Maureen Morfydd Colquhoun (pronounced 'Col-hoon', born 12 August 1928[1]) is a British economist and Labour Party politician.
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She attended the London School of Economics and later worked as a literary research assistant.[1]
She served as a councillor in West Sussex from 1971-74[1] until she was elected Member of Parliament (MP) for Northampton North in 1974. She had previously contested Tonbridge in the 1970 general election.[1]
At the 1979 general election, she lost her seat to the Conservative Antony Marlow on an 8% swing.
Following her defeat she returned to the House of Commons where she worked as an assistant to Labour MPs. She was elected to Hackney London Borough Council in 1982-1990.[1]
Colquhoun was Britain's first openly lesbian MP.[2] She punched a car park attendant in a row about a parking ticket in December 1974, and in 1977, after 'years of notoriety' in the house, she was deselected as a parliamentary candidate by her party.[3] She was married with three children, and divorced in 1980 after leaving Parliament.[1]
She published an autobiography in 1980[4]
Colquhoun moved to the Lake District where she was a member of the Lake District National Park Authority between 1998 and 2006.[5]
| Parliament of the United Kingdom | ||
|---|---|---|
| New constituency | Member of Parliament for Northampton North February 1974–1979 |
Succeeded by Antony Marlow |