Joyce Quin, Baroness Quin
Encyclopedia
Joyce Gwendolen Quin, Baroness Quin, PC
(born 26 November 1944) is a Labour Party
politician in the United Kingdom
.
Quin was educated at Whitley Bay Grammar School, University of Newcastle and the London School of Economics
. She worked as a French language
lecturer and tutor at the University of Bath
and Durham University
.
She served as Member of the European Parliament
for Tyne South and Wear
and Tyne and Wear
successively from 1979 to 1989, and entered the House of Commons in the 1987 election
as Member of Parliament
for Gateshead East
. After boundary changes for the 1997 general election
, she represented the new Gateshead East and Washington West constituency from 1997 until she stepped down at the 2005 general election
and was replaced by Sharon Hodgson
.
Quin served as prisons minister, Minister for Europe, and as a junior agriculture minister. In this latter post, she played a key role in the 2001–2002 outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease, which started in a farm near her home in Gateshead. She asked to retire as a minister in 2001 to concentrate on her constituency interests. She had intended to stand for membership of a North East Regional Assembly on her retirement from Westminster, but the proposed body was rejected by a margin of 4–1 in a referendum in November 2004.
In April 2006, it was announced that Quin had been nominated for a life peerage by the Labour Party. The news had already been revealed in a list leaked to The Times
that eventually led to the Cash for Peerages
scandal. On 30 May, she was created Baroness Quin, of Gateshead in the County of Tyne and Wear. In November 2007, she was appointed Chair of the Franco-British Council (British Section). She was appointed a shadow Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
minister in by Harriet Harman
in May 2010, and was retained in that role by Ed Miliband
after his election as Leader of the Labour Party.
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...
(born 26 November 1944) is a 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 in the United Kingdom
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...
.
Quin was educated at Whitley Bay Grammar School, University of Newcastle and the London School of Economics
London School of Economics
The London School of Economics and Political Science is a public research university specialised in the social sciences located in London, United Kingdom, and a constituent college of the federal University of London...
. She worked as a French language
French language
French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
lecturer and tutor at the University of Bath
University of Bath
The University of Bath is a campus university located in Bath, United Kingdom. It received its Royal Charter in 1966....
and Durham University
Durham University
The University of Durham, commonly known as Durham University, is a university in Durham, England. It was founded by Act of Parliament in 1832 and granted a Royal Charter in 1837...
.
She served as Member of the European Parliament
Member of the European Parliament
A Member of the European Parliament is a person who has been elected to the European Parliament. The name of MEPs differ in different languages, with terms such as europarliamentarian or eurodeputy being common in Romance language-speaking areas.When the European Parliament was first established,...
for Tyne South and Wear
Tyne South and Wear (European Parliament constituency)
Prior to its uniform adoption of proportional representation in 1999, the United Kingdom used first-past-the-post for the European elections in England, Scotland and Wales...
and Tyne and Wear
Tyne and Wear (European Parliament constituency)
Prior to its uniform adoption of proportional representation in 1999, the United Kingdom used first-past-the-post for the European elections in England, Scotland and Wales...
successively from 1979 to 1989, and entered the House of Commons in the 1987 election
United 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...
as 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 Gateshead East
Gateshead East (UK Parliament constituency)
Gateshead East was a parliamentary constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It elected one Member of Parliament by the first past the post system of election.-History:...
. After boundary changes 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...
, she represented the new Gateshead East and Washington West constituency from 1997 until she stepped down 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....
and was replaced by Sharon Hodgson
Sharon Hodgson
Sharon Hodgson is a British Labour Party politician, who has been the Member of Parliament for Washington and Sunderland West since 2010...
.
Quin served as prisons minister, Minister for Europe, and as a junior agriculture minister. In this latter post, she played a key role in the 2001–2002 outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease, which started in a farm near her home in Gateshead. She asked to retire as a minister in 2001 to concentrate on her constituency interests. She had intended to stand for membership of a North East Regional Assembly on her retirement from Westminster, but the proposed body was rejected by a margin of 4–1 in a referendum in November 2004.
In April 2006, it was announced that Quin had been nominated for a life peerage by the Labour Party. The news had already been revealed in a list leaked to The Times
The Times
The Times is a British daily national newspaper, first published in London in 1785 under the title The Daily Universal Register . The Times and its sister paper The Sunday Times are published by Times Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary since 1981 of News International...
that eventually led to the Cash for Peerages
Cash for Peerages
Cash for Honours is the name given by some in the media to a political scandal in the United Kingdom in 2006 and 2007 concerning the connection between political donations and the award of life peerages...
scandal. On 30 May, she was created Baroness Quin, of Gateshead in the County of Tyne and Wear. In November 2007, she was appointed Chair of the Franco-British Council (British Section). She was appointed a shadow 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...
minister in by Harriet Harman
Harriet Harman
Harriet Ruth Harman QC is a British Labour Party politician, who is the Member of Parliament for Camberwell and Peckham, and was MP for the predecessorPeckham constituency from 1982 to 1997...
in May 2010, and was retained in that role by Ed Miliband
Ed Miliband
Edward Samuel Miliband is a British Labour Party politician, currently the Leader of the Labour Party and Leader of the Opposition...
after his election as Leader of the Labour Party.