Maria Fyfe
Encyclopedia
Maria Fyfe is a politician in the United Kingdom
and former Member of Parliament
for Glasgow Maryhill.
and graduating in 1975. She worked as a senior lecturer in the Trade Union Studies Unit at Glasgow Central College of Commerce from 1978 to 1987. In 1980, she was elected to Glasgow District Council, serving as Vice-Convener of the Finance Committee from then until 1984, when she became Convener of the Personnel Committee. She remained in this position until 1987, when she was elected to Parliament.
, Fyfe was returned to Parliament
as Member for Glasgow Maryhill
, a position she occupied until 2001
. She served as Deputy Shadow Minister for Women
from 1988 to 1991, Convener of the Scottish Group of Labour MPs from 1991 to 1992, and front bench
spokesperson for Scotland
from 1992 to 1995. She chaired concurrently the Labour Party Departmental Committee on International Development and the Labour Group in the UK Delegation to the Council of Europe, both from 1997 to 2001. She stood down at the 2001 General Election
and was succeeded by Anne McKechin. She was awarded an honorary
D.Univ. by the University of Glasgow
in 2002, the same year as Sir Fred Goodwin
.
She was quoted as saying: "I am proudest of having been involved in the 50-50 campaign to ensure that the Scottish Parliament
started life with an almost equal representation of women, up there with the Scandinavia
n countries".
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...
and former 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,...
for Glasgow Maryhill.
Early life
Born Maria O'Neill on 25 November 1938 to James O’Neill and Margaret Lacey, she became a member of the Labour Party in 1960. She came to education relatively later in life, studying Economic History at the University of StrathclydeUniversity of Strathclyde
The University of Strathclyde , Glasgow, Scotland, is Glasgow's second university by age, founded in 1796, and receiving its Royal Charter in 1964 as the UK's first technological university...
and graduating in 1975. She worked as a senior lecturer in the Trade Union Studies Unit at Glasgow Central College of Commerce from 1978 to 1987. In 1980, she was elected to Glasgow District Council, serving as Vice-Convener of the Finance Committee from then until 1984, when she became Convener of the Personnel Committee. She remained in this position until 1987, when she was elected to Parliament.
Parliamentary career
In 1987United Kingdom general election, 1987
The United Kingdom general election of 1987 was held on 11 June 1987, to elect 650 members to the British House of Commons. The election was the third consecutive election victory for the Conservative Party under the leadership of Margaret Thatcher, who became the first Prime Minister since the 2nd...
, Fyfe 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...
as Member for Glasgow Maryhill
Glasgow Maryhill (UK Parliament constituency)
Glasgow Maryhill was a parliamentary constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom from 1918 until 2005 when it was subsumed into the new Glasgow North and Glasgow North East constituencies...
, a position she occupied until 2001
United Kingdom general election, 2001
The United Kingdom general election, 2001 was held on Thursday 7 June 2001 to elect 659 members to the British House of Commons. It was dubbed "the quiet landslide" by the media, as the Labour Party was re-elected with another landslide result and only suffered a net loss of 6 seats...
. She served as Deputy Shadow Minister for Women
Minister for Women and Equality
The post of Minister for Women and Equalities is a ministerial position in the United Kingdom with responsibility for addressing all forms of discrimination, with particular emphasis on gender inequality.-History:...
from 1988 to 1991, Convener of the Scottish Group of Labour MPs from 1991 to 1992, and front bench
Frontbencher
In many parliaments and other similar assemblies, seating is typically arranged in banks or rows, with each political party or caucus grouped together. The spokespeople for each group will often sit at the front of their group, and are then known as being on the frontbench and are described as...
spokesperson for Scotland
Scottish Office
The Scottish Office was a department of the United Kingdom Government from 1885 until 1999, exercising a wide range of government functions in relation to Scotland under the control of the Secretary of State for Scotland...
from 1992 to 1995. She chaired concurrently the Labour Party Departmental Committee on International Development and the Labour Group in the UK Delegation to the Council of Europe, both from 1997 to 2001. She stood down at the 2001 General Election
United Kingdom general election, 2001
The United Kingdom general election, 2001 was held on Thursday 7 June 2001 to elect 659 members to the British House of Commons. It was dubbed "the quiet landslide" by the media, as the Labour Party was re-elected with another landslide result and only suffered a net loss of 6 seats...
and was succeeded by Anne McKechin. She was awarded an honorary
Honorary degree
An honorary degree or a degree honoris causa is an academic degree for which a university has waived the usual requirements, such as matriculation, residence, study, and the passing of examinations...
D.Univ. by the University of Glasgow
University of Glasgow
The University of Glasgow is the fourth-oldest university in the English-speaking world and one of Scotland's four ancient universities. Located in Glasgow, the university was founded in 1451 and is presently one of seventeen British higher education institutions ranked amongst the top 100 of the...
in 2002, the same year as Sir Fred Goodwin
Fred Goodwin
Sir Frederick Anderson Goodwin CA, FCIBS is a Scottish chartered accountant and former banker who was chief executive of the Royal Bank of Scotland Group between 2001 and 2009....
.
She was quoted as saying: "I am proudest of having been involved in the 50-50 campaign to ensure that the Scottish Parliament
Scottish Parliament
The Scottish Parliament is the devolved national, unicameral legislature of Scotland, located in the Holyrood area of the capital, Edinburgh. The Parliament, informally referred to as "Holyrood", is a democratically elected body comprising 129 members known as Members of the Scottish Parliament...
started life with an almost equal representation of women, up there with the Scandinavia
Scandinavia
Scandinavia is a cultural, historical and ethno-linguistic region in northern Europe that includes the three kingdoms of Denmark, Norway and Sweden, characterized by their common ethno-cultural heritage and language. Modern Norway and Sweden proper are situated on the Scandinavian Peninsula,...
n countries".