Paulette Hamilton
Paulette Hamilton | |
|---|---|
| Member of Parliament for Birmingham Erdington | |
| Assumed office 3 March 2022 | |
| Preceded by | Jack Dromey |
| Majority | 3,266 (19.2%) |
| Birmingham City Council Cabinet Member for Health and Social Care | |
| Assumed office May 2015 | |
| Leader | Albert Bore John Clancy Ian Ward |
| Member of Birmingham City Council for Holyhead | |
| Assumed office 10 June 2004 | |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Paulette Adassa Hamilton 1962 or 1963 (age 61–62) Birmingham, England |
| Political party | Labour |
| Website | www |
Paulette Adassa Hamilton (born 1962/1963)[1] is a British politician serving as Member of Parliament (MP) for Birmingham Erdington since 2022. She is a member of the Labour Party and is the first black MP to sit for a Birmingham constituency.[1]
Career
Hamilton is a member of Birmingham City Council, sitting for the Holyhead ward since 2004.[2] She is Birmingham City Council Cabinet Member for Health and Social Care[3] since 2015.
She worked as an NHS nurse for 25 years, mainly as a district nurse but also as a manager and for the Royal College of Nursing. She returned to work during the COVID-19 pandemic to vaccinate people in Birmingham.[4]
Hamilton said during her victory speech, “I'm truly humbled and honoured to be elected as a member of parliament. I will not take your vote for granted, I have met many of you and I have heard what you have to say and I commit to you now, I will work for you … I will be your voice in Westminster."[1]
Near the end of the 2022 by election campaign, remarks made by Hamilton in 2015 were uncovered by GB News where she suggested she was torn between a democratic vote and an uprising to enable black people to get what "we really deserve in this country".[5] The comments led to calls from some Conservative MPs for her to be suspended by the Labour Party, who responded by saying the remarks were taken out of context.[6]
Personal life
Hamilton was born into a working-class family of Jamaican heritage.[7] Her father, a factory worker, died within a week of her selection as candidate for the 2022 by-election. She has lived in the Erdington constituency since 1987.[8] She is married to Dennis, who makes and sells hats as the Hat Man below Grand Central in Birmingham city centre, and has five children, one step-child and, as of 2022[update], six grandchildren.[9][10]
Hamilton experienced racism as a nine-year-old when a school teacher "told me I would not amount to anything, and that girls like me were destined only 'to have babies'."[9] A more encouraging teacher, Mr Potter who taught maths at Handsworth Wood Girls' School (now Academy), inspired her to gain seven passes at GCE O level and go on to A levels, a career in nursing, and a degree.[9]
References
- ^ a b c Murray, Jessica (4 March 2022). "Birmingham Erdington byelection winner is Labour's Paulette Hamilton". The Guardian. Retrieved 4 March 2022.
- ^ "Councillor Paulette Hamilton". birmingham.gov.uk. Birmingham City Council. Retrieved 4 March 2022.
- ^ "Cabinet member for Health and Social Care". www.birmingham.gov.uk. Birmingham City Council. Retrieved 4 March 2022.
- ^ Howarth, Grace (27 January 2022). "Former district nurse selected as Labour candidate for by-election". Nursing Times. Retrieved 4 March 2022.
- ^ Merrick, Rob (2 March 2022). "Labour candidate suggested 'an uprising' might help black people more than democracy". The Independent.
- ^ "Row over by-election Labour candidate's comments". BBC News. 2 March 2022.
- ^ "Cllr Paulette Hamilton – Change Us". Retrieved 4 March 2022.
- ^ Rodgers, Sienna (25 February 2022). "Paulette Hamilton's fight for Erdington: "I do plan to be an MP for local people"". LabourList. Retrieved 4 March 2022.
- ^ a b c Haynes, Jane (18 October 2021). "Teacher's cruel remark to black city health leader when she was nine". BirminghamLive. Retrieved 4 March 2022.
- ^ Hyatt, Rakeem (22 August 2020). "Inside the hidden store beneath Grand Central". BirminghamLive. Retrieved 4 March 2022.
External links
- Profile at Birmingham City Council website, with photo
- Profile at Parliament of the United Kingdom
- Contributions in Parliament at Hansard
- 1960s births
- 21st-century English women politicians
- Black British MPs
- Black British women politicians
- British women nurses
- Councillors in Birmingham, West Midlands
- English people of Jamaican descent
- Female members of the Parliament of the United Kingdom for English constituencies
- Labour Party (UK) MPs for English constituencies
- Labour Party (UK) councillors
- Living people
- UK MPs 2019–present