax (UK Parliament constituency)
Halifax is a borough constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It elects one Member of Parliament by the first-past-the-post system of election.- Boundaries :...
since 2005
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....
.
Early life
Riordan was born in HalifaxHalifax, West Yorkshire
Halifax is a minster town, within the Metropolitan Borough of Calderdale in West Yorkshire, England. It has an urban area population of 82,056 in the 2001 Census. It is well-known as a centre of England's woollen manufacture from the 15th century onward, originally dealing through the Halifax Piece...
and graduated from the University of Bradford
University of Bradford
The University of Bradford is a British university located in the city of Bradford, West Yorkshire, England. The University received its Royal Charter in 1966, making it the 40th University to be created in Britain, but its origins date back to the early 1800s...
.
Riordan, served as a Calderdale
Calderdale
The Metropolitan Borough of Calderdale is a metropolitan borough of West Yorkshire, England, through which the upper part of the River Calder flows, and from which it takes its name...
councillor for eleven years, representing the Ovenden
Ovenden
Ovenden is a village in the county of West Yorkshire, England, located next to Boothtown and Illingworth and about 1 mile from Halifax town centre.Ovenden had a railway station, originally on the Halifax and Ovenden Junction Railway line...
ward from 1995 to 2006, when she stood down to devote herself full time to her role as an MP. She worked as private secretary for the previous Halifax MP Alice Mahon
Alice Mahon
Alice Mahon is a British former Labour Party politician and trade unionist.She was Member of Parliament for Halifax from 1987 until 2005. She is a left-winger who was a member of the Socialist Campaign Group and is a Eurosceptic...
, and was active in the local Co-operative Party as secretary and treasurer. She was selected as the Labour candidate from an all-women shortlist but her candidature was at first opposed by the Party's ruling National Executive Committee
National Executive Committee
The National Executive Committee or NEC is the chief administrative body of the UK Labour Party. Its composition has changed over the years, and includes representatives of affiliated trade unions, the Parliamentary Labour Party and European Parliamentary Labour Party, Constituency Labour Parties,...
due to concerns about the way she had been chosen. She was later allowed to stand.
Parliamentary career
She is a member of the Socialist Campaign GroupSocialist Campaign Group
The Socialist Campaign Group is a left-wing democratic socialist grouping of Labour Party Members of Parliament in the House of Commons of the United Kingdom. It was formed in December 1982 as an alternative Parliamentary left-wing group to the Tribune Group...
and has often rebelled against the Party leadership. Riordan serves on the Environmental Audit Select Committee and the all-Party Crossrail Committee.
On 13 August 2007, it was confirmed that Riordan had been overwhelmingly reselected to fight the next general election, winning the support of every branch and affiliated trades union.
Expenses
In December 2010 it was revealed that Riordan had secretly repaid £105.86 in wrongly claimed expenses. The repayment came about after Riordan had used House of Commons stationery for party political purposes. Riordan apologised, blaming volunteers for the incident.Personal life
She was married to Alan Riordan from 1979 until his death in April 2007, of Chronic obstructive pulmonary diseaseChronic obstructive pulmonary disease
Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease , also known as chronic obstructive lung disease , chronic obstructive airway disease , chronic airflow limitation and chronic obstructive respiratory disease , is the co-occurrence of chronic bronchitis and emphysema, a pair of commonly co-existing diseases...
at the age of 65.