Ellie Reeves

Eleanor Claire Reeves[2] (born 11 December 1980) is a British politician who has served as Member of Parliament (MP) for Lewisham West and Penge since 2017.[3] A member of the Labour Party, she has served as Labour Party Deputy National Campaign Coordinator since 2023.[4] She previously served as Shadow Solicitor General for England and Wales from April 2020 to December 2021 and Shadow Minister for Prisons and Probation from 2021 to 2023.

Ellie Reeves
MP
Official portrait, 2017
Labour Party Deputy National Campaign Coordinator
Assumed office
4 September 2023
LeaderKeir Starmer
Preceded byConor McGinn
Shadow Minister for Prisons and Probation
In office
4 December 2021 – 5 September 2023
LeaderKeir Starmer
Preceded byLyn Brown
Succeeded byRuth Cadbury
Shadow Solicitor General for England and Wales
In office
9 April 2020 – 4 December 2021
LeaderKeir Starmer
Preceded byNick Thomas-Symonds
Succeeded byAndy Slaughter
Member of Parliament
for Lewisham West and Penge
Assumed office
8 June 2017
Preceded byJim Dowd
Majority21,543 (41.3%)
Personal details
Born (1980-12-11) 11 December 1980[1]
Beckenham, London, England
Political partyLabour
Spouse
​
(m. 2012)​
Children2
RelativesRachel Reeves (sister)
Alma materSt Catherine's College, Oxford
ProfessionBarrister
WebsiteOfficial website

Early life and career

Ellie Reeves was born in Lewisham, the daughter of teachers,[5] Graham and Sally Reeves,[6][7] and the sister of fellow Labour MP, Rachel Reeves.[8]

Reeves grew up in Sydenham and was educated at Adamsrill Primary School and Cator Park Secondary School.[9] She has a bachelor's degree in law from St Catherine's College, Oxford.[10]

Before entering Parliament, Reeves worked as an employment law barrister representing trade unions.

Political career

Reeves joined the Labour Party at 15,[5] chaired the Oxford University Labour Club in 2001 and was National Chair of Labour Students from 2002 to 2003.

In 2006, she was first elected as a constituency party representative on Labour's National Executive Committee (NEC), supported by Progress and Labour First.[3] Reeves was returned to the governing body in subsequent elections, and served as Vice-Chair from 2015 to 2016,[11] until she was defeated by Momentum in 2016.[12] She later served as vice-chair of the London Labour Party.[13][14]

Reeves was selected as the Labour candidate for Lewisham West and Penge in April 2017, chosen over left-wing Momentum activists.[15][3]

Parliamentary career

Reeves was elected for the Labour-held seat of Lewisham West and Penge at the 2017 general election, almost doubling the party's majority.

She was appointed to the opposition front bench as Parliamentary Private Secretary to Kate Osamor, Shadow International Development Secretary, in March 2018.[16] On 13 June 2018, Reeves and five other MPs resigned as frontbenchers to vote in favour of remaining in the single market, defying the party whip.[17][18]

After signing a letter criticising the decision to re-admit Chris Williamson into Labour, a heavily pregnant Reeves was threatened with deselection by a party member in July 2019.[19] Following backlash, Party Leader Jeremy Corbyn wrote that pregnant MPs wouldn't face deselection and the member withdrew their plans to challenge her.[20]

On 9 April 2020, Reeves was re-appointed to the opposition front bench as Shadow Solicitor General for England and Wales.[21]

She served as Labour's political lead for the 2021 Old Bexley and Sidcup by-election,[22] in which there was a 7.4% increase in the party's vote share and 10.2% swing from the Conservatives to Labour, however the Conservatives held the seat with a 20.6% majority.[23]

In the 2023 British shadow cabinet reshuffle she joined the Shadow Cabinet as Labour Party Deputy National Campaign Coordinator.[24]

Personal life

She is married to John Cryer MP, Parliamentary Labour Party Chair.[3] She had a son with Cryer in 2015, and another in late 2019.[5]

References
  1. "Members' Names Data Platform query". UK Parliament. Retrieved 24 April 2019.
  2. "No. 61961". The London Gazette. 19 June 2017. p. 11776.
  3. "Former Labour official Ellie Reeves selected for safe seat in London". LabourList. Retrieved 8 June 2017.
  4. "Labour reshuffle live: Angela Rayner gets new role as Keir Starmer reshuffles team". BBC News. Retrieved 4 September 2023.
  5. Forrester, Kate (8 October 2017). "17 From '17: Ellie Reeves On Her Journey Into Politics At A Young Age". HuffPost. Retrieved 3 October 2019.
  6. Whale, Sebastian (23 May 2020). "Rachel Reeves interview". politicshome. Retrieved 27 January 2021.
  7. Hello (13 September 2007). "The legal eagle who left sisters scuppered". Yorkshire Evening Post. Archived from the original on 4 June 2016. Retrieved 8 June 2017.
  8. Rampen, Julia (26 April 2017). "How Labour's power-brokers will divide up the party's safe seats". New Statesman. Retrieved 8 June 2017.
  9. Little, Mandy (28 April 2017). "Ellie Reeves to fight for Lewisham West and Penge seat for Labour". London News Online. Retrieved 8 June 2017.
  10. "The Year 2017 – alumni magazine for St Catherine's College, Oxford" (PDF). Retrieved 18 February 2019.
  11. Savage, Michael. "Hard left set for Labour power grab". The Times. ISSN 0140-0460. Retrieved 3 December 2021.
  12. "Corbyn's Allies Run Rings Round Eddie Izzard". Sky News. Retrieved 3 December 2021.
  13. Savage, Michael. "Hard left set for Labour power grab". The Times. ISSN 0140-0460. Retrieved 3 December 2021.
  14. Kenber, Billy. "Labour hopefuls aiming for Westminster". The Times. ISSN 0140-0460. Retrieved 3 December 2021.
  15. "General election 2017: Key Corbyn allies not selected by Labour". BBC News. 28 April 2017. Retrieved 3 December 2021.
  16. Aweys, Suleega (3 March 2018). "Ellie Reeves MP for Lewisham West and Penge gets front bench promotion". East London Lines. Retrieved 3 October 2019.
  17. Culbertson, Alix (14 June 2018). "Six Labour MPs quit frontbench roles over key Brexit vote". Sky News. Retrieved 14 June 2018.
  18. Morris, Nigel (13 June 2018). "Six Labour frontbenchers resign in protest at Labour's Brexit position". i News. Retrieved 14 June 2018.
  19. "EXCL Pregnant Labour MP facing deselection threat for signing Chris Williamson statement". Politics Home. 25 February 2020. Retrieved 3 December 2021.
  20. "Corbyn Blocks Activist's Bid To Oust Pregnant Labour MP". HuffPost UK. 3 July 2019. Retrieved 3 December 2021.
  21. Rodgers, Sienna (9 April 2020). "Shadow ministers appointed as Starmer completes frontbench". LabourList. Retrieved 9 April 2020.
  22. Reeves, Ellie (31 October 2021). "As Labour's political lead on the Old Bexley & Sidcup by-election..." Twitter. Archived from the original on 31 October 2021.
  23. "Conservatives hold seat in Old Bexley and Sidcup byelection". ITV News. 3 December 2021. Retrieved 3 December 2021.
  24. "Labour reshuffle live: Angela Rayner gets new role as Keir Starmer reshuffles team". BBC News. 4 September 2023. Retrieved 8 September 2023.
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