Sandra Osborne
Encyclopedia
Sandra Currie Osborne is a Scottish
Labour politician
, who has been the Member of Parliament
for Ayr, Carrick and Cumnock since 2005
. She was first elected in 1997, and resigned from a government job in 2003 over the Iraq War. She was a member of the Foreign Affairs Select Committee from 2005–10. She is currently a member of the Defence Select Committee
and the Council of Europe
.
. She later attended evening classes before going on to Jordanhill College
where she gained the Diploma in Community Education. After working as a community worker in Glasgow
she moved to Ayrshire
, where she spent 14 years as a counsellor with Kilmarnock Women's Aid
. During that time she also studied part time at Strathclyde University where she graduated Master of Science in Equality and Discrimination. In 1997 she was one of the shortlisted finalists in the Scottish Woman of the Year Awards (Glasgow Evening Times) nominated for her work with abused women.
District Council and South Ayrshire Council where she also served as Convener of Community Services (Housing and Social Work). She is a member of the Trade Union Unite
(formerly TGWU) and has been active in the Labour Party since 1976, serving for a time as Ayr CLP Secretary. In 1983 she was a member of the Scottish contingent on the People's March for Jobs who walked from Glasgow to London. She was selected to stand for election for Labour in Ayr from an all-women shortlist
. This method of selection was subsequently declared illegal in January 1996 on the grounds that it breached sex discrimination laws. Despite the ruling in 1996, Labour candidates already selected from all women shortlists were allowed to remain in place. In May 1997 she was elected MP for Ayr constituency, becoming Ayr's first ever Labour MP and first ever woman MP. She was re-elected in the June 2001 general election
.
Osborne served as Parliamentary Private Secretary to Helen Liddell
, the Secretary of State for Scotland
, from June 2002 until she stepped down in March 2003 over her opposition to going to war with Iraq. She believed this should not have gone ahead without a second UN resolution. She had previously served as PPS to George Foulkes
, Minister of State at the Scotland Office and to his predecessor in that post, Brian Wilson. She has served as Chair of the Scottish Group of Labour MPs and member of the Scottish Executive of the Labour Party. She has served as Chair of the All Party Group on Meningitis. She was a member of the Kerley Committee on the Renewal of Local Democracy, providing a minority report opposing proportional representation.
In June 2004 Osborne was selected to be Labour candidate for the new constituency of Ayr, Carrick and Cumnock
, where she was returned at the 2005 general election
with a majority of 9,997. She served on the Foreign Affairs Select Committee from 2005 till 2010. She is also Secretary of the All Party Group on Colombia and the Women, Peace and Security Group. In 2006 the Prime Minister appointed her a member of the UK Delegation to the Parliamentary Assembly of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe
(OSCE).
On May 6, 2010 Osborne was re-elected as MP for Ayr, Carrick and Cumnock
with a majority of 9,911. In 2010 she was elected Vice Chair of Labour's backbench Foreign Affairs Committee and Chair of the All Party Equalities Group. In October 2010 she was appointed to the Defence Select Committee
and the Council of Europe
. In January 2011 the Speaker of the House of Commons
appointed her to his Panel of Chairs
.
Her political achievements include securing an amendment to the Government legislation on National Air Traffic Control Services which secured the building of the new Scottish Air Traffic Control Centre at Prestwick and playing a lead role in persuading the Government to set up the Financial Assistance Scheme and the Pension Protection Fund for those at risk of losing their occupational pensions if their employers go bankrupt. She was described as a "Labour lickspittle" in The Guardian newspaper's sketch column, for asking the Labour Prime Minister, Gordon Brown
, a leading question about Conservative Party policy during the last session of Prime Minister's Questions before the 2010 British general election
.
, Ayrshire.
Scottish people
The Scottish people , or Scots, are a nation and ethnic group native to Scotland. Historically they emerged from an amalgamation of the Picts and Gaels, incorporating neighbouring Britons to the south as well as invading Germanic peoples such as the Anglo-Saxons and the Norse.In modern use,...
Labour politician
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...
, 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,...
for Ayr, Carrick and Cumnock 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....
. She was first elected in 1997, and resigned from a government job in 2003 over the Iraq War. She was a member of the Foreign Affairs Select Committee from 2005–10. She is currently a member of the Defence Select Committee
Defence Select Committee
The Defence Select Committee is one of the Select Committees of the British House of Commons, having been established in 1979. It oversees the operations of the Ministry of Defence and its associated public bodies, including the armed forces.-Membership:...
and the Council of Europe
Council of Europe
The Council of Europe is an international organisation promoting co-operation between all countries of Europe in the areas of legal standards, human rights, democratic development, the rule of law and cultural co-operation...
.
Before Parliament
Osborne was born and brought up in Ferguslie Park, Paisley. She was educated at Camphill Secondary School in PaisleyPaisley
Paisley is the largest town in the historic county of Renfrewshire in the west central Lowlands of Scotland and serves as the administrative centre for the Renfrewshire council area...
. She later attended evening classes before going on to Jordanhill College
Jordanhill College
Jordanhill Campus, in Jordanhill, Glasgow, Scotland, is now home to the Faculty of Education of the University of Strathclyde. Within the University of Strathclyde faculty of education, departments include Childhood and Primary Studies, Creative and Aesthetic Studies, Curricular Studies,...
where she gained the Diploma in Community Education. After working as a community worker in Glasgow
Glasgow
Glasgow is the largest city in Scotland and third most populous in the United Kingdom. The city is situated on the River Clyde in the country's west central lowlands...
she moved to Ayrshire
Ayrshire
Ayrshire is a registration county, and former administrative county in south-west Scotland, United Kingdom, located on the shores of the Firth of Clyde. Its principal towns include Ayr, Kilmarnock and Irvine. The town of Troon on the coast has hosted the British Open Golf Championship twice in the...
, where she spent 14 years as a counsellor with Kilmarnock Women's Aid
Women's Aid
Women's Aid is a group of feminist charities across the United Kingdom. There are four main Women's Aid Federations, one for each country. Its aim is to end domestic violence against women and children...
. During that time she also studied part time at Strathclyde University where she graduated Master of Science in Equality and Discrimination. In 1997 she was one of the shortlisted finalists in the Scottish Woman of the Year Awards (Glasgow Evening Times) nominated for her work with abused women.
Political career
Osborne was the councillor for Whitletts on Kyle and CarrickKyle and Carrick
Kyle and Carrick was one of nineteen local government districts in the Strathclyde region of Scotland from 1975 to 1996....
District Council and South Ayrshire Council where she also served as Convener of Community Services (Housing and Social Work). She is a member of the Trade Union Unite
Unite
- Labor unions :*Unite the Union, a British and Irish trade union, formed by the merger of Amicus and T&G*Unite Union, a trade union in New Zealand*Unite Union , a trade union in Australia...
(formerly TGWU) and has been active in the Labour Party since 1976, serving for a time as Ayr CLP Secretary. In 1983 she was a member of the Scottish contingent on the People's March for Jobs who walked from Glasgow to London. She was selected to stand for election for Labour in Ayr from an all-women shortlist
All-women shortlists
The use of all-women shortlists is the political practice intended to increase the proportion of female Members of Parliament in the United Kingdom by allowing only women to stand in particular constituencies for a particular political party. Though the practice is available to all parties, only...
. This method of selection was subsequently declared illegal in January 1996 on the grounds that it breached sex discrimination laws. Despite the ruling in 1996, Labour candidates already selected from all women shortlists were allowed to remain in place. In May 1997 she was elected MP for Ayr constituency, becoming Ayr's first ever Labour MP and first ever woman MP. She was re-elected in the June 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...
.
Osborne served as Parliamentary Private Secretary to Helen Liddell
Helen Liddell
Helen Lawrie Liddell, Baroness Liddell of Coatdyke is a British Labour Party politician who was the Member of Parliament for Monklands East from 1994 to 1997, and then for Airdrie and Shotts until 2005, whereafter she became the British High Commissioner to Australia until 2009...
, the Secretary of State for Scotland
Secretary of State for Scotland
The Secretary of State for Scotland is the principal minister of Her Majesty's Government in the United Kingdom with responsibilities for Scotland. He heads the Scotland Office , a government department based in London and Edinburgh. The post was created soon after the Union of the Crowns, but was...
, from June 2002 until she stepped down in March 2003 over her opposition to going to war with Iraq. She believed this should not have gone ahead without a second UN resolution. She had previously served as PPS to George Foulkes
George Foulkes, Baron Foulkes of Cumnock
George Foulkes, Baron Foulkes of Cumnock, PC is a British Labour Party life peer. He has been a member of the House of Commons, the House of Lords and the Scottish Parliament...
, Minister of State at the Scotland Office and to his predecessor in that post, Brian Wilson. She has served as Chair of the Scottish Group of Labour MPs and member of the Scottish Executive of the Labour Party. She has served as Chair of the All Party Group on Meningitis. She was a member of the Kerley Committee on the Renewal of Local Democracy, providing a minority report opposing proportional representation.
In June 2004 Osborne was selected to be Labour candidate for the new constituency of Ayr, Carrick and Cumnock
Ayr, Carrick and Cumnock (UK Parliament constituency)
Ayr, Carrick, and Cumnock is a county constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It was created for the 2005 general election from parts of the old Ayr and Carrick, Cumnock and Doon Valley constituencies....
, where she was returned at 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....
with a majority of 9,997. She served on the Foreign Affairs Select Committee from 2005 till 2010. She is also Secretary of the All Party Group on Colombia and the Women, Peace and Security Group. In 2006 the Prime Minister appointed her a member of the UK Delegation to the Parliamentary Assembly of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe
Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe
The Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe is the world's largest security-oriented intergovernmental organization. Its mandate includes issues such as arms control, human rights, freedom of the press and fair elections...
(OSCE).
On May 6, 2010 Osborne was re-elected as MP for Ayr, Carrick and Cumnock
Ayr, Carrick and Cumnock (UK Parliament constituency)
Ayr, Carrick, and Cumnock is a county constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It was created for the 2005 general election from parts of the old Ayr and Carrick, Cumnock and Doon Valley constituencies....
with a majority of 9,911. In 2010 she was elected Vice Chair of Labour's backbench Foreign Affairs Committee and Chair of the All Party Equalities Group. In October 2010 she was appointed to the Defence Select Committee
Defence Select Committee
The Defence Select Committee is one of the Select Committees of the British House of Commons, having been established in 1979. It oversees the operations of the Ministry of Defence and its associated public bodies, including the armed forces.-Membership:...
and the Council of Europe
Council of Europe
The Council of Europe is an international organisation promoting co-operation between all countries of Europe in the areas of legal standards, human rights, democratic development, the rule of law and cultural co-operation...
. In January 2011 the Speaker of the House of Commons
Speaker of the House of Commons
Speaker of the House of Commons can refer to:*Speaker of the House of Commons *Speaker of the House of Commons of Canada*Speaker of the Northern Ireland House of Commons...
appointed her to his Panel of Chairs
Panel of Chairs
The Panel of Chairs are members of the House of Commons of the United Kingdom responsible for chairing public bill committees and other General Committees, as well as debates in Westminster Hall, the parallel debating chamber. The three Deputy Speakers, who are automatically members, are...
.
Her political achievements include securing an amendment to the Government legislation on National Air Traffic Control Services which secured the building of the new Scottish Air Traffic Control Centre at Prestwick and playing a lead role in persuading the Government to set up the Financial Assistance Scheme and the Pension Protection Fund for those at risk of losing their occupational pensions if their employers go bankrupt. She was described as a "Labour lickspittle" in The Guardian newspaper's sketch column, for asking the Labour Prime Minister, Gordon Brown
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...
, a leading question about Conservative Party policy during the last session of Prime Minister's Questions before the 2010 British general election
General election
In a parliamentary political system, a general election is an election in which all or most members of a given political body are chosen. The term is usually used to refer to elections held for a nation's primary legislative body, as distinguished from by-elections and local elections.The term...
.
Expenses
In February 2010 Osborne was ordered to repay £2,612.12 in expenses that had been overpaid to her for claims relating to furniture, council tax, utilities and rent.Family
She is married to Alastair Osborne, who was Labour candidate in the same Ayr constituency in 1992 that Mrs Osborne won in 1997. They have two daughters and two granddaughters and live in SymingtonSymington, South Ayrshire
Symington is a conservation village in South Ayrshire, Scotland. It is located in Symington Parish, covering 0.41sq Km, and lies close to the A77 road from Ayr to Glasgow...
, Ayrshire.