Maureen Colquhoun
Maureen Morfydd Colquhoun (pronounced 'kah-hoon', born 12 August 1928[1]) is a British economist and Labour Party politician.
Education
She attended the London School of Economics and later worked as a literary research assistant.[1]
Political career
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]
Personal life
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]
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 Centre for Advancement of Women in Politics
- ↑ Jeffery-Poulter, Stephen (1991). Peers, Queers, and Commons: The Struggle for Gay Law Reform from 1950 to the Present. Routledge. pp. 136–8. ISBN 0-415-05760-4
- ↑ BBC News - Scandals Past, 22 December 1998
- ↑ Colquhoun, Maureen (10 November 1980). Woman in the House. Scan Publications. ISBN 0-906360-05-6.
- ↑ Everything 2 article on Colquhoun, consulted 31May 2010
- Times Guide to the House of Commons 1979
- The Almanac of British Politics 1999
| Parliament of the United Kingdom | ||
|---|---|---|
| New constituency | Member of Parliament for Northampton North February 1974–1979 |
Succeeded by Antony Marlow |
|