Fiona Twycross, Baroness Twycross
British politician (born 1969)
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Fiona Ruth Twycross, Baroness Twycross (born 29 May 1969) is a British Labour Party politician. She has been a Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State at the Department for Culture, Media and Sport and a Baroness-in-Waiting since July 2024.[1]
The Baroness Twycross | |
|---|---|
Official portrait, 2023 | |
| Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Museums, Heritage and Gambling[a] | |
| Assumed office 23 July 2024 | |
| Prime Minister | Keir Starmer |
| Preceded by | Stuart Andrew |
| Baroness-in-Waiting Government Whip | |
| Assumed office 11 July 2024 | |
| Prime Minister | Keir Starmer |
| Deputy Mayor for Fire and Resilience | |
| In office 1 April 2018 – 10 May 2024 | |
| Mayor | Sadiq Khan |
| Preceded by | Office created |
| Succeeded by | Jules Pipe |
| Member of the House of Lords | |
| Life peerage 7 November 2022 | |
| Member of the London Assembly as the 6th Additional Member | |
| In office 6 May 2016 – 22 March 2020 | |
| Preceded by | Murad Qureshi |
| Succeeded by | Murad Qureshi |
| Member of the London Assembly as the 8th Additional Member | |
| In office 3 May 2012 – 6 May 2016 | |
| Preceded by | Caroline Pidgeon |
| Succeeded by | Tom Copley |
| Personal details | |
| Party | Labour |
| University of Edinburgh | |
Early life
Twycross was born in South London before moving to Oxford. She studied at Cheney School in Oxford[citation needed] before going on to study Scandinavian Studies at the University of Edinburgh; she has a PhD in contemporary Scandinavian literature. She subsequently studied Public Policy and Management at Birkbeck, University of London.[2]
Career
Prior to her election as a member of the London Assembly, Twycross worked for Diabetes UK as Head of Governance, having previously worked as the charity's Head of Campaigns and Volunteer Development. She has also worked for the Labour Party as Regional Director in Yorkshire and the Humber and the North East, and was Agent for the Sedgefield by-election, in which Phil Wilson succeeded Tony Blair after Blair's resignation from parliament.
Twycross was placed third on Labour's list for the 2012 London Assembly election[3] and was elected as a London-wide Assembly Member in May 2012.[4] She was re-elected as a London-wide member in 2016.[5] She sat on the assembly's Education Panel,[6] and the Economy Committee.[7] Twycross was a member of the London Fire and Emergency Planning Authority (LFEPA) from 2012 until its abolition in 2018. She served as Labour Group Leader on the authority from July 2013,[8] and as chair from 2016 until LFEPA's 2018 abolition[7] and her appointment as Sadiq Khan's Deputy Mayor for Fire and Resilience.[9]
In February 2019, Twycross announced that she did not intend to seek re-election to the assembly at the 2020 London Assembly election,[10] in order to concentrate on her deputy mayor role. Following the extension of the assembly's term to 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic,[11] Twycross resigned as a member and was replaced by the next member on Labour's 2016 London-wide list, former assembly member Murad Qureshi.[12]
As well as the Labour Party, Twycross is a member of the Co-operative Party, the Fabian Society,[13] and the Socialist Health Association.
It was announced on 14 October 2022 that as part of the 2022 Special Honours, Twycross would receive a life peerage.[14] On 7 November 2022, she was created Baroness Twycross, of Headington in the City of Oxford.[15]
As a government minister
On 10 May 2024,[16] Twycross stepped down from her role as deputy mayor to spend more time on her roles in the House of Lords. She was appointed a Baroness in Waiting (government whip) on 11 July 2024 and a Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State at the Department for Culture, Media and Sport on 23 July 2024.[17]
As Minister for Museums, Heritage and Gambling, she is responsible for:[17]
- Museums and cultural property
- Heritage
- Gambling
- Libraries
- The National Archives
She is also responsible for the department's business in the Lords.[17]
As a London Assembly member
Twycross led a number of campaigns while a member of the London Assembly, notably leading an investigation into the rise in food poverty in London which called for London to be a Zero Hunger City.[18] Boris Johnson subsequently adopted the goal as part of his 2020 vision, making London one of two cities worldwide to sign up to the United Nations' Zero Hunger Challenge.[19]
Twycross led the Labour 999SOS campaign against cuts to emergency services, from its launch in October 2012.[20] In her role as the London Assembly Labour Group's Economy spokesperson, Twycross challenged the Mayor of London Boris Johnson over low pay and poverty in London and over the use of zero-hour contracts at City Hall.[21]
In September 2013, Twycross co-founded the Labour Campaign for Universal Free School Meals with the GMB Union and Richard Watts, leader of Islington Council.[22]
In November 2018, London joined the 100 Resilient Cities project and Twycross was appointed to the role of City Hall's Chief Resilience Officer by Sadiq Khan.[23]
Notes
- Heritage and Gambling until September 2025