Luciana Berger
Encyclopedia
Luciana Clare Berger is a British
Labour Co-operative
politician
who has been the Member of Parliament
(MP) for Liverpool Wavertree since 2010. She is a shadow minister for Climate Change.
, Berger was educated at Haberdashers' Aske's School for Girls
, a private school in Elstree
, Hertfordshire
, followed by the University of Birmingham
, where she obtained a degree in Commerce and Spanish and spent a year studying in ICADE
in Madrid
, and Birkbeck College
at the University of London
, where she took a part-time Masters degree in Government, Politics and Policy.
. An independent inquiry later cleared the NUS of failing to tackle anti-Semitism, but criticised it for not having rigorous complaints procedures in place and reacting too slowly to allegations. The report was also critical of Berger, who attended a meeting with the head of the School of Oriental and African Studies
following complaints from Jewish students that the union was tolerating anti-Semitism. It stated that "Miss Berger should not have attended the meeting, which was implicitly critical of the union, when she was a national executive member. Protocol dictates she should have sought to support the union in tackling the problem first".
. Berger worked in public affairs for the management consultancy Accenture
before moving to the public sector where she joined the NHS Confederation
as their government and parliamentary affairs manager.
She was a committee member of the London Jewish Forum
, an organisation dedicated to the promotion of Jewish life in London but resigned when she was elected in 2010.
lodged protests about the selection process. Berger lived during the selection process for about a month at the home of Jane Kennedy
, then the sitting MP, whose boyfriend was the Labour official, Peter Dowling, who ran the selection process. The completed ballot papers were returned to Kennedy's home address. Kennedy insisted that she and Dowling acted properly. Nearby MP, Peter Kilfoyle
, claimed that there had been a deliberate operation by Blairites to get Berger selected. Unison instead supported Liverpool city councillor Wendy Simon for selection to be Labour's candidate. Berger was selected as Labour candidate for Liverpool Wavertree by 94 votes, defeating her nearest rival Wendy Simon who got 50 votes.
A further source of controversy was Labour National Executive Committee
's imposition of an all-women shortlist on the local party, against the wishes of many. Berger also criticised the process after her victory, stating "I would like to have won in an open contest. People have already said I didn't deserve to win."
During the run-up to the General Election, in January 2010, the Liverpool Echo
tested Berger with a four-question quiz on Liverpool life and history. She scored two out of four, not knowing who performed Ferry Cross the Mersey
and not recognising the name of former Liverpool F.C.
manager, Bill Shankly
. In her defence, Berger said, "You can't ask a girl a football question" and added "I'm not new to the city. I've been coming here for the past decade through all different jobs."
Having secured the nomination for Wavertree Berger campaigned on pledges to work closely with local business, tackle anti-social behaviour, maintain public services and to reduce the number of derelict houses in the constituency by ensuring the Council use tough laws fast to deal with absent landlords. This was despite the vast majority of derelict housing (900) within Wavertree being as a result of the Labour Government's Pathfinder project, as found by an Evaluation performed by John Moores University,. She also signed a pledge to vote against any rises in university tuition fees and to put pressure on the next government to introduce an alternative to variable tuition fees
On 6 May 2010, Berger was elected at the UK General Election with 53.1% of the vote.
According to the Liverpool Echo
, on 31 October 2010, Berger "sparked outrage online" after appearing in a Radio Five Live show, which also featured former editor of The Sun, Kelvin MacKenzie
. MacKenzie was editor at the time of the Hillsborough disaster
, and the paper's coverage of the story led to a widespread boycott of the paper on Merseyside
that lasts to this day, and vilification of MacKenzie. The Echo wrote that Berger responded to the criticism on her Twitter
feed, writing, "Was there for the MP bit with Amber Rudd
, wasn't told before who the other guests were."
At Prime Minister's Questions
on Wednesday 27 October 2010, Berger asked about the Government’s decision to go back on its commitment to introduce tax relief for the video games industry, which employs 600 people in Wavertree.
On 9 December 2010, she voted against rises in university tuition fees.
In March 2011, Berger asked the Secretary of State for Defence
how many items over the value of £100 had been taken without authorisation from Ministry of Defence
sites. It was later revealed that the total cost of items stolen during 2010 amounted to £700,000 — “enough to launch a small coup”, according to the Labour
MP.
Berger is a user of Twitter
and spoke in support of allowing MPs to tweet in the House of Commons during a debate on 13th October 2011.
and the Green Deal, writing in the environment section of The Guardian
about the need for a pro-environmental-business agenda.
In the run up to the 2011 Budget, Berger also contributed an article to the Labour blog Left Foot Forward challenging the Chancellor of the Exchequer to meet "three Climate Change tests" in order for the Government to reach the Prime Minister's aim of being the "Greenest Government ever"
In June 2011, Berger secured an amendment to the Energy Bill, the Green Deal apprenticeship programme. The amendment states that The Secretary of State will report to parliament on proposals for an apprenticeships scheme within the Green Deal.
Berger also signed Early Day Motion 1640 in Parliament to raise awareness of the topic, which was co-sponsored by other Merseyside MPs Louise Ellman, Bill Esterson, George Howarth, Steve Rotheram and Stephen Twigg.
, Labour MP for Birmingham Erdington until 2010 and with Chucka Umunna, Labour MP for Streatham
.
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 Co-operative
Labour Co-operative
Labour and Co-operative describes those candidates in British elections standing on behalf of both the Labour Party and the Co-operative Party, based on a national agreement between the two parties....
politician
Politician
A politician, political leader, or political figure is an individual who is involved in influencing public policy and decision making...
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 Liverpool Wavertree since 2010. She is a shadow minister for Climate Change.
Education
Born in WembleyWembley
Wembley is an area of northwest London, England, and part of the London Borough of Brent. It is home to the famous Wembley Stadium and Wembley Arena...
, Berger was educated at Haberdashers' Aske's School for Girls
Haberdashers' Aske's School for Girls
Haberdashers' Aske's School for Girls is an academically high-achieving British independent school in Elstree, near Borehamwood, in the county of Hertfordshire. It is often known as "Habs" or "Habs girls", to distinguish it from the neighbouring Haberdashers' Aske's Boys' School...
, a private school in Elstree
Elstree
Elstree is a village in the Hertsmere borough of Hertfordshire on the A5 road, about 10 miles north of London. In 2001, its population was 4,765, and forms part of the civil parish of Elstree and Borehamwood, originally known simply as Elstree....
, Hertfordshire
Hertfordshire
Hertfordshire is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the East region of England. The county town is Hertford.The county is one of the Home Counties and lies inland, bordered by Greater London , Buckinghamshire , Bedfordshire , Cambridgeshire and...
, followed by the University of Birmingham
University of Birmingham
The University of Birmingham is a British Redbrick university located in the city of Birmingham, England. It received its royal charter in 1900 as a successor to Birmingham Medical School and Mason Science College . Birmingham was the first Redbrick university to gain a charter and thus...
, where she obtained a degree in Commerce and Spanish and spent a year studying in ICADE
ICADE
ICADE is the brand name by which two schools of the Comillas Pontifical University, located in Madrid , are known. It stands for Instituto Católico de Administración y Dirección de Empresas , the name of an Institute that merged with the Comillas Pontifical University in 1978, giving birth to two...
in Madrid
Madrid
Madrid is the capital and largest city of Spain. The population of the city is roughly 3.3 million and the entire population of the Madrid metropolitan area is calculated to be 6.271 million. It is the third largest city in the European Union, after London and Berlin, and its metropolitan...
, and Birkbeck College
Birkbeck, University of London
Birkbeck, University of London is a public research university located in London, United Kingdom and a constituent college of the federal University of London. It offers many Master's and Bachelor's degree programmes that can be studied either part-time or full-time, though nearly all teaching is...
at the University of London
University of London
-20th century:Shortly after 6 Burlington Gardens was vacated, the University went through a period of rapid expansion. Bedford College, Royal Holloway and the London School of Economics all joined in 1900, Regent's Park College, which had affiliated in 1841 became an official divinity school of the...
, where she took a part-time Masters degree in Government, Politics and Policy.
Student politics
Berger was a National Executive Committee member of the National Union of Students. She co-convened the NUS Anti-Racism / Anti-Fascism Campaign. In April 2005, she resigned from the Executive Committee, accusing other NEC members of anti-SemitismAnti-Semitism
Antisemitism is suspicion of, hatred toward, or discrimination against Jews for reasons connected to their Jewish heritage. According to a 2005 U.S...
. An independent inquiry later cleared the NUS of failing to tackle anti-Semitism, but criticised it for not having rigorous complaints procedures in place and reacting too slowly to allegations. The report was also critical of Berger, who attended a meeting with the head of the School of Oriental and African Studies
School of Oriental and African Studies
The School of Oriental and African Studies is a public research university located in London, United Kingdom and a constituent college of the University of London...
following complaints from Jewish students that the union was tolerating anti-Semitism. It stated that "Miss Berger should not have attended the meeting, which was implicitly critical of the union, when she was a national executive member. Protocol dictates she should have sought to support the union in tackling the problem first".
Career
Berger was director of Labour Friends of IsraelLabour 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...
. Berger worked in public affairs for the management consultancy Accenture
Accenture
Accenture plc is a global management consulting, technology services and outsourcing company headquartered in Dublin, Republic of Ireland. It is the largest consulting firm in the world and is a Fortune Global 500 company. As of September 2011, the company had more than 236,000 employees across...
before moving to the public sector where she joined the NHS Confederation
NHS Confederation
The NHS Confederation is an independent membership organisation in the United Kingdom that represents all types of providers and commissioners of National Health Service services in England. It is the only body to speak for the whole of the NHS on the issues that matter to all those involved in...
as their government and parliamentary affairs manager.
She was a committee member of the London Jewish Forum
London Jewish Forum
The London Jewish Forum is dedicated to the promotion of Jewish life in London. The Forum provides a platform for engagement between London Jewry and the Greater London Authority, Mayor's Office, London Boroughs and MPs / MEPs. It works to promote the full and active engagement of the Jewish...
, an organisation dedicated to the promotion of Jewish life in London but resigned when she was elected in 2010.
2010 general election
Berger's selection was controversial within the local party. Frank Hont, the regional secretary of the regional branch of the union UNISONUNISON
UNISON is the largest trade union in the United Kingdom with over 1.3 million members.The union was formed in 1993 when three public sector trade unions, the National and Local Government Officers Association , the National Union of Public Employees and the Confederation of Health Service...
lodged protests about the selection process. Berger lived during the selection process for about a month at the home of Jane Kennedy
Jane Kennedy (politician)
Jane Elizabeth Kennedy is a British Labour Party politician, who was the Member of Parliament for Liverpool Wavertree from 1992 until she stood down in 2010...
, then the sitting MP, whose boyfriend was the Labour official, Peter Dowling, who ran the selection process. The completed ballot papers were returned to Kennedy's home address. Kennedy insisted that she and Dowling acted properly. Nearby MP, Peter Kilfoyle
Peter Kilfoyle
Peter Kilfoyle is a British Labour Party politician who was the Member of Parliament for Liverpool Walton from 1991 to 2010.-Early life:...
, claimed that there had been a deliberate operation by Blairites to get Berger selected. Unison instead supported Liverpool city councillor Wendy Simon for selection to be Labour's candidate. Berger was selected as Labour candidate for Liverpool Wavertree by 94 votes, defeating her nearest rival Wendy Simon who got 50 votes.
A further source of controversy was Labour 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,...
's imposition of an all-women shortlist on the local party, against the wishes of many. Berger also criticised the process after her victory, stating "I would like to have won in an open contest. People have already said I didn't deserve to win."
During the run-up to the General Election, in January 2010, the Liverpool Echo
Liverpool Echo
The Liverpool Echo is a newspaper published by Trinity Mirror in Liverpool, Merseyside, England. It is published Monday to Saturday, and is Liverpool's evening newspaper while its sister paper, the Liverpool Daily Post, is the morning paper...
tested Berger with a four-question quiz on Liverpool life and history. She scored two out of four, not knowing who performed Ferry Cross the Mersey
Ferry Cross the Mersey
"Ferry Cross the Mersey" is a song written by Gerry Marsden. It was first recorded by his band Gerry and the Pacemakers and released in late 1964 in the UK and in 1965 in the United States. It was a hit on both sides of the Atlantic, reaching number six in the United States and number eight in the...
and not recognising the name of former Liverpool F.C.
Liverpool F.C.
Liverpool Football Club is an English Premier League football club based in Liverpool, Merseyside. Liverpool has won eighteen League titles, second most in English football, seven FA Cups and a record seven League Cups...
manager, Bill Shankly
Bill Shankly
William "Bill" Shankly, OBE was a Scottish football player and manager, most noted for managing Liverpool between 1959 and 1974. One of Britain's most successful and respected football managers, Shankly was also a fine player whose career was interrupted by the Second World War...
. In her defence, Berger said, "You can't ask a girl a football question" and added "I'm not new to the city. I've been coming here for the past decade through all different jobs."
Having secured the nomination for Wavertree Berger campaigned on pledges to work closely with local business, tackle anti-social behaviour, maintain public services and to reduce the number of derelict houses in the constituency by ensuring the Council use tough laws fast to deal with absent landlords. This was despite the vast majority of derelict housing (900) within Wavertree being as a result of the Labour Government's Pathfinder project, as found by an Evaluation performed by John Moores University,. She also signed a pledge to vote against any rises in university tuition fees and to put pressure on the next government to introduce an alternative to variable tuition fees
On 6 May 2010, Berger was elected at the UK General Election with 53.1% of the vote.
Parliamentary career
Berger was elected to the Business, Innovation and Skills Committee, but left the role when approximately five months after first joining Parliament she was appointed a junior shadow minister for Energy and Climate Change.According to the Liverpool Echo
Liverpool Echo
The Liverpool Echo is a newspaper published by Trinity Mirror in Liverpool, Merseyside, England. It is published Monday to Saturday, and is Liverpool's evening newspaper while its sister paper, the Liverpool Daily Post, is the morning paper...
, on 31 October 2010, Berger "sparked outrage online" after appearing in a Radio Five Live show, which also featured former editor of The Sun, Kelvin MacKenzie
Kelvin MacKenzie
Kelvin Calder MacKenzie is an English media executive and former newspaper editor. He is best known for being editor of The Sun newspaper between 1981 and 1994, an era in which the paper was established as Britain's best selling newspaper.- Biography :MacKenzie was educated at Alleyn's School...
. MacKenzie was editor at the time of the Hillsborough disaster
Hillsborough disaster
The Hillsborough disaster was a human crush that occurred on 15 April 1989 at Hillsborough, a football stadium, the home of Sheffield Wednesday F.C. in Sheffield, England, resulting in the deaths of 96 people, and 766 being injured, all fans of Liverpool F.C....
, and the paper's coverage of the story led to a widespread boycott of the paper on Merseyside
Merseyside
Merseyside is a metropolitan county in North West England, with a population of 1,365,900. It encompasses the metropolitan area centred on both banks of the lower reaches of the Mersey Estuary, and comprises five metropolitan boroughs: Knowsley, St Helens, Sefton, Wirral, and the city of Liverpool...
that lasts to this day, and vilification of MacKenzie. The Echo wrote that Berger responded to the criticism on her Twitter
Twitter
Twitter is an online social networking and microblogging service that enables its users to send and read text-based posts of up to 140 characters, informally known as "tweets".Twitter was created in March 2006 by Jack Dorsey and launched that July...
feed, writing, "Was there for the MP bit with Amber Rudd
Amber Rudd
Amber Rudd is a British Conservative Party politician who was elected as Member of Parliament for the East Sussex constituency of Hastings and Rye at the May 2010 general election, defeating the incumbent Labour MP Michael Foster.Rudd is an alumna of Edinburgh University...
, wasn't told before who the other guests were."
At Prime Minister's Questions
Prime Minister's Questions
Prime minister's questions is a constitutional convention in the United Kingdom that takes place every Wednesday during which the prime minister spends half an hour answering questions from members of parliament...
on Wednesday 27 October 2010, Berger asked about the Government’s decision to go back on its commitment to introduce tax relief for the video games industry, which employs 600 people in Wavertree.
On 9 December 2010, she voted against rises in university tuition fees.
In March 2011, Berger asked the Secretary of State for Defence
Secretary of State for Defence
The Secretary of State for Defence, popularly known as the Defence Secretary, is the senior Government of the United Kingdom minister in charge of the Ministry of Defence, chairing the Defence Council. It is a Cabinet position...
how many items over the value of £100 had been taken without authorisation from Ministry of Defence
Ministry of Defence (United Kingdom)
The Ministry of Defence is the United Kingdom government department responsible for implementation of government defence policy and is the headquarters of the British Armed Forces....
sites. It was later revealed that the total cost of items stolen during 2010 amounted to £700,000 — “enough to launch a small coup”, according to the 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...
MP.
Berger is a user of Twitter
Twitter
Twitter is an online social networking and microblogging service that enables its users to send and read text-based posts of up to 140 characters, informally known as "tweets".Twitter was created in March 2006 by Jack Dorsey and launched that July...
and spoke in support of allowing MPs to tweet in the House of Commons during a debate on 13th October 2011.
Shadow Minister for Climate Change
As Shadow Minister for Climate Change, Berger, has been critical of the Government's actions on the environmental agenda, particularly focusing on the Green Investment BankGreen Investment Bank
Green Investment Bank is a funding scheme initiated in 2010 by the British government and assigned the task of attracting private funds for the financing of the British private sector's investments related to environmental preservation and improvement....
and the Green Deal, writing in the environment section of The Guardian
The Guardian
The Guardian, formerly known as The Manchester Guardian , is a British national daily newspaper in the Berliner format...
about the need for a pro-environmental-business agenda.
In the run up to the 2011 Budget, Berger also contributed an article to the Labour blog Left Foot Forward challenging the Chancellor of the Exchequer to meet "three Climate Change tests" in order for the Government to reach the Prime Minister's aim of being the "Greenest Government ever"
In June 2011, Berger secured an amendment to the Energy Bill, the Green Deal apprenticeship programme. The amendment states that The Secretary of State will report to parliament on proposals for an apprenticeships scheme within the Green Deal.
"Save BBC Radio Merseyside" campaign
In response to proposals by the BBC to consider reducing locally produced content on their local radio network to cover only the breakfast and drivetime periods and syndicating Five Live during the daytime, Berger launched a campaign to Save BBC Radio Merseyside.Berger also signed Early Day Motion 1640 in Parliament to raise awareness of the topic, which was co-sponsored by other Merseyside MPs Louise Ellman, Bill Esterson, George Howarth, Steve Rotheram and Stephen Twigg.
Personal life
Berger previously had a relationship with Siôn SimonSiôn Simon
Siôn Llewelyn Simon is a British Labour politician, who served as the Member of Parliament for Birmingham Erdington from 2001 to 2010. Simon was the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Creative Industries...
, Labour MP for Birmingham Erdington until 2010 and with Chucka Umunna, Labour MP for Streatham
Streatham (UK Parliament constituency)
Streatham 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:...
.