Kirsty McNeill is a Scottish politician serving as Member of Parliament (MP) for Midlothian since 2024. A member of the Labour and Co-operative Party, she also serves as Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Scotland.[1]

Kirsty McNeill
Official portrait, 2024
Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Scotland
Assumed office
9 July 2024
Prime MinisterKeir Starmer
Preceded byJohn Lamont
Member of Parliament
for Midlothian
Assumed office
4 July 2024
Preceded byOwen Thompson
Majority8,167 (18.5%)
Personal details
Political partyLabour and Co-operative
Websitekirstymcneill.com

Early life and career

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McNeill served as President of the Oxford University Student Union in 2001, during which time she successfully campaigned to prevent holocaust denier David Irving from speaking at a debate.[2]

She was previously an advisor to Gordon Brown when he was Prime Minister.[3] Prior to being elected, McNeill was Executive Director of Policy, Advocacy and Campaigns at Save the Children.

Political career

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In the 2005 general election, McNeill stood for Labour in the North Southwark and Bermondsey constituency, losing to the Liberal Democrats' candidate, Simon Hughes.

In the 2024 General Election, McNeill was elected Member of Parliament (MP) for Midlothian with 21,480 votes (48.6%) and a majority of 8,167 over the second place SNP candidate.[4] On 9 July 2024, she was appointed as a Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State in the Scotland Office.[5][6]

References

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  1. ^ "Ministerial Appointments: July 2024". GOV.UK. Retrieved 9 July 2024.
  2. ^ "The former student leaders entering Parliament". Wonkhe. Retrieved 16 July 2024.
  3. ^ Quinn, Andrew (5 March 2024). "Labour candidate Kirsty McNeill was 'raised by the SNP' but plans to win Midlothian for Keir Starmer". Daily Record. Retrieved 6 July 2024.
  4. ^ "Election 2024 > Midlothian results". BBC News. Retrieved 5 July 2024.
  5. ^ "Kirsty McNeill appointed Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State". GOV.UK. Office of the Secretary of State for Scotland. 9 July 2024. Retrieved 12 July 2024.
  6. ^ "Kirsty McNeill MP". GOV.UK. Retrieved 12 July 2024.
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