Susan Frances Maria Williams, Baroness Williams of Trafford (née McElroy; born 16 May 1967)''Baroness Williams of Trafford''
Profile at Democracy Live. Retrieved 8 February 2014. is a

Conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy and ideology that seeks to promote and preserve traditional institutions, customs, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civiliza ...

life peer In the United Kingdom, life peers are appointed members of the peerage whose titles cannot be inherited, in contrast to hereditary peers. Life peers are appointed by the monarch on the advice of the prime minister. With the exception of the D ...

who served as the Chief Whip of the House of Lords and

Captain of the Honourable Corps of Gentlemen-at-Arms Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader or highest rank officer of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police depa ...

between 2022 and 2024. In March 2022 she was made a member of the Privy Council. She has been Opposition Chief Whip in the House of Lords since July 2024.

Education

Williams was educated at La Sagesse School, a Roman Catholic private school in

Newcastle upon Tyne Newcastle upon Tyne, or simply Newcastle ( , Received Pronunciation, RP: ), is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and metropolitan borough in Tyne and Wear, England. It is England's northernmost metropolitan borough, located o ...

, and Huddersfield Polytechnic, where she gained a BSc Hons in Applied Nutrition.

Career

Early political career

She was a member of Trafford Metropolitan Borough Council from 1998 to 2011, representing

Altrincham Altrincham ( , locally ) is a market town in Trafford, Greater Manchester, England, south of the River Mersey. It is southwest of Manchester, southwest of Sale, Greater Manchester, Sale and east of Warrington. At the 2021 United Kingdom ce ...

, and the council's leader from 2004 to 2009, leading a Conservative majority until she stepped down. She has also been a member of various public bodies in the North West region. As a parliamentary candidate, she first stood unsuccessfully for the safe Labour Wythenshawe and Sale East constituency in 2001, and for the Bolton West constituency in the 2010 general election, losing by 92 votes.

House of Lords and ministerial career

On 20 September 2013 she was created a

as Baroness Williams of Trafford, of Hale in the county of

Greater Manchester Greater Manchester is a ceremonial county in North West England. It borders Lancashire to the north, Derbyshire and West Yorkshire to the east, Cheshire to the south, and Merseyside to the west. Its largest settlement is the city of Manchester. ...

. In April 2014, Williams succeeded Earl Attlee as baroness-in-waiting ( government whip). In 2015,

David Cameron David William Donald Cameron, Baron Cameron of Chipping Norton (born 9 October 1966) is a British politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 2010 to 2016. Until 2015, he led the first coalition government in the UK s ...

appointed Williams to his second government as a Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government. On 28 May 2015 she introduced the Cities and Local Government Devolution Bill 2015–16 to the

House of Lords The House of Lords is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Like the lower house, the House of Commons of the United Kingdom, House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminster in London, England. One of the oldest ext ...

. Williams was appointed Minister for Countering Extremism, the Home Office representative in the

in the First May ministry. She was appointed Minister of State for Equalities in January 2018 by

Theresa May Theresa Mary May, Baroness May of Maidenhead (; ; born 1 October 1956), is a British politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Conservative Party from 2016 to 2019. She previously served as Home Secretar ...

. In the 2020 British cabinet reshuffle, Williams was made Minister of State at the Home Office, and in March 2022 was made a member of the Privy Council, entitling her to the post-nominals PC for life. Following the resignation of

Boris Johnson Alexander Boris de Pfeffel Johnson (born 19 June 1964) is a British politician and writer who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Conservative Party (UK), Leader of the Conservative Party from 2019 to 2022. He wa ...

, and the appointment of

Liz Truss Mary Elizabeth Truss (born 26 July 1975) is a British politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Conservative Party (UK), Leader of the Conservative Party from September to October 2022. On her fiftieth da ...

Prime Minister of the United Kingdom The prime minister of the United Kingdom is the head of government of the United Kingdom. The prime minister Advice (constitutional law), advises the Monarchy of the United Kingdom, sovereign on the exercise of much of the Royal prerogative ...

, Williams was appointed as

Chief Whip of the Conservative Party The Chief Whip of the Conservative Party oversees the whipping system in the party, which is responsible for ensuring that Conservative MPs or members of the House of Lords attend and vote in parliament in the desired way of the party leadershi ...

in the

and

. In that role, she took part in the Royal Procession at the

Coronation of Charles III and Camilla The Coronation of the British monarch, coronation of Charles III and his wife, Queen Camilla, Camilla, as Monarchy of the United Kingdom, king and List of British royal consorts, queen of the United Kingdom and the 14 other Commonwealth re ...

References

External links

Baroness Williams of Trafford
– www.parliament.uk {{DEFAULTSORT:Williams, Susan, Baroness Williams of Trafford 1967 births Living people Williams of Trafford Life peeresses created by Elizabeth II Life peers created by Elizabeth II Williams of Trafford Alumni of the University of Huddersfield People from Altrincham People from Cork (city) Female interior ministers Irish emigrants to the United Kingdom British people of Irish descent Honourable Corps of Gentlemen at Arms Members of the Privy Council of the United Kingdom