London (Parliament Politics Magazine) – Karen Buck is a British politician. She is serving as a Member of Parliament (MP) for Westminster North. Since 1997 she has been working for both Regent’s Park and Kensington North. She has been a part of the Labour Party for many years. If this isn’t enough she has been the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Transport from 2005 to 2006. Apart from that she is serving as Shadow Minister for Social Security since 2020. If you want to know more about Karen Buck, read the following details:
Early Life & Bio
Karen Buck was born on 30th August 1958 in Northern Ireland. She got her education from Chelmsford County High School for Girls and the London School of Economics. Buck received a BSc, an MSc in Economics, and an MA in Social Policy and Administration. Moreover, she was briefly a Young Liberal. She joined the Labour Party in 1978. In 1983, she joined Hackney London Borough Council as a senior disability officer and then as a public health officer. She was initially a researcher and development worker for Outset, a charity that works with disabled people.
Entry into Politics
A Labour candidate for Barnet’s Mill Hill ward, Buck first ran for office in 1982, aged 23. In 1986, she ran for Westminster City Council’s Cavendish ward, which straddles Marylebone and the West End. This election was tough and she could only win by a few votes in the council.
She began her work for the Labour Party in 1987 as a health directorate researcher. In 1992 she became the campaign strategy coordinator. She was then elected to Westminster City Council in 1990, representing Queen’s Park ward. The best thing is that she kept her seat until shortly after her election to Parliament in 1997. It was only after 1997 that she decided to step down. During her time as a Councillor, she was able to speak out against Shirley Porter’s fraudulent behavior.
Parliamentary Career
Karen Buck was chosen to run for Labour via an all-women shortlist. It was derived from the former Westminster North constituency, occupied narrowly by ex-Conservative minister John Wheeler. When he stepped down in 1997, Buck won the seat of Regent’s Park and Kensington North through Labour’s landslide victory. This time the margin of 14,657 was big enough to beat her opponents. On 17 June 1997, she spoke as a newly-elected representative for the first time and is still in office today. A 2005 profile saw her labeled as a “bright and humorous center-left feminist” with “the ideal New Labour credentials.
After her election to Parliament, Buck joined the Social Security Select committee. In 2001, she was appointed an Assistant Government Whip without her knowledge or consent but declined to take it up. After the 2005 general election, however, she did become a part of Prime Minister Tony Blair’s government. Here she started working as a Parliamentary under the Secretary of State at the Department for Transport. During the 2010 general election, she won Westminster North with a majority of 2,126 over Conservative candidate Joanne Cash.
Increase In Karen Buck’s Majority Of Votes
Following the defeat at the 2015 election, despite re-electing Buck with a reduced majority, Miliband stepped down as leader. Consequently, Cooper was nominated by Buck, who then finished third in the leadership race that saw Corbyn elected. Karen didn’t hold any roles during her term as leader and supported Smith in 2016 when Corbyn. It was especially after they challenged each other for the position. At the 2017 election, her majority increased to 11,512 (26.6%), representing an impressive 10.8% swing to Labour in her constituency.
At the end of 2018, Buck’s Private Member’s Bill was officially given assent. It finally became the Homes (Fitness for Human Habitation) Act on 20 March 2019. This Bill aimed to grant tenants the right to legal action. If their landlord failed in providing a property fit for human use it will not affect them. It was something upon which other party members also agreed. In 2019, she secured re-election representing Westminster North with a large majority (25.07%).
Suggesting her seat is now safe from other parties. Labor was, however, unsuccessful once again at a national level, leading to Jeremy Corbyn’s replacement in 2020 by Keir Starmer. The reason seemed obvious as Karen supported him all along as the leader. This July saw Karen receive another promotion as Shadow Minister for Social Security.
Political Views
Earlier this year, Buck expressed concern that homeless Londoners were being forced to leave the city. She commented: ‘’Losing your home is a deeply traumatic event and then being offered accommodation miles away from your community, your work, your children’s school, and your care responsibilities compounds all that trauma. People are struggling against the most appalling odds to hold their own lives together and above all to hold their kids’ lives together’’.
Buck was a member of two white-collar public service trade unions, the Association of Scientific. Moreover, she is a part of the Technical and Managerial Staff (ASTMS) and the National and Local Government Officers’ Association (NALGO). She was a member of the Transport and General Workers’ Union (TGWU) before it was merged with Amicus. A former member of the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament, Buck has been involved in Greenpeace and Amnesty International whilst an MP.
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Personal Life & Net Worth
Karen Buck is married to Barrie Taylor. He is a former Labour councilor in Westminster. Everyone was surprised to know as he was given the title of Honorary Alderman in July 2018. From 1994 to 1997, the couple served as the councilors for Queen’s Park ward in Westminster. They are an ideal couple and are blessed with a son, Cosmo.
Karen likes to keep her personal life private and is a Roman Catholic. As Karen is one of the most influential politicians, her net worth has seen steady growth over the years. To date, her total north worth is estimated to be at $5 million.