Rosie Duffield
Rosie Duffield | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Member of Parliament for Canterbury | |
| Assumed office 8 June 2017 | |
| Preceded by | Julian Brazier |
| Majority | 187 (0.3%) [1] |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 1 July 1971 London, England, UK |
| Political party | Labour |
| Children | 2 |
| Website | www |
Rosemary Clare Duffield[2] (born 1 July 1971) is a British Labour Party politician. She has been the Member of Parliament (MP) for Canterbury since the general election in June 2017.[3]
Early life
Duffield was born in London and left school at the age of 16.[4]
She moved to Canterbury in 1998. She has worked as a teaching assistant.[5] In 2016, she worked full-time as a writer of political satire for a year long project.[6]
In 2015, she stood in the St Stephen's ward for Canterbury City Council but lost to the Conservatives.[6][7] She was Chair of Canterbury Labour Party and has campaigned on issues including animal rights and environmental protection.[8]
Parliamentary career
Duffield was elected to parliament in the 2017 General Election with a majority of 187, defeating the incumbent Sir Julian Brazier.[1] She is the first Member of Parliament for Canterbury not to sit with the Conservative Party since its reformulation as a single-member seat in 1885 (Francis Bennett-Goldney was officially an Independent Unionist, but voted with the Conservatives).[9] Of the ninety-eight seats which changed parties, Canterbury had the longest unbroken affiliation to one party, five years longer than Mansfield which went Conservative.[10]
On her election, she was appointed Parliamentary Private Secretary to Dawn Butler, the Shadow Secretary of State for Women and Equalities. On 13 June 2018, Duffield, along with five others, resigned from the shadow cabinet in order to vote in favour of remaining in the single market by joining the European Economic Area, as the party had instructed its MPs to abstain.[11][12]
Controversies
Duffield was criticised for campaigning in 2017 against grammar schools while sending her children to a local grammar school.[13]
In October 2017, Duffield offered to apologise to the Canterbury LGBT community for appearing on Russian state-owned broadcaster "RT", amid a deteriorating climate for LGBT citizens in Russia.[14]
In August 2018, Duffield attracted national media attention for supporting a student boycott of a Japanese-themed cocktail bar in her constituency and saying that it had "crossed the line from cultural appreciation to cultural appropriation" for dressing white women in kimonos and geisha-style make-up on its opening night.[15] [16][17]
In September 2018, she said that Labour Party members who express antisemitic views should visit Auschwitz.[18] In July 2019, the chair of her constituency Labour Party said that her remarks on the antisemitism crisis in Labour were "incredibly reckless".[19]
Personal life
Duffield is a single mother of two sons. In December 2017, she announced her engagement to another former teacher.[20]
References
- ^ a b "Election 2017: Canterbury parliamentary constituency". BBC News. 9 June 2017. Retrieved 9 June 2017.
- ^ "No. 61961". The London Gazette. 19 June 2017. p. 11783.
- ^ "Rosie Duffield MP". parliament.uk. UK Parliament. Retrieved 1 August 2017.
- ^ Jackson, Matthew (9 June 2017). "How Rosie Duffield went from early school leaver to Canterbury's first Labour MP". kentlive.news. KentLive. Archived from the original on 10 June 2017. Retrieved 10 June 2017.
- ^ Duffield. "Duffield, Rosemary Clare". Who's Who. Vol. 2018 (February 2018 online ed.). A & C Black.
{{cite encyclopedia}}: Unknown parameter|accessed=ignored (help); Unknown parameter|othernames=ignored (help) (Subscription or UK public library membership required.) - ^ a b Claridge, Alex (9 June 2017). "Labour's Rosie Duffield makes history in Canterbury - but who is she?". kentonline.co.uk. KentOnline.
- ^ Grierson, Jamie (9 June 2017). "Canterbury tale: single mum becomes town's first ever Labour MP". The Guardian. Retrieved 10 June 2017.
- ^ Castle, Vicky (9 June 2017). "Who is Rosie Duffield? Meet the Labour MP who has made history". kentlive.news. KentLive. Archived from the original on 9 June 2017. Retrieved 9 June 2017.
- ^ "Bennett-Goldney". UK Parliament. Archived from the original on 8 March 2017. Retrieved 12 September 2019.
- ^ "Election Results 2017: Canterbury won by Labour for first time". BBC News. 9 June 2017. Retrieved 9 June 2017.
- ^ Culbertson, Alix (14 June 2018). "Six Labour MPs quit frontbench roles over key Brexit vote". Sky News. Retrieved 14 June 2018.
- ^ Morris, Nigel (13 June 2018). "Six Labour frontbenchers resign in protest at Labour's Brexit position". i News. Retrieved 14 June 2018.
- ^ Swinford, Steven. "New Labour MP who stood on anti-grammar school platform during election sent her children to one". The Telegraph. Retrieved 1 August 2017.
- ^ Walker, Joe (27 October 2017). "Russia Today appearance sparks apology from Canterbury Labour MP Rosie Duffield". Kent Online. Retrieved 19 February 2018.
- ^ "Canterburys newest nightclub Tokyo Tea Rooms accused of cultural appropriation". InQuire Media. 22 August 2018. Retrieved 27 November 2018.
- ^ "Japan-themed bar 'culturally insensitive'". BBC News. 24 August 2018. Retrieved 24 August 2018.
- ^ "Labour MP backs boycott of 'fake' Japanese cocktail bar in Canterbury". The Sun. 24 August 2018. Retrieved 24 August 2018.
- ^ "Canterbury MP Rosie Duffield says anti-Semitic Labour party members should visit Auschwitz". Kent Online. 23 September 2018. Retrieved 23 September 2019.
- ^ Wright, Joe (17 July 2019). "Rosie Duffield criticised by Canterbury Labour chairman for 'incredibly reckless' comments on anti-Semitism". Kent Online. Retrieved 23 September 2019.
- ^ Wright, Joe (21 December 2017). "Canterbury MP Rosie Duffield gets engaged days before Christmas". Kent Online. Retrieved 23 September 2019.