Linda McAvan

Linda McAvan OBE (born 2 December 1962) is a British Labour Party politician, who was a Member of the European Parliament (MEP) for Yorkshire and the Humber from 1998, when she was first elected in a by-election following the resignation of Norman West. She served until her resignation on 19 April 2019.[1]

Linda McAvan

OBE
McAvan in 2007
Member of the European Parliament
for Yorkshire and the Humber
Yorkshire South (1998–1999)
In office
7 May 1998 – 18 April 2019
Preceded byNorman West
Succeeded byMagid Magid
Personal details
Born (1962-12-02) 2 December 1962
Bradford, West Riding of Yorkshire, England
NationalityBritish
Political partyLabour
Spouse(s)Paul Blomfield MP
Alma materHeriot-Watt University

Before being elected McAvan worked for Barnsley Borough Council and was the European Officer for the Coalfields Community Campaign.

Member of the European Parliament

McAvan was a Member of the European Parliament since 1998. From 2014 until 2019, she served as chairwoman of the Committee on Development. In this capacity, she co-chaired (alongside David McAllister) the Democracy Support and Election Coordination Group (DEG), which oversees the Parliament's election observation missions.[2]

In addition to her committee assignments, McAvan is also a member of the ACP-EU Joint Parliamentary Assembly. She has been chairing the European Parliament's Fair Trade Working Group and serves on the European Parliament Intergroup on the Western Sahara[3] as well as on the European Parliament Intergroup on Children's Rights.[4] She is also a supporter of the MEP Heart Group, a group of parliamentarians who have an interest in promoting measures that will help reduce the burden of cardiovascular diseases (CVD).[5]

Between 2002 and 2003, McAvan served as one of 16 representatives of the European Parliament in the Convention on the Future of Europe, led by former French President Valéry Giscard d'Estaing.

In 2002, McAvan was voted UK European Woman of the Year; she received her award from the former Secretary of State for Northern Ireland Mo Mowlam, who praised her efforts to engage women in the future of Europe.[6] Later that year, however, she lost out against Gary Titley in the contest to select a new leader of British Labour MEPs.[7]

Since 2004, McAvan has been serving as treasurer of the European Parliament's Socialist Group.[8] In June 2007 she was elected Vice President of the group.

Between 2004 and 2014, McAvan served on the Committee on the Environment, Public Health and Food Safety. In 2009, she drafted the European Parliament's report on monitoring medicine safety.[9] She also sat on the Temporary Committee on Climate Change between 2007 and 2009; in this capacity, she was part of the Parliament's delegations to the 2008 United Nations Climate Change Conference in Poznań[10] and to the 2009 United Nations Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen.[11]

McAvan supported Owen Smith in the 2016 Labour Party (UK) leadership election.[12]

Labour Party members elected McAvan to be the top-ranked Labour candidate for Yorkshire and the Humber in the 2009 European elections, narrowly beating Richard Corbett for the top place. In 2014, she again topped the ballot. She stood down as an MEP on 19 April 2019.[13]

Life after politics

Since leaving the European Parliament, McAvan has been working as executive director for European relations at the European Climate Foundation.[14]

Other activities

Recognition

McAvan was appointed Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) in the 2020 New Year Honours for charitable and political services.[16]

Personal life

McAvan is married to Paul Blomfield, the Labour MP for Sheffield Central.[17] Her constituency office is in Wath-upon-Dearne.

References
  1. http://www.europarl.europa.eu/meps/en/2327/LINDA_MCAVAN/history/8
  2. Members of the Democracy Support and Election Coordination Group (DEG) European Parliament
  3. Members Archived 8 December 2015 at the Wayback Machine European Parliament Intergroup on Western Sahara.
  4. Members of the European Parliament Intergroup on Children's Rights European Parliament.
  5. Supporters MEP Heart Group.
  6. MEP named EU woman of year European Voice, 7 May 2002.
  7. Ambrose Evans-Pritchard (5 September 2002), Labour MEPs pick Left-winger as fifth leader in five years The Daily Telegraph.
  8. Véronique Vallières (24 November 2004), EPP-ED denies Christmas gifts cash blunder European Voice.
  9. A less green Parliament? European Voice, 4 February 2009.
  10. Jennifer Rankin (26 November 2008), MEPs flock to Poznań meeting European Voice.
  11. The EP's official delegation to the Copenhagen Conference on Climate Change European Parliament.
  12. Smith, Mikey; Bloom, Dan (20 July 2016). "Which MPs are nominating Owen Smith in the Labour leadership contest?". Mirror. Retrieved 10 November 2018.
  13. http://www.europarl.europa.eu/meps/en/2327/LINDA_MCAVAN/history/8
  14. Lili Bayer (January 20, 2021), Former British MEPs take on Brussels Bubble Politico Europe.
  15. Policy Advisory Board Reconsidering European Contributions to Global Justice (GLOBUS).
  16. "No. 62866". The London Gazette (Supplement). 28 December 2019. p. N13.
  17. Paul Blomfield: About Paul Archived 12 December 2008 at the Wayback Machine
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