Jo Swinson

From Wikipedia the free encyclopedia

Jo Swinson
CBE FRSA
Official portrait, 2017
Leader of the Liberal Democrats
In office
22 July 2019 – 13 December 2019
DeputyEd Davey
PresidentThe Baroness Brinton
Preceded byVince Cable
Succeeded byEd Davey
Deputy leader of the Liberal Democrats
In office
20 June 2017 – 22 July 2019
LeaderTim Farron
Vince Cable
Preceded byMalcolm Bruce
Succeeded byEd Davey
Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Employment Relations and Postal Affairs
In office
4 September 2012 – 8 May 2015
Prime MinisterDavid Cameron
Preceded byNorman Lamb
Succeeded byThe Baroness Neville-Rolfe
Anna Soubry
Deputy Leader of the Scottish Liberal Democrats
In office
20 September 2010 – 23 September 2012
LeaderTavish Scott
Willie Rennie
Preceded byMichael Moore
Succeeded byAlistair Carmichael
Member of Parliament
for East Dunbartonshire
In office
8 June 2017 – 6 November 2019
Preceded byJohn Nicolson
Succeeded byAmy Callaghan
In office
5 May 2005 – 30 March 2015
Preceded byConstituency established
Succeeded byJohn Nicolson
Liberal Democrat portfolios
2006–2007Scotland Office
2017–2019Foreign and Commonwealth Office
Personal details
Born
Joanne Kate Swinson[1]

(1980-02-05) 5 February 1980 (age 44)
Glasgow, Scotland[2]
Political partyLiberal Democrats
Spouse
​
(m. 2011)​
Children3
Alma materLondon School of Economics
Jo Swinson's voice
Swinson on the UK's entry to the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative
Recorded 23 May 2013

Joanne Kate Swinson CBE FRSA (born 5 February 1980) is a British former politician who was Leader of the Liberal Democrats from July to December 2019. She was the first woman and the youngest person to hold the position, as well as the shortest-serving holder of the post. Swinson was Member of Parliament (MP) for East Dunbartonshire from 2005 to 2015 and 2017 to 2019. In September 2020 Swinson became Director of Partners for a New Economy (P4NE).[3]

Swinson studied at the London School of Economics, and briefly worked in public relations, before being elected to the House of Commons, becoming the youngest MP at the time.[4] She was a Liberal Democrat Spokesperson covering various portfolios, including Scotland, Women and Equalities, Communities and Local Government, and Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs.[5]

In 2010, after the Liberal Democrats entered into a coalition government with the Conservative Party, Swinson was a Parliamentary Private Secretary to Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg, and was later appointed Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Employment Relations and Postal Affairs.[6] She lost her seat in the 2015 election, but regained it in the snap election held two years later. Shortly after returning to Parliament, she was elected unopposed as Deputy Leader of the Liberal Democrats.[7] In July 2019, following the retirement of Vince Cable, Swinson defeated Ed Davey in a leadership election to become Leader of the Liberal Democrats.

Swinson led her party through the 2019 general election shortly afterwards, suggesting she could lead a Liberal Democrat majority government which would revoke Article 50 and cancel Brexit. Instead, Swinson and the Liberal Democrats sustained a net loss in seats, including her own to the Scottish National Party[8][9][10] and was disqualified from continuing as party leader.[11] At less than five months, her tenure as leader was the shortest in the Liberal Democrats' history. She is also the only incumbent Liberal Democrat leader to have lost a Parliamentary seat.

Early life and education[edit]

Swinson was born in Glasgow[2] on 5 February 1980, the daughter of Peter and Annette Swinson.[12] She was educated at Douglas Academy,[13] a mixed state school in the town of Milngavie in East Dunbartonshire in western Scotland, followed by the London School of Economics, where she studied Management, gaining a first-class Bachelor of Science degree in 2000.[14] She signed up as an active member of the Liberal Democrats at the age of 17.[4]

Early career[edit]

After graduating from the London School of Economics, Swinson moved to Yorkshire and worked for Ace Visual and Sound Systems in Thorne, before becoming a marketing and public relations manager for Hull-based commercial radio station Viking FM from December 2000,[15][16] and media company Space and People.[17]

At the age of 21, Swinson stood unsuccessfully in the Kingston upon Hull East constituency in the 2001 general election, but gained a 6% swing from John Prescott, then the Deputy Prime Minister of the United Kingdom. In 2003, she unsuccessfully contested Strathkelvin and Bearsden seat in the Scottish Parliament election, finishing third with 14% of the vote.[15]

Member of Parliament (2005–2015)[edit]

Swinson was elected to the House of Commons as the MP for East Dunbartonshire at the 2005 general election. She defeated John Lyons of Labour by 4,061 votes, and was the first ever Member of Parliament born in the 1980s.[4] As the youngest MP she replaced fellow Lib Dem MP Sarah Teather as the "Baby of the House". This lasted until 2009, when Conservative MP Chloe Smith was elected at the Norwich North by-election.[4]

Swinson was vocal in her opposition to the Iraq War and the Labour government's proposals for national identity cards. She has supported measures both by individuals and government to tackle climate change such as conserving energy in the home and the Liberal Democrat policy of introducing green taxes while reducing income tax to offset the burden. She supports reducing the voting age to 16 as one way of engaging young people in politics. She believes more women should be involved in politics but that encouragement is better than affirmative action in achieving this. She opposes positive discrimination to address gender imbalance, and led the argument against positive discrimination to select her party's candidates at their national party conference in 2002, wearing a pink T-shirt inscribed with the slogan, "I am not a token woman".[15]

Swinson has also called for a "wellbeing index" to be introduced, to be compared against GDP, and tabled an early day motion on the issue in 2008, gaining 50 signatures. She found support from MPs such as Vince Cable and Angela Eagle. Swinson cited the fact that although standard of living had increased, people's level of wellbeing had been virtually static for some time, according to polls.[18]

Swinson believed that new prisons ought not to be built and had campaigned vocally, but without success, against the rebuilding of a prison at Bishopbriggs within the constituency. She had said that if a prison was built it must not be built cheaply,[19] and that it must not be named after the town in which is to be sited.[20] The campaign to give the prison its original name was ultimately successful,[21] as the replacement prison will retain its original name, Lowmoss Prison.[22]

She is an active campaigner against excessive packaging of chocolate Easter eggs. Each year from 2007 saw Swinson attack confectionery manufacturers for wasteful use of non-recyclable materials in packaging of the seasonal goods. She has named Guylian as the worst offender, followed by Lindt, Baileys and Cadbury.[23][24]

Swinson successfully held her seat of East Dunbartonshire in the 2010 general election, although with a slightly decreased majority.[25] Her party, the Liberal Democrats, subsequently entered into a coalition with the Conservative Party.

Parliamentary Private Secretary[edit]

In November 2010, Swinson was made Parliamentary Private Secretary to then Business Secretary Vince Cable.[26]

In December 2010, she was one of 27 Liberal Democrat MPs who voted in favour of allowing universities to raise tuition fees up to £9,000 per year.[27][28][29]

In February 2012, Swinson replaced Norman Lamb as Parliamentary Private Secretary to then Liberal Democrat Leader and Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg, holding this position until her promotion to government minister later that year.[30]

Business Minister (2012–2015)[edit]

Swinson with the then Treasury minister Sajid Javid discussing payday lending at the Which? ministerial credit visit in 2013

In September 2012, Swinson was appointed Under Secretary of State for Employment Relations and Consumer Affairs in a reshuffle by then Prime Minister David Cameron.[31] She maintained this role for the remainder of the Cameron–Clegg coalition, except for several months of maternity leave between 2013 and 2014.[32]

Swinson initially focused efforts on scrapping the 1871 Pedlars Act, which prevents pedlars (travelling salesmen) and street traders from trading without first acquiring a certificate from the police. In November 2012, Swinson said that the proposed deregulation would help "eliminate barriers to street traders and pedlars by making it easier to trade, boosting retail and helping small traders – including many young entrepreneurs – to expand and grow”.[33] The proposal was criticised by the Local Government Association, which claimed that it would lead to a 'free for all' of pedlars targeting vulnerable people.[34] By 2014, however, Swinson announced she would seek to amend rather than repeal the laws.[35]

Swinson opposed forcing companies to adopt gender quotas, stating that such a move would "negatively affect" the performance of businesses.[36][37] She instead promoted voluntary solutions, telling an event organised by the British Chambers of Commerce, "What women need is confidence, not quotas. So rather than telling companies what to do, we're encouraging them to see the real business benefits of taking voluntary action."[38]

From 2013, Swinson sought to promote fathers' rights in regard to parental leave, bringing forth new legislation which allowed parents to divide parental leave between themselves with an aim to encourage fathers to spend more time with their newborn infants.[39][40][41]

In October 2013, controversy emerged after MPs in the House of Commons allowed Swinson, then pregnant, to stand for 20 minutes without offering her a seat. This led to political debate and comment about whether or not it was sexist to give up a seat for a pregnant woman, with Prime Minister David Cameron wading into the row to say that offering pregnant women seats was the right thing to do.[42][43][44][45] Swinson herself later commented that it was not sexist to offer a pregnant woman a seat, and that it was "great for people to offer, and part of life's little courtesies."[46]

In the area of employment, she was supportive of both zero hours contracts and flexible working, seeking to promote the latter especially.[47][48][49] On minimum wage, in February 2013 Swinson joined calls by other ministers to warn that "caution" was required when increasing it any further amid claims that minimum wage could be cut or frozen if it began costing jobs.[50][51] Swinson pledged £80,000 of government financial support for the Corporate Human Rights Benchmark, an initiative led by corporations including Aviva Investors and Calvert which measures and ranks performance of global companies in regard to human rights.[52][53]

Swinson was keen to promote employee ownership, such as employee ownership of shares, through the establishment of a FTSE-compliant UK Employee Ownership Index, supporting measures to reduce regulations for companies choosing to adopt employee ownership practices, and a scheme allowing companies to contractually offer employees £2,000 to £50,000 worth of shares (which would be exempted from capital gains tax) in exchange for waiving certain employee rights.[54][55][56][57] Swinson traced employee ownership back to the philosophy of Jeremy Bentham, and claimed such ownership models improve productivity and lower absenteeism in staff.[58][59]

Ministerial portrait, 2014

By 2014, it was being reported that Swinson was tipped to replace Alistair Carmichael as Scottish Secretary and enter the Cabinet in a potential reshuffle, which at the time would have made her the youngest female Cabinet member ever and the first Cabinet member to be born in the 1980s.[60][61][41][62][63] At the same time, however, electoral projections for the 2015 general election showed Swinson was under serious risk of losing her East Dunbartonshire seat to a surge of Scottish National Party support.[64][65]

Swinson introduced to parliament the Consumer Rights Act 2015 on 23 January 2014, so as to consolidate and update consumer protection law and thereby provide a "modern framework of consumer rights".

Shortly before the 2015 general election, The Times and the Financial Times reported that Swinson was one of a number of prominent 'right-leaning' Liberal Democrat MPs, aligned to then Liberal Democrat leader Nick Clegg, deliberately excluded from campaign funding by former leading Liberal Democrat peer and donor Matthew Oakeshott even though their seats, including Swinson's, were vulnerable marginals.[66][67][68][69]

Swinson was featured in the 2011, 2012, 2013, and 2014 editions of the 'London's 1000 most influential people' list by the Evening Standard.[70][71][72][73]

2015 and 2017 general elections[edit]

Swinson lost her parliamentary seat in the 2015 general election to Scottish National Party candidate John Nicolson by 2,167 votes (4.0%).[74] She stood again for her former seat during the 2017 general election and won with a lead of 5,339 votes (10.3%) over Nicolson.[75] During this time, she wrote her book Equal Power: And How You Can Make It Happen.[76]

Between 2017 and 2018, Swinson received political funding from Mark Petterson, the director of Warwick Energy Ltd, which has fracking licences across England.[77] She also voted against plans to ban fracking in the UK.[78]

Deputy Leader of the Liberal Democrats (2017–2019)[edit]

Following the resignation of Tim Farron as Liberal Democrat leader on 14 June 2017, Swinson was named by the BBC as one of the possible contenders for the leadership along with Norman Lamb and Vince Cable.[79] She later announced that she would not seek the leadership; instead, she became Deputy Leader after being the only candidate at the close of nominations.[80]

As of October 2017, she was her party's Spokesperson for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs.[81]

At the Liberal Democrat autumn conference of 2017, Swinson drew media attention for using the phrase "Faragey, Trumpy, angry, arsey, shouty slogans" in criticising populism. In the same speech she called for the state visit of U.S. President Donald Trump to be cancelled and warned about Brexit.[82][83][84][85][86]

Swinson in 2017 as Deputy Leader of the Liberal Democrats

In February 2018, Swinson's first book Equal Power: And How You Can Make It Happen was published by Atlantic Books.[76][87][88][89][90] Discussing her book, Swinson explained that government has "limitations" when addressing gender inequality, so her book instead mainly suggests ideas for people to make changes in their own homes and workplaces.[91] The Irish Times likened Equal Power to the "corporate feminism" of Sheryl Sandberg's Lean In,[92] while The Herald also noted "A read of Equal Power makes it apparent that Swinson is a fan of Sheryl Sandberg's Lean In."[93] Swinson's book was featured at the Aye Write! literary festival in Glasgow.[90]

In a March 2018 article for The Mail on Sunday, Swinson came out in favour of erecting a statue of former Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher in Parliament Square.[94] She justified her position on feminist grounds and claimed that Thatcher was able to "single-handedly transform the fortunes of women", accusing opponents of the Thatcher statue as being "pretty sexist".[95] Swinson praised Thatcher for her skills in negotiating the UK rebate and for taking the UK into the single market, but was also critical of Thatcher for the poll tax and stressed she did not consider herself a Thatcherite.[96] In addition, she wrote that there should be a statue of the first female First Minister of Scotland Nicola Sturgeon in time, though she disagrees with Scottish independence.[97][98]

In July 2018, Swinson was absent for key votes on the Brexit negotiations, having been on maternity leave following the birth of her second son. During this period, she attended an anti-Trump protest, drawing criticism from Labour MP Kate Hoey on The Spectator's podcast.[99] Conservative Party Chairman Brandon Lewis had formally agreed not to vote, so that Swinson's absence would not affect the result.[100] Lewis voted with the government nonetheless, leading Swinson to accuse the government of resorting to "desperate stuff" and a "calculated, deliberate breaking of trust".[100][101] Lewis apologised, alongside Cabinet Office minister David Lidington and government chief whip Julian Smith.[100][101] Apologising on Twitter, Lewis said that it was an "honest mistake made by the whips in fast-moving circumstances."[102]

Leader of the Liberal Democrats (2019)[edit]

In May 2019, Vince Cable announced he would relinquish his role as leader of the Liberal Democrats in July, triggering a leadership election.[103] Subsequently, while appearing on the 30 May edition of the BBC political discussion programme Question Time, Swinson confirmed that she would put her name forward in the forthcoming contest.[104][105]

On 22 July 2019, Swinson was elected the first-ever female leader of the Liberal Democrats, with 47,997 (62.8%) votes, gaining a clear victory over Sir Ed Davey, with 28,021 votes. She was the first leader of a major British political party who was born in the 1980s.[106] Under her leadership, the party's candidate and Welsh Liberal Democrats leader Jane Dodds won the Brecon and Radnorshire by-election, following a "remain alliance" in which Change UK, Plaid Cymru and the Green Party agreed not to stand candidates.[107] The party's membership also rose to a record 115,000+ members, with many party supporters attributing this rise to what they called "the Swinson surge".[108]

In her first Leader's Speech to the Liberal Democrat Federal Conference, on 17 September 2019, Swinson said that Boris Johnson "claims he can negotiate a Brexit deal in a month. I wouldn't hold out much hope: yesterday he couldn't negotiate where to have a press conference".[109]

2019 election campaign[edit]

Swinson campaigned on a platform of revoking Article 50 if the Liberal Democrats formed the government. The policy proved to be controversial with both Remain and Leave voters, who criticised it as undemocratic.[110] Swinson launched her campaign by declaring that she was "a candidate to be prime minister", and suggesting her party could win a majority.[111] However, poll ratings for the party were poor and Swinson's personal ratings declined throughout the campaign.[112]

During the campaign, Swinson clashed with Nicola Sturgeon, the First Minister of Scotland on the subject of nuclear weapons. Asked if she would be prepared to use nuclear weapons, Swinson replied simply "yes". Sturgeon commented that "It's sickening to hear this question asked and answered as if it's some kind of virility test and without any context... Using nuclear weapons would mean killing millions of people."[113] Swinson was subject to a fake news story in which she was accused of 'hunting squirrels'. First Draft News, an organisation that seeks to identify online misinformation, found that the claim originated from a doctored video clip, with a spokesperson for the organisation warning that the propagation of false stories such as this were leading to the "gentle erosion of trust".[114] In November 2019, Swinson also was confronted by Jay Sutherland, a student activist in Scotland.[115][116][117] Along with the leader of the Scottish Liberal Democrats, Willie Rennie, Swinson was accused of supporting austerity.[115] The student said "People are dying here, they’re in poverty, because of what you’ve done on austerity".[118] The altercation was featured heavily on British news outlets.[119][120] Afterwards the Liberal Democrats reaffirmed the party "does not have a problem attracting young voters."[120]

Swinson’s campaign was reported to be funded by companies selling puberty blockers, a medication that some social conservatives and gender critical feminists have criticised.[121][122][123][124] In December 2019, it was reported that a pharmaceutical firm marketing drugs to delay puberty had donated £100,000 to the Liberal Democrats.[125] When questioned about her beliefs on sex and gender, Swinson replied that she didn't "think things are as binary as they are often presented”.[126]

Swinson ceased to be leader on 13 December 2019, when in the general election she lost her own seat in parliament to the SNP's Amy Callaghan. The party's rules disqualified her from continuing as its leader. She had led the party for 144 days. As well as losing seats, the Liberal Democrats failed to make predicted gains.[11] An internal party review said that their election campaign was worsened by "an inexperienced inner circle" around Swinson. It said that voters who were neither fervently leave nor remain were "effectively ignored" by her promise to revoke Article 50.[127] On 27 August 2020, Sir Ed Davey won the leadership election to succeed her.[128]

Recent work[edit]

In July 2020, Swinson accepted a position as Visiting Professor at Cranfield School of Management in Bedfordshire.[129] In September 2020, she became Director of Partners for a New Economy (P4NE).[3]

Personal life[edit]

On 13 May 2011, Swinson married then fellow Liberal Democrat MP Duncan Hames.[130] The couple's first child, Andrew, was born in December 2013.[131] A second son, Gabriel, was born in June 2018.[101] Swinson gave birth to the couple's third son, Robin, on 28 July 2023.[132]

Swinson completed the Loch Ness Marathon in 2007, the 2011 London Marathon and the inaugural Stirling Scottish Marathon in 2017.[133] Through this, she has raised money for the Anaphylaxis Campaign and Bloodwise.[134][135] She ran the London Landmarks Half Marathon in March 2019 in memory of her father, who had died of blood cancer the previous year.[136]

Having a peanut allergy,[137] Swinson sustained anaphylactic shock in May 2013 after eating a biscuit containing nuts in Glasgow. She collapsed with breathing difficulty, recovering on administration of adrenaline, and an overnight stay in hospital.[138]

Swinson was made a Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) in the 2018 New Year Honours for political and public service.[139] On receiving the honour, Swinson said she was privileged "to be listed among so many remarkable people from all walks of life, making amazing contributions right across our country".[140]

Swinson is a humanist[141] and is a member of the humanist charity Humanists UK.[142]

References[edit]

  1. ^ "Who is new Lib Dem leader Jo Swinson?". BBC News. 22 July 2019. Retrieved 19 October 2019.
  2. ^ a b Connolly, Shaun (22 July 2019). "Scottish MP Jo Swinson elected leader of Liberal Democrats". Daily Record.
  3. ^ a b The Voice (9 July 2020). "Jo Swinson appointed as Director of PN4E".
  4. ^ a b c d Shackle, Samira (22 September 2011). "20 under 40: Jo Swinson". New Statesman. Archived from the original on 31 December 2011. Retrieved 12 February 2012.
  5. ^ "Campaign For Gender Balance". genderbalance.org.uk. Archived from the original on 25 July 2010. Retrieved 12 February 2012.
  6. ^ "Jo Swinson MP, East Dunbartonshire". TheyWorkForYou.
  7. ^ Sky News Newsdesk [@SkyNewsBreak] (20 June 2017). "Jo Swinson has been elected as deputy leader of the Liberal Democrats" (Tweet). Retrieved 12 July 2017 – via Twitter.
  8. ^ "Lib Dem leader Jo Swinson to step down". BBC News. 13 December 2019. Retrieved 13 December 2019.
  9. ^ Sandhu, Serina (13 December 2019). "Lib Dem leader Jo Swinson loses her seat to the SNP". inews.co.uk. Retrieved 13 December 2019.
  10. ^ Milne, Oliver (13 December 2019). "Liberal Democrat leader Jo Swinson loses East Dunbartonshire seat". Daily Mirror. Retrieved 13 December 2019.
  11. ^ a b "Lib Dem leader Jo Swinson to step down". BBC News. 13 December 2019. Retrieved 13 December 2019.
  12. ^ "Swinson, Jo", Who's Who (online ed., Oxford University Press, December 2018). Retrieved 31 October 2019.
  13. ^ James Millar (6 June 2017). "Can Jo Swinson win back East Dunbartonshire for the Lib Dems?". New Statesman. London. Archived from the original on 21 June 2017. Retrieved 14 November 2017.
  14. ^ "Jo Swinson – Alumni profiles – Student and staff profiles – Meet our students, staff and alumni – Life at LSE – Home". www2.lse.ac.uk. London School of Economics. Archived from the original on 27 July 2013.
  15. ^ a b c "Being the UK's youngest MP". 2009. Retrieved 7 April 2018.
  16. ^ "Home". ShowMagic. Archived from the original on 10 February 2012. Retrieved 12 February 2012.
  17. ^ "Jo Swinson Biography". OEB. Archived from the original on 27 July 2019. Retrieved 27 July 2019.
  18. ^ Wheeler, Brian (9 October 2008). "UK | UK Politics | Crunch time for happy talk". BBC News. Archived from the original on 12 October 2008. Retrieved 12 February 2012.
  19. ^ Ewan Fergus (8 January 2009). "Bid chaos over plan to build prison". Evening Times. Retrieved 12 February 2012.
  20. ^ Ewan Fergus (7 January 2009). "We'll keep up fight against naming jail after our town". Evening Times. Retrieved 12 February 2012.
  21. ^ "UK | Scotland | Glasgow, Lanarkshire and West | Jail name row ends with old title". BBC News. 16 May 2009. Archived from the original on 19 May 2009. Retrieved 12 February 2012.
  22. ^ Ewan Fergus (19 May 2009). "Town's joy at jail bosses' U-turn on prison name". Evening Times. Archived from the original on 22 May 2009. Retrieved 12 February 2012.
  23. ^ Martin Williams (26 March 2010). "MP resurrects row over Easter egg packaging". Herald Scotland. Archived from the original on 3 October 2012. Retrieved 12 February 2012.
  24. ^ "Easter Eggs 'Still Use Too Much Packaging', Claims Report". Huffingtonpost.co.uk. 28 March 2012. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 30 March 2012.
  25. ^ "BBC News | Election 2010 | Constituency | Dunbartonshire East". news.bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 14 January 2018.
  26. ^ "Government publishes list of Parliamentary Private Secretaries (PPS) – GOV.UK". www.gov.uk. Archived from the original on 7 September 2017. Retrieved 14 January 2018.
  27. ^ Sparrow, Andrew (9 December 2010). "Tuition fees vote – politics blog live". The Guardian. Retrieved 19 March 2018.
  28. ^ "Tuition fees: How Lib Dems voted". BBC News. 9 December 2010. Retrieved 19 March 2018.
  29. ^ "Top 50 most influential Liberal Democrats 2011: 26–50". Daily Telegraph. 18 September 2011. ISSN 0307-1235. Retrieved 19 March 2018.
  30. ^ "Huhne resigns over points charge". BBC News. 3 February 2012. Archived from the original on 30 April 2017. Retrieved 14 January 2018.
  31. ^ "Cameron's cabinet reshuffle: the full list of government ministers". The Guardian. London. 6 September 2012. Archived from the original on 14 January 2016. Retrieved 13 January 2018.
  32. ^ "Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Employment Relations and Consumer Affairs". www.gov.uk. Archived from the original on 23 July 2017. Retrieved 13 January 2018.
  33. ^ Ross, Tim (23 November 2012). "Jo Swinson says pedlars should be given new freedom to trade". The Telegraph. London. Archived from the original on 18 July 2016. Retrieved 13 January 2018.
  34. ^ "New free-for-all for door-to-door selling". The Independent. London. 23 November 2012. Archived from the original on 19 September 2016. Retrieved 13 January 2018.
  35. ^ "'Archaic' trading rules will remain". BBC News. 16 October 2014. Archived from the original on 28 July 2015. Retrieved 13 January 2018.
  36. ^ Mason, Rowena (17 October 2012). "Female quotas 'negatively affect' business, says minister". The Telegraph. London. Archived from the original on 15 November 2017.
  37. ^ Dean, Lewis (20 February 2015). "Jo Swinson: Liberal Democrats will not die at general election after rise of SNP". International Business Times UK. Retrieved 7 April 2018.
  38. ^ "SMEs get equality advice – GOV.UK". www.gov.uk. Archived from the original on 24 April 2017. Retrieved 13 January 2018.
  39. ^ "Parents can now apply for Shared Parental Leave – GOV.UK". www.gov.uk. Archived from the original on 25 April 2017. Retrieved 13 January 2018.
  40. ^ "Shared Parental Leave – GOV.UK". www.gov.uk. Archived from the original on 25 April 2017. Retrieved 13 January 2018.
  41. ^ a b "Baby in the House: MP Jo Swinson on her mission to promote shared". Evening Standard. Archived from the original on 20 June 2016. Retrieved 13 January 2018.
  42. ^ "Sexism debate after pregnant Minister left standing for PMQs". ITV News. Archived from the original on 22 June 2017. Retrieved 13 January 2018.
  43. ^ Elliott, Francis (18 October 2013). "Row as MPs leave pregnant minister standing". The Times. Retrieved 13 January 2018.
  44. ^ "Sexist or not? Seven-months pregnant Scots MP Jo Swinson is left standing in Commons". The Herald. Glasgow. Archived from the original on 14 January 2018. Retrieved 13 January 2018.
  45. ^ "Is it sexist for a man to offer a woman a seat?". Channel 4 News. Archived from the original on 21 January 2016. Retrieved 13 January 2018.
  46. ^ "Swinson: It's Not Sexist To Offer Pregnant Women A Seat". HuffPost UK. 6 November 2013. Archived from the original on 4 June 2015. Retrieved 13 January 2018.
  47. ^ Brinded, Lianna (5 August 2013). "Jo Swinson MP on Zero-Hours Contracts [Exclusive Interview]". International Business Times UK. Archived from the original on 14 January 2018. Retrieved 13 January 2018.
  48. ^ "For and against flexible working rule". BBC News. Archived from the original on 14 January 2018. Retrieved 13 January 2018.
  49. ^ "Jo Swinson on flexible working: 'The culture won't change overnight'". The Independent. 29 June 2014. Archived from the original on 30 August 2017. Retrieved 14 January 2018.
  50. ^ Hope, Christopher (1 April 2013). "Minimum wage could be frozen or cut if it starts to cost jobs or damage economy, Government suggests". The Telegraph. London. Archived from the original on 14 January 2018. Retrieved 14 January 2018.
  51. ^ Kuchler, Hannah; Stacey, Kiran (2 April 2013). "UK considers cut in minimum wage". Financial Times. London. Archived from the original on 14 January 2018. Retrieved 14 January 2018.
  52. ^ Medland, Dina (18 December 2014). "Ranking Business For Human Rights In A 'Race To The Top'". Forbes. New York. Retrieved 15 January 2018.
  53. ^ "Jo Swinson pledges support for a new ranking of companies' human rights performance". www.gov.uk (Press release). Department for Business, Innovation and Skills. 18 December 2014. Retrieved 15 January 2018.
  54. ^ Silvera, Ian (19 November 2013). "UK Government Unveils FTSE Index to Boost Employee Ownership". International Business Times UK. Retrieved 19 March 2018.
  55. ^ "Employee ownership flourishes in UK". www.gov.uk (Press release). Department for Business, Innovation and Skills. 19 November 2013. Retrieved 19 March 2018.
  56. ^ "Government measures boost direct employee ownership". www.gov.uk (Press release). Department for Business, Innovation and Skills. 30 April 2013. Retrieved 19 March 2018.
  57. ^ "Foreword from the Minister by Jo Swinson" (PDF). Retrieved 18 May 2020.
  58. ^ "Jo Swinson speech in full". politics.co.uk. 26 September 2012. Retrieved 19 March 2018.
  59. ^ Mackie, Gareth (30 June 2013). "John Lewis boss: Worker-ownership can teach lesson". The Scotsman. Edinburgh. Retrieved 19 March 2018.
  60. ^ "Swinson could gain in Cabinet reshuffle". HeraldScotland. 7 October 2014. Retrieved 15 January 2018.
  61. ^ "Lib Dems delay Jo Swinson's promotion to the cabinet". www.newstatesman.com. 12 July 2014. Archived from the original on 13 May 2016. Retrieved 14 January 2018.
  62. ^ Hope, Christopher (4 October 2014). "Nick Clegg's Cabinet reshuffle stalls as Alistair Carmichael refuses to budge". Daily Telegraph. ISSN 0307-1235. Archived from the original on 22 November 2014. Retrieved 14 January 2018.
  63. ^ "Michael Gove Sacked As Education Secretary In Dramatic Reshuffle". HuffPost UK. 15 July 2014. Archived from the original on 23 June 2017. Retrieved 14 January 2018.
  64. ^ "Could the SNP win 25 Labour seats in 2015?". www.newstatesman.com. 21 October 2014. Archived from the original on 23 October 2017. Retrieved 14 January 2018.
  65. ^ Riley-Smith, Ben (18 November 2014). "Danny Alexander 'will lose seat in 2015 unless there is a miracle turnaround' according to Lib Dem strategist". Daily Telegraph. ISSN 0307-1235. Archived from the original on 28 October 2015. Retrieved 14 January 2018.
  66. ^ "Lord Oakeshott gives Miliband a boost". Financial Times. 21 January 2015. Archived from the original on 11 December 2022. Retrieved 14 January 2018.
  67. ^ Fisher, Lucy (22 January 2015). "Lib Dem peer Lord Oakeshott switches cash to Labour". The Times. ISSN 0140-0460. Retrieved 14 January 2018.
  68. ^ "Ex-Lib Dem Peer Funding Labour Election Fight". HuffPost UK. 22 January 2015. Retrieved 7 April 2018.
  69. ^ "LibDem donor snubs Danny Alexander, Jo Swinson to back Labour candidates with £300k". HeraldScotland. 21 January 2015. Retrieved 7 April 2018.
  70. ^ "London's 1000 most influential people 2011: Politics". Evening Standard. Retrieved 7 April 2018.
  71. ^ "London's 1000 most influential people 2012: Power Rangers, Westminster". Evening Standard. Retrieved 7 April 2018.
  72. ^ "The Power 1000 – London's most influential people 2013: Power rangers". Evening Standard. Retrieved 7 April 2018.
  73. ^ "The 1000 – London's most influential people 2014: Capital politics". Evening Standard. Retrieved 7 April 2018.
  74. ^ Chakelian, Anoosh (3 June 2017). "Ex-Lib Dem minister Jo Swinson: 'When we went into coalition, I knew it might be impossible to win my seat'". New Statesman. Archived from the original on 18 May 2017. Retrieved 19 April 2017.
  75. ^ MacNab, Scott (19 April 2017). "Jo Swinson to fight East Dunbartonshire seat for Lib Dems". The Scotsman. Archived from the original on 18 May 2017. Retrieved 19 April 2017.
  76. ^ a b "Equal Power by Jo Swinson | Waterstones". www.waterstones.com. Retrieved 19 March 2018.
  77. ^ Channel 4 News [@channel4news] (2 July 2019). ""I'm very proud that you're looking at the person who basically stopped the fracking industry in this country."" (Tweet). Retrieved 30 October 2019 – via Twitter.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  78. ^ "East Dunbartonshire MP Jo Swinson in fracking row". Kirkintilloch Herald. 14 June 2019. Retrieved 30 October 2019.
  79. ^ "Tim Farron quits as Lib Dem leader". BBC News. 14 June 2017. Archived from the original on 14 June 2017. Retrieved 14 June 2017.
  80. ^ Smith, Mikey (18 June 2017). "Lib Dem Jo Swinson will not stand to replace Tim Farron as leader". Daily Mirror. Archived from the original on 18 June 2017. Retrieved 18 June 2017.
  81. ^ "New Liberal Democrat spokespeople". Liberal Democrats. 12 October 2017. Archived from the original on 19 November 2017. Retrieved 14 January 2018.
  82. ^ Kentish, Benjamin (17 September 2017). "Donald Trump is a 'racist, misogynist bully' and shouldn't be invited to the UK, says Lib Dems' Deputy Leader". The Independent. Archived from the original on 9 June 2022. Retrieved 19 March 2018.
  83. ^ "Jo Swinson: 'Bully' Donald Trump should not get state visit". The Herald. 17 September 2017. Retrieved 19 March 2018.
  84. ^ Elgot, Jessica (17 September 2017). "Lib Dem conference: Jo Swinson hits out at Trump and 'bully politics'". The Guardian. Retrieved 19 March 2018.
  85. ^ Hughes, Laura (17 September 2017). "Russia 'more measured' than America and China is a 'voice of reason', Jo Swinson says". The Telegraph. ISSN 0307-1235. Retrieved 19 March 2018.
  86. ^ Paterson, Kirsteen (17 September 2017). "'Arsey' Trump not welcome in the UK, Swinson tells LibDem conference". The National. Retrieved 19 March 2018.
  87. ^ "Jo Swinson on the struggle for gender equality and why sexism has to end". Retrieved 19 March 2018.
  88. ^ "Jo Swinson, Gingerbread, Equal pay, Menopause, Woman's Hour". BBC. BBC Radio 4. Retrieved 19 March 2018.
  89. ^ "Jo Swinson 'fought off sexual advances' by physically pushing man off". Evening Standard. Retrieved 19 March 2018.
  90. ^ a b "Aye Write! Festival welcomes 200 authors to Glasgow". HeraldScotland. 15 March 2018. Retrieved 19 March 2018.
  91. ^ "Jo Swinson MP: Five things you can do to end gender inequality". Retrieved 19 March 2018.
  92. ^ "Votes for women: Every inch of progress was hard fought". The Irish Times. Retrieved 19 March 2018.
  93. ^ "Girl interrupter: Forget being good, women should be gutsy, says Jo Swinson". HeraldScotland. 18 March 2018. Retrieved 19 March 2018.
  94. ^ Yorke, Harry (4 March 2018). "Lib Dem deputy leader Jo Swinson backs calls for a Margaret Thatcher statue". The Daily Telegraph. ISSN 0307-1235. Retrieved 19 March 2018.
  95. ^ "Here's five perfect Thatcher monuments we could erect in Scotland". The National. 7 March 2018. Retrieved 19 March 2018.
  96. ^ "Why opponents of the Thatcher statue are wasting their time | Coffee House". Coffee House. 6 March 2018. Retrieved 19 March 2018.
  97. ^ "We should build statue to Margaret Thatcher, says Scottish MP". HeraldScotland. 5 March 2018. Retrieved 7 April 2018.
  98. ^ "Jo Swinson calls for Nicola Sturgeon statue to mark first woman First Minister". PoliticsHome.com. 25 March 2018. Retrieved 7 April 2018.
  99. ^ Simons, Ned (20 July 2018). "If Jo Swinson Could Attend Anti-Trump Rally She Could Have Voted, Says Kate Hoey". HuffPost UK.
  100. ^ a b c Crerar, Pippa (18 July 2018). "Jo Swinson pushes for proxy Commons votes after 'error' breaks MPs' pact". The Guardian. Retrieved 18 July 2018.
  101. ^ a b c "Maternity leave MP accuses Tories over vote". BBC News. 18 July 2018. Retrieved 18 July 2018.
  102. ^ Demianyk, Graeme (16 July 2018). "MP Accuses Government Of 'Cheating' Over Crunch Brexit Vote After Breaking Agreement". HuffPost UK. Retrieved 18 July 2018.
  103. ^ Maidment, Jack (24 May 2019). "Sir Vince Cable triggers Lib Dem leadership contest with new leader set to be in place by July 23". The Telegraph. Retrieved 30 May 2019.
  104. ^ "Jo Swinson confirms Liberal Democrat leadership bid". BBC News. BBC. 30 May 2019. Retrieved 30 May 2019.
  105. ^ Gray, Jasmin (31 May 2019). "Jo Swinson Joins Race To Become Next Lib Dem Leader". HuffPost UK. Retrieved 31 May 2019.
  106. ^ Mueller, Benjamin (22 July 2019). "Britain's New Liberal Democrats Leader, Jo Swinson, Could Be a Kingmaker". The New York Times. Retrieved 23 July 2019.
  107. ^ "Brecon and Radnorshire by-election: Boris Johnson's majority cut to one as 'Remain alliance' powers Lib Dems to key victory". The Independent. 2 August 2019. Archived from the original on 9 June 2022.
  108. ^ "Tweet detailing membership figures". Liberal Democrats.
  109. ^ Louis Staples (17 September 2019). "Jo Swinson dismantles Boris in just one minute". The Independent – Indy 100. Archived from the original on 9 October 2019. Retrieved 5 October 2019.
  110. ^ Ford, Robert; et al. (2021). The British General Election of 2019. Springer. ISBN 978-3-030-74256-0.
  111. ^ Walker, Peter (6 November 2019). "I can be next PM, says Jo Swinson at launch of election campaign". The Guardian. Retrieved 13 December 2019.
  112. ^ Chorley, Matt; Devlin, Kate (19 November 2019). "Voters dislike Jo Swinson the more they see her, poll finds". The Times. Retrieved 18 May 2020.
  113. ^ Merrick, Rob (20 November 2019). "'Sickening': Jo Swinson condemned for unhesitatingly saying she would use nuclear weapons". The Independent. Archived from the original on 9 June 2022. Retrieved 13 December 2019.
  114. ^ Satariano, Adam; Tsang, Amie (10 December 2019). "Who's Spreading Disinformation in U.K. Election? You Might Be Surprised". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 30 November 2020. Retrieved 7 February 2021.
  115. ^ a b Dalton, Jane (22 November 2019). ""People are dying because of what you did': Jo Swinson confronted over Tory coalition record"". The Independent.
  116. ^ "Spectre of coalition still hangs over Lib Dems nine years on". BelfastTelegraph.co.uk. 8 December 2019. ISSN 0307-1235. Retrieved 24 November 2023.
  117. ^ "Swinson ridiculed in front of cameras and her campaign bus by student activist". The National. 22 November 2019. Retrieved 24 November 2023.
  118. ^ McLaughlin, Daniel (22 November 2019). ""'Unforgivable': Jo Swinson confronted by student over Lib Dems' record on austerity – video"". The Guardian.
  119. ^ Marland, Ian (24 November 2023). "Jo Swinson confronted by heckler over role in coalition". The Times. ISSN 0140-0460. Retrieved 24 November 2023.
  120. ^ a b O'Leary, Abigail (22 November 2019). "Student heckles Jo Swinson saying Lib Dems' austerity role left people "dying"". The Mirror. Retrieved 24 November 2023.
  121. ^ "Study: Effects of puberty-blockers can last a lifetime". WNG. 8 December 2020. Retrieved 16 December 2022.
  122. ^ "They Paused Puberty, but Is There a Cost?". The New York Times. 14 November 2022. Retrieved 16 December 2022.
  123. ^ John, Tara (9 October 2021). "Anti-trans rhetoric is rife in the British media. Little is being done to extinguish the flames". CNN. Retrieved 24 October 2023.
  124. ^ Contributor, VICE (17 November 2021). "The Anti-Trans 'Gender-Critical' Movement Is Overflowing with Bullshit". Vice. Retrieved 24 October 2023. {{cite web}}: |last= has generic name (help)
  125. ^ "Puberty-blocker drug firm donated cash to Lib Dems". The Times. 8 December 2019. Retrieved 16 December 2022.
  126. ^ "General election 2019: Jo Swinson defends stance on transgender rights". BBC News. 9 December 2019. Retrieved 7 August 2023.
  127. ^ Walker, Peter (15 May 2020). "Lib Dem election campaign a 'car crash', says party's review". The Guardian. Retrieved 17 May 2020.
  128. ^ "Sir Ed Davey wins Liberal Democrat leadership race". BBC News. BBC. Retrieved 27 August 2020.
  129. ^ Matchett, Conor (1 July 2020). "Former Lib Dem leader Jo Swinson takes on role at business school". The Scotsman. Retrieved 9 July 2020.
  130. ^ "MP Jo Swinson weds MP Duncan Hames – Local Headlines". Milngavie Herald. 25 May 2011. Archived from the original on 12 May 2012. Retrieved 12 February 2012.
  131. ^ "Scots MP Jo Swinson gives birth to baby boy". The Herald. Glasgow: Newsquest Media Group. 24 December 2013. Archived from the original on 28 December 2013. Retrieved 2 June 2015.
  132. ^ "Instagram".
  133. ^ Lewis, Helen (16 September 2017). "The marathon fight to overturn Brexit: Jo Swinson on her party's future". New Statesman. Retrieved 16 May 2019.
  134. ^ Stalker, Ross (8 October 2007). "Jo in Marathon Success". East Dunbartonshire Liberal Democrats. Retrieved 16 May 2019.
  135. ^ "Swinson swells Parliament's marathon club". virginmoneylondonmarathon.com. 5 April 2011. Retrieved 16 May 2019.
  136. ^ "Jo on run for funds in memory of dad". Kirkintilloch Herald. 25 March 2019. Retrieved 16 May 2019.
  137. ^ Kunal Ditta "MP Jo Swinson recovering after suffering a potentially fatal anaphylactic shock" Archived 9 May 2013 at the Wayback Machine, The Independent, 5 May 2013
  138. ^ "Jo Swinson MP recovers from allergic reaction" Archived 6 May 2013 at the Wayback Machine, BBC News, 6 May 2013
  139. ^ "No. 62150". The London Gazette (Supplement). 30 December 2017. p. N10.
  140. ^ "Jo's CBE joy". The Herald. 16 March 2018. p. 8.
  141. ^ Sethi, Anita (19 January 2019). "Jo Swinson: 'I first wrote to my MP when I was about 10'". The Guardian. Retrieved 23 July 2019.
  142. ^ "Honorary Members". Humanists UK. Retrieved 23 July 2019.

External links[edit]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Jo Swinson.
Wikiquote has quotations related to Jo Swinson.
Parliament of the United Kingdom
New constituency Member of Parliament
for East Dunbartonshire
2005–2015 		Succeeded by
Preceded by Member of Parliament
for East Dunbartonshire
2017–2019 		Succeeded by
Preceded by Baby of the House
2005-2009 		Succeeded by
Party political offices
Preceded by Deputy leader of the Liberal Democrats
2017–2019 		Succeeded by
Preceded by Leader of the Liberal Democrats
2019
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Jo_Swinson&oldid=1217917976"