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Gill Furniss

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Gill Furniss
MP
Official portrait, 2022
Member of Parliament
for Sheffield Brightside and Hillsborough
Incumbent
Assumed office
5 May 2016
Preceded byHarry Harpham
Majority11,600 (36.7%)
2023–2024Pensions
2022–2023Roads
2020–2022Whip
2020–2020Women and Equalities
2016–2020Steel, Postal Affairs and Consumer Protection
Member of Sheffield City Council
In office
6 May 1999 – 5 May 2016
WardManor (1999–2004)
Southey (2004–2016)
Preceded byWilliam Jordan
Succeeded byJayne Dunn
Personal details
Born (1957-03-14) 14 March 1957 (age 67)
Sheffield, West Riding of Yorkshire, England
Political partyLabour
SpouseHarry Harpham (died 2016)
Alma materLeeds Beckett University (BA)
Websitegillfurniss.com

Gillian Furniss (born 14 March 1957) is a British Labour Party politician who has been the Member of Parliament (MP) for Sheffield Brightside and Hillsborough since 2016. She was a Member of Sheffield City Council from 1999 to 2016.

Early life and career

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Gillian Furniss was born in Sheffield on 14 March 1957, the daughter of a steel worker. She was educated at the Chaucer School, Sheffield, and graduated from Leeds Metropolitan University with a BA in Library and Information Studies as a mature student in 1998. After leaving school, she worked as a librarian and went on to work as an administrator at the Northern General Hospital.[1][2]

Political career

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Furniss unsuccessfully stood as the Labour candidate in the Hillsborough Ward in 1998. She was subsequently elected in the Manor ward in 1999 and re-elected in 2003. With the introduction of new ward boundaries for the 2004 Sheffield City Council election, she was elected to represent Southey ward. She was re-elected in 2006, 2010 and 2014 before standing down in 2016 upon her election as an MP.[3][4]

As a councillor, in 2015 Furniss endorsed Andy Burnham in the Labour leadership contest.[5]

Parliamentary career

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Furniss stood as the Labour candidate in Sheffield Hallam at the 2001 general election, coming third with 12.4% of the vote behind the incumbent Liberal Democrat MP Richard Allan and the Conservative candidate.[6]

At the 2016 Sheffield Brightside and Hillsborough by-election, caused by the death of her husband Harry Harpham[7] Furniss was elected to Parliament as MP for Sheffield Brightside and Hillsborough with 62.5% of the vote and a majority of 9,590.[8]

In the October 2016 opposition front bench reshuffle, Furniss was appointed to the new position of Shadow Minister for Steel, Postal Affairs and Consumer Protection.[9]

Furniss was re-elected as MP for Sheffield Brightside and Hillsborough at the snap 2017 general election with an increased vote share of 67.3% and an increased majority of 19,143.[10] She was again re-elected at the 2019 general election, with a decreased vote share of 56.5% and a decreased majority of 12,274.[11]

Following the election of Keir Starmer as Labour leader in April 2020, she became Shadow Minister for Women and Equalities.[12] She moved to become an Opposition Whip in July 2020, and served in the role until her appointment as Shadow Roads Minister in January 2022.[13] Her shadow transport brief covered green transport, transport decarbonisation, future transport and roads.[13]

In the 2023 British shadow cabinet reshuffle, she was appointed Shadow Minister for Pensions.[14]

At the 2024 general election, Furniss was again re-elected with a decreased vote share of 51.6% and a decreased majority of 11,600.[15] [16]

References

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  1. ^ Perraudin, Frances (4 May 2016). "Antisemitism row makes no mark in Sheffield as voters focus on cuts". The Guardian. Retrieved 15 May 2016.
  2. ^ "About Gill". Personal website. Archived from the original on 22 November 2018. Retrieved 21 November 2018.
  3. ^ "Election Results" (PDF). Sheffield City Council. Retrieved 21 November 2018.
  4. ^ "Gill Furniss to contest Sheffield Brightside and Hillsborough by-election". BBC News. 4 March 2016. Retrieved 15 May 2016.
  5. ^ "Andy's 'thank you' to the 500+ councillors supporting him". Andy Burnham leadership website. 21 August 2015.
  6. ^ "Election Data 2001". Electoral Calculus. Archived from the original on 15 October 2011. Retrieved 18 October 2015.
  7. ^ "Sheffield Labour MP Harry Harpham dies". BBC News. 4 February 2016.
  8. ^ "Brightside and Hillsborough by-election result 2016". Sheffield City Council. Archived from the original on 4 June 2016. Retrieved 15 May 2016.
  9. ^ "Gill Furniss MP". GOV.UK. Retrieved 21 November 2018.
  10. ^ "Sheffield Brightside and Hillsborough". Sheffield City Council. Retrieved 12 May 2017.
  11. ^ "Sheffield Brightside & Hillsborough parliamentary constituency - Election 2019". BBC News. 13 December 2019. Retrieved 13 December 2019.
  12. ^ Rodgers, Sienna (9 April 2020). "Shadow ministers appointed as Starmer completes frontbench". LabourList. Retrieved 23 June 2021.
  13. ^ a b Chappell, Elliot; Rodgers, Sienna (4 February 2022). "Labour frontbench undergoes mini-reshuffle after death of Jack Dromey". LabourList. Retrieved 6 February 2022.
  14. ^ "Meet our Shadow Cabinet". The Labour Party. Retrieved 9 September 2023.
  15. ^ "Parliamentary election results". Sheffield City Council. Retrieved 8 July 2024.
  16. ^ "Sheffield Brightside and Hillsborough results". BBC News. Retrieved 8 July 2024.
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to Gill Furniss.
Parliament of the United Kingdom
Preceded by Member of Parliament
for Sheffield Brightside and Hillsborough
2016–present 		Incumbent
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