Angela Rayner

Angela Rayner MP
Rayner giving her 2016 Labour Party Conference speech
Shadow Secretary of State for Education
Incumbent
Assumed office 1 July 2016
Leader	Jeremy Corbyn
Preceded by	Pat Glass
Shadow Minister for Women and Equalities
In office 27 June 2016 – 6 October 2016
Leader	Jeremy Corbyn
Preceded by	Kate Green
Succeeded by	Sarah Champion
Shadow Minister for Pensions
In office 11 January 2016 – 1 July 2016
Leader	Jeremy Corbyn
Preceded by	Nick Thomas-Symonds
Succeeded by	Alex Cunningham
Member of Parliament for Ashton-under-Lyne
Incumbent
Assumed office 8 May 2015
Preceded by	David Heyes
Majority	10,756
Personal details
Born	28 March 1980 Stockport, England, UK
Political party	Labour
Spouse(s)	Mark Rayner
Children	3 sons

Angela Rayner (née Bowen; born 28 March 1980) is a British Labour politician and a former trade union official.^[1]

Rayner was elected as Member of Parliament (MP) for Ashton-under-Lyne at the 2015 general election.^[2] She is the Shadow Secretary of State for Education.

Early life and career

Born Angela Bowen, she attended Avondale School, Stockport,^[3] leaving school pregnant and with no qualifications.^[4][5] She then worked for Stockport Metropolitan Borough Council as a care worker before being elected as a UNISON union representative.^[6] She served as Convenor of UNISON North West,^[7] the most senior UNISON official in the region.^[8]

The Guardian featured Rayner at length in 2012 by way of example of a trade union officer's working life,^[9] when she was UNISON Branch Secretary on Stockport Council.^[10]

Parliamentary career

Rayner contested the Ashton-under-Lyne constituency at the 2015 general election, she increased the Labour majority and share of the vote in the constituency.^[11] She delivered her maiden speech in the House of Commons on 3 June 2015.

Shadow Minister

On 27 June 2016, she was promoted to Shadow Women and Equalities Minister, and was further promoted later that week to Shadow Education Secretary, as Jeremy Corbyn reshuffled his shadow cabinet following a string of resignations.^[7] Rayner previously served as Opposition Whip and Shadow Pensions Minister.

Private life

Rayner has three sons, Ryan, who was born when she was aged 16, Jimmy, and Charlie.^[3] Charlie was born very prematurely at 23 weeks and she uses the care he received as a mark of the importance of the National Health Service and educational policy. Rayner lives in Ashton-under-Lyne in her constituency with her husband Mark Rayner a Unison Official and her family.^[8][12]

References

1. "Angela Rayner MP". www.parliament.uk. 20 July 2015. Retrieved 19 July 2016.
2. "Ashton-under-Lyne". BBC News.
3. "Not bad for a ginger kid!". Oldham Chronicle. 11 November 2014. Retrieved 19 July 2016.
4. Channel 4 News Democracy, 28 September 2016
5. Teen mum turned Labour MP: Why Angela Rayner should have the Tories running scared, Daily Telegraph, 29 September 2016
6. "Joining a trade union". GOV.UK. 15 December 2014. Retrieved 19 July 2016.
7. "EXCLUSIVE: Angela Rayner becomes third shadow education secretary in a week". Schools Week. 1 July 2016. Retrieved 19 July 2016.
8. Fitzgearld, Todd (7 August 2015). "Commons vow by new Ashton MP Angela Rayner who was told she'd amount to nothing". Manchester Evening News. Retrieved 13 August 2016.
9. "A working life: the Union Official". The Guardian. 17 February 2012.
10. Gray, John (12 April 2013). "Angela Rayner for Manchester Withington". Grayee.blogspot.co.uk. Retrieved 19 July 2016.
11. "New Labour candidate: We need real people with life experience to bring common sense to Parliament". Manchester Evening News. 8 September 2014.
12. "UK unions blast Education Secretary over controversial reforms". Equal Times. 30 April 2013.

External links

• Official website
• UNISON blog