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Dame Diana Ruth Johnson (born 25 July 1966) is a British politician who has served as the
Member of Parliament A member of parliament (MP) is the representative in parliament of the people who live in their electoral district. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, this term refers only to members of the lower house since upper house members of ...
(MP) for Kingston upon Hull North since the 2005 general election. A member of the Labour Party, she was elected as Chair of the Home Affairs Select Committee on 15 December 2021, replacing
Yvette Cooper Yvette Cooper (born 20 March 1969) is a British politician serving as Shadow Secretary of State for the Home Department, Shadow Home Secretary since 2021, and previously from 2011 to 2015. She served in Gordon Brown's Brown ministry, Cabinet as ...
. During the
Brown ministry Gordon Brown formed the Brown ministry after being invited by Queen Elizabeth II to form a new administration following the resignation of the previous Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, Tony Blair, on 27 June 2007. Brown formed his govern ...
, she served as
Parliamentary Under Secretary of State Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (or just Parliamentary Secretary, particularly in departments not led by a Secretary of State) is the lowest of three tiers of government minister in the UK government, immediately junior to a Minister ...
for Schools in the
Department for Children, Schools and Families Department for Children, Schools and Families (DCSF) was a department of the UK government, between 2007 and 2010, responsible for issues affecting people in England up to the age of 19, including child protection and education. DCSF was replac ...
, as well as being an Assistant Government Whip.


Early life

Johnson was born in
Northwich {{Infobox UK place , static_image_name = Northwich - Town Bridge.jpg , static_image_caption = Town Bridge, the River Weaver and the spire of Holy Trinity Church , official_name = Northwich , country ...
,
Cheshire Cheshire ( ) is a ceremonial and historic county in North West England, bordered by Wales to the west, Merseyside and Greater Manchester to the north, Derbyshire to the east, and Staffordshire and Shropshire to the south. Cheshire's county t ...
. After returning from wartime service in the Navy her father, Eric Johnson, founded the Eric Johnson
Electrical engineering Electrical engineering is an engineering discipline concerned with the study, design, and application of equipment, devices, and systems which use electricity, electronics, and electromagnetism. It emerged as an identifiable occupation in the l ...
(
electrician An electrician is a tradesperson specializing in electrical wiring of buildings, transmission lines, stationary machines, and related equipment. Electricians may be employed in the installation of new electrical components or the maintenance ...
s) company in
Little Leigh Little Leigh (formerly Leigh-juxta-Bartington) is a civil parish and village within the unitary authority of Cheshire West and Chester and the ceremonial county of Cheshire, England. It is situated on high ground on the north bank of the River ...
near Northwich, Cheshire (now continued by his son). She passed the Eleven plus and attended the Northwich County Grammar School for Girls (later the
County High School Leftwich The County High School, Leftwich, is a coeducational secondary school with academy status, for students between 11 and 16 years of age, in Leftwich, Cheshire, England. History The school was established in 1957 as the Northwich County Gramm ...
). At sixth form level she studied at
Sir John Deane's College Sir John Deane's Sixth Form College is a sixth form college in Northwich, Cheshire, UK. It was formerly Sir John Deane's Grammar School, which was founded in 1557. History Sir John Deane (in the 16th century, the title indicated a presbyter ...
from 1982 to 1984 where sh
studied
History, English and Economics. She gained an
LLB Bachelor of Laws ( la, Legum Baccalaureus; LL.B.) is an undergraduate law degree in the United Kingdom and most common law jurisdictions. Bachelor of Laws is also the name of the law degree awarded by universities in the People's Republic of Chi ...
in Law from
Queen Mary University of London , mottoeng = With united powers , established = 1785 – The London Hospital Medical College1843 – St Bartholomew's Hospital Medical College1882 – Westfield College1887 – East London College/Queen Mary College , type = Public researc ...
. She became a
barrister A barrister is a type of lawyer in common law jurisdictions. Barristers mostly specialise in courtroom advocacy and litigation. Their tasks include taking cases in superior courts and tribunals, drafting legal pleadings, researching law and ...
in 1991. From 1999 to 2005, she was a Barrister in Law at Paddington Law Centre. Johnson was a councillor in the
London Borough of Tower Hamlets The London Borough of Tower Hamlets is a London boroughs, London borough covering much of the traditional East End of London, East End. It was formed in 1965 from the merger of the former Metropolitan boroughs of the County of London, metropol ...
from 1994 to 2002, serving as Chair of
Social services Social services are a range of public services intended to provide support and assistance towards particular groups, which commonly include the disadvantaged. They may be provided by individuals, private and independent organisations, or administe ...
. She became a member of the London Assembly on 1 March 2003 after the resignation of
Trevor Phillips Sir Mark Trevor Phillips (born 31 December 1953) is a British writer, broadcaster and former politician who served as Chair of the London Assembly from 2000 to 2001 and from 2002 to 2003. He presented '' Trevor Phillips on Sunday'', a Sunda ...
who became chair of the
Commission for Racial Equality The Commission for Racial Equality (CRE) was a non-departmental public body in the United Kingdom which aimed to address racial discrimination and promote racial equality. The commission was established in 1976, and disbanded in 2007 when its ...
, having been next on the list of London-wide members at the 2000 election. She did not stand for re-election in 2004.


Parliamentary career

She stood unsuccessfully in
Brentwood and Ongar Brentwood and Ongar is a constituency in Essex represented in the House of Commons of the UK Parliament since 2017 by Alex Burghart, a Conservative, serving since September 2021 as Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Apprenticeships and ...
at the 2001 general election. At the May 2005 general election, she was elected Labour Member of Parliament for the Kingston upon Hull North constituency, succeeding veteran Labour MP Kevin McNamara. She is Hull's first female MP. In November 2005 Johnson was appointed as a
Parliamentary Private Secretary A Parliamentary Private Secretary (PPS) is a Member of Parliament (MP) in the United Kingdom who acts as an unpaid assistant to a minister or shadow minister. They are selected from backbench MPs as the 'eyes and ears' of the minister in the H ...
to the Minister of State for Pensions Reform, Stephen Timms. In 2007 she left this role to become an assistant Government Whip. She took on the additional role of Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Schools in the reshuffle of June 2009. During the
United Kingdom parliamentary expenses scandal The United Kingdom parliamentary expenses scandal was a major political scandal that emerged in 2009, concerning expenses claims made by members of the British Parliament in both the House of Commons and the House of Lords over the previous year ...
it was revealed that Johnson had claimed £987 in architects fees for her second home, which she voluntarily repaid, and had a £563 claim for crockery rejected as "excessive" In the 2010 general election Johnson polled 39.2% of the vote and held onto the Hull North constituency for Labour with her majority reduced to 641 votes. In 2014, Johnson proposed a Bill under the
Ten Minute Rule The Ten Minute Rule, also known as Standing Order No. 23, is a procedure in the Parliament of the United Kingdom for the introduction of Private Member's Bills in addition to the 20 per session normally permissible. It is one of the ways in whi ...
that would require sex and relationships education, including discussions around issues such as consent, to be made a compulsory part of the
National Curriculum A national curriculum is a common programme of study in schools that is designed to ensure nationwide uniformity of content and standards in education. It is usually legislated by the national government, possibly in consultation with state or other ...
Johnson was appointed in September 2015 by
Jeremy Corbyn Jeremy Bernard Corbyn (; born 26 May 1949) is a British politician who served as Leader of the Opposition and Leader of the Labour Party from 2015 to 2020. On the political left of the Labour Party, Corbyn describes himself as a socialist ...
, shortly after he became Labour party leader, as a shadow minister in the Foreign and Commonwealth team. In late June 2016, along with colleagues, she resigned as a shadow minister, unhappy at Corbyn's leadership following the 'leave' vote in the European membership referendum. She supported
Owen Smith Owen Smith (born 2 May 1970) is a former Labour Party politician and subsequently a British lobbyist, who has been the UK government relations director for pharmaceutical company Bristol Myers Squibb since 2020. Smith was Member of Parliamen ...
in the 2016 Labour Party leadership election. She is co-chair of the
APPG An all-party parliamentary group (APPG) is a grouping in the Parliament of the United Kingdom that is composed of members of parliament from all political parties, but have no official status within Parliament. Description and functions All-party ...
on
Haemophilia Haemophilia, or hemophilia (), is a mostly inherited genetic disorder that impairs the body's ability to make blood clots, a process needed to stop bleeding. This results in people bleeding for a longer time after an injury, easy bruising, ...
and Contaminated Blood, campaigned on the Contaminated Blood Scandal and, in November 2018, received the
Political Studies Association The Political Studies Association (PSA) is a learned society in the United Kingdom which exists to develop and promote the study of politics. It is the leading association in its field in the United Kingdom, with an international membership includi ...
's 'Backbencher of the Year' award in recognition of her efforts. In September 2019, Johnson became the first Labour MP to face a full reselection process by her local party after members voted that she should face a challenge. On 25 October 2019, Johnson's local party voted by 292 votes to 101 to reselect her as the candidate for the next election. She was re-elected in the 2019 general election.


Political positions


Prostitution

On 9 December 2020, Johnson introduced a
Ten Minute Rule The Ten Minute Rule, also known as Standing Order No. 23, is a procedure in the Parliament of the United Kingdom for the introduction of Private Member's Bills in addition to the 20 per session normally permissible. It is one of the ways in whi ...
bill that would introduce the
Nordic model approach to prostitution The Nordic model approach to prostitution, also known as the end demand, equality model, neo-abolitionism, partial decriminalization, and Swedish model, is an approach to prostitution law. It has been adopted in three of the five Nordic countri ...
, which would criminalise those paying for sex and criminalise websites which advertise prostitution. The bill was strongly criticised and opposed by sex workers including the
English Collective of Prostitutes The English Collective of Prostitutes (ECP) is a campaigning group which supports the decriminalisation of prostitution, sex workers' right to recognition and safety, and the provision of financial alternatives to prostitution so that no one ...
group, women's rights organisations,
trade union A trade union (labor union in American English), often simply referred to as a union, is an organization of workers intent on "maintaining or improving the conditions of their employment", ch. I such as attaining better wages and benefits ( ...
s,
Amnesty International Amnesty International (also referred to as Amnesty or AI) is an international non-governmental organization focused on human rights, with its headquarters in the United Kingdom. The organization says it has more than ten million members and sup ...
and thousands of individuals, who argued that this legislation would push the industry underground and put sex workers in danger.


Israel

In September 2020, Johnson was appointed a vice-chair of
Labour Friends of Israel Labour Friends of Israel (LFI) is a group in the Parliament of the United Kingdom that promotes support for a strong bilateral relationship between Britain and Israel, and seeks to strengthen ties between the British Labour Party and the Isra ...
. In November 2021, Johnson in the ''
Jewish News The ''Jewish News'' is a free weekly newspaper, established in 1997, that serves the Jewish communities of Greater London – specifically Middlesex, Hertfordshire and Essex. In 2002, it won the ''Press Gazette'' free newspaper of the year. In F ...
'' wrote an article supporting a speech by
Keir Starmer Sir Keir Rodney Starmer (; born 2 September 1962) is a British politician and barrister who has served as Leader of the Opposition and Leader of the Labour Party since 2020. He has been Member of Parliament (MP) for Holborn and St Pancras ...
that opposed the BDS of Israel. She said "Rejecting
anti-Zionist Anti-Zionism is opposition to Zionism. Although anti-Zionism is a heterogeneous phenomenon, all its proponents agree that the creation of the modern State of Israel, and the movement to create a sovereign Jewish state in the region of Palestine ...
antisemitism Antisemitism (also spelled anti-semitism or anti-Semitism) is hostility to, prejudice towards, or discrimination against Jews. A person who holds such positions is called an antisemite. Antisemitism is considered to be a form of racism. Antis ...
means opposing the BDS movement which demonises and delegitimises
Israel Israel (; he, יִשְׂרָאֵל, ; ar, إِسْرَائِيل, ), officially the State of Israel ( he, מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, label=none, translit=Medīnat Yīsrāʾēl; ), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated ...
, singling it out for boycotts and sanctions."


Abortion

In July 2021, Diana Johnson proposed an amendment that would liberalise abortion in England and Wales. Proponents of the amendment suggested this would bring English and Welsh law in line with recent legislative changes in
Northern Ireland Northern Ireland ( ga, Tuaisceart Éireann ; sco, label= Ulster-Scots, Norlin Airlann) is a part of the United Kingdom, situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, that is variously described as a country, province or region. Nort ...
. However, Johnson was strongly criticised for not clarifying whether this would allow for abortion up until birth. It has also been suggested by self described
pro-life Anti-abortion movements, also self-styled as pro-life or abolitionist movements, are involved in the abortion debate advocating against the practice of abortion and its legality. Many anti-abortion movements began as countermovements in respons ...
organisations that this would have removed the requirement for a doctor to be involved, allow for
sex selective abortion Sex-selective abortion is the practice of terminating a pregnancy based upon the predicted sex of the infant. The selective abortion of female fetuses is most common where male children are valued over female children, especially in parts of Eas ...
and removed conscience protections for those medical professionals who object to abortion. Johnson was also criticised by 800 medical professionals in a letter that suggested such an amendment would remove legal safeguards for both the mother and child and pointed out that extensions to the 24 week limit were only supported by 1% of the UK population according to a recent
Savanta ComRes Savanta ComRes is a market research consultancy based in London, England. Established in 2003 as Communicate Research Ltd, ComRes was a founding member of the British Polling Council in 2004, and is one of the UK's best known polling companies. ...
poll Poll, polled, or polling may refer to: Figurative head counts * Poll, a formal election ** Election verification exit poll, a survey taken to verify election counts ** Polling, voting to make decisions or determine opinions ** Polling places o ...
. Johnson received no support in Parliament for the amendment and was also criticised by
pro-choice Abortion-rights movements, also referred to as pro-choice movements, advocate for the right to have legal access to induced abortion services including elective abortion. They seek to represent and support women who wish to terminate their pre ...
politicians. Johnson declined to take the amendment to a vote.


Brexit

Johnson supported the indicative Parliamentary votes on Brexit and her local paper Hull Live reported that she had been threatened along with fellow Hull MP
Emma Hardy Emma Ann Hardy (born 17 July 1979) is a British Labour Party politician. She has been the Member of Parliament (MP) for Kingston upon Hull West and Hessle since the 2017 general election. Until May 2019, she was also a member of Hessle Town ...
on social media with being “shot and hanged” for this position.


Votes at 16

In 2017, Johnson co-sponsored a Bill in Parliament that would have granted 16-year-olds the right to vote in Parliamentary elections.


Honours

Johnson was appointed
Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...
(DBE) in the 2020 New Year Honours for charitable and political service, in part for her campaigning on contaminated blood transfusions. She was appointed to the Privy Council on 10 March 2021.


References


External links


Diana Johnson MP's website
official site
The Labour Party - Diana Johnson MP
official biography *

* ttp://news.bbc.co.uk/1/shared/mpdb/html/331.stm BBC Politics *


News items


Selected for the seat in February 2004
{{DEFAULTSORT:Johnson, Diana 1966 births Living people Labour Party (UK) MPs for English constituencies Female members of the Parliament of the United Kingdom for English constituencies Labour Members of the London Assembly Councillors in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets Alumni of Brunel University London People from Northwich 21st-century British women politicians UK MPs 2005–2010 UK MPs 2010–2015 UK MPs 2015–2017 UK MPs 2017–2019 UK MPs 2019–present Dames Commander of the Order of the British Empire Members of the Privy Council of the United Kingdom 21st-century English women 21st-century English people Women councillors in England