- Angela Eagle
Infobox MP
honorific-prefix =
name = Angela Eagle
honorific-suffix =MP
constituency_MP = Wallasey
parliament =
majority = 9,109 (24.8%)
predecessor =Lynda Chalker
successor =
term_start = 9 April 1992
term_end =
birth_date = Birth date and age|1961|02|17|df=yes
birth_place =Bridlington
death_date =
death_place =
nationality = British
spouse = Maria Exall
party = Labour
relations =
children =
residence =
alma_mater =St John's College, Oxford
occupation =
profession =
religion =
website =
footnotes =Angela Eagle (born 17 February 1961) is Labour
Member of Parliament for Wallasey. She is currently theExchequer Secretary to the Treasury based in theHM Treasury .Education
Born in
Bridlington , the daughter of a printworker, she was educated at the St Peter'sChurch of England Primary School,Formby and the Formby High School, before studying atSt John's College, Oxford where she was awarded aBachelor of Arts degree inPhilosophy, Politics and Economics in 1983, and where she was also chairwoman of the Oxford UniversityFabian Society 1980-1983. She worked briefly in the economic directorate of theConfederation of British Industry (CBI) in 1984, before working for theConfederation of Health Service Employees (COHSE) later in the year. At COHSE, she held several positions, leaving on her election to parliament in the capacity of parliamentary officer. She was elected secretary for the Constituency Labour Party inPeckham for two years from 1989.Parliamentary career
Eagle was first elected in the 1992 election when she defeated the Minister for Overseas Development at the Foreign Office
Lynda Chalker by 3,809 votes, and has remained an MP since. She made hermaiden speech on 11 May 1992. [http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm199293/cmhansrd/1992-05-11/Debate-6.html]In parliament she became a member of the Employment Select Committee in 1994, and was promoted by
Tony Blair in 1996 to the position of an Opposition Whip, and became a member of the Blair government following the 1997 General Election as theParliamentary Under Secretary of State at theDepartment for the Environment, Transport and the Regions , moving to theDepartment of Social Security in 1998. Following the 2001 General Election, she was a junior minister at theHome Office but was sacked by Blair in 2002. She has been a member of the Treasury Select Committee since 2003. She returned to the government underGordon Brown on 29 June 2007 in a new position within theHM Treasury ,Exchequer Secretary to the Treasury .Personal life
Eagle was joint winner of the British Girls' Under-18
chess championship in 1976. She gained the distinction of becoming British Parliament's first, and thus far only, openlylesbian member bycoming out in September 1997 in an interview with "The Observer ". [ [http://myweb.lsbu.ac.uk/~stafflag/angelaeagle.html] ] Dead link|date=September 2008Maureen Colquhoun , another lesbian MP, did not declare her sexuality until after she left parliament. [ [http://myweb.lsbu.ac.uk/~stafflag/maureencolquhoun.html] ] She has announced her impending civil partnership to Maria Exall, planned for September 2008, [ [http://www.liverpooldailypost.co.uk/liverpool-news/regional-news/2008/09/11/angela-eagle-my-pride-at-being-first-lesbian-mp-to-marry-64375-21793506/] ] and the ceremony took place on 27 September. [ [http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/merseyside/7639581.stm MP sets civil ceremony precedent] ,BBC News ]She was joined in the House of Commons at the 1997 General Election by her identical twin sister,
Maria Eagle , thus becoming the first set oftwin s to sit in the House. She and her sister are one of only two pairs of sisters in the Commons, the other sister pair areSylvia Heal andAnn Keen . She is also an avidcricket er.Notes
External links
* [http://www.angelaeaglemp.co.uk/ Angela Eagle] official site
* [http://politics.guardian.co.uk/person/0,9290,-1521,00.html Guardian Unlimited Politics - Ask Aristotle: Angela Eagle MP]
* [http://www.theyworkforyou.com/mp/angela_eagle/wallasey TheyWorkForYou.com - Angela Eagle MP]
* [http://publicwhip.org.uk/mp.php?mpn=Angela_Eagle&mpc=Wallasey The Public Whip - Angela Eagle MP] voting record
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