Angela Billingham, Baroness Billingham
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Angela Theodora Billingham, Baroness Billingham (born 31 July 1939) is a British Labour
politician A politician is a person who participates in Public policy, policy-making processes, usually holding an elective position in government. Politicians represent the people, make decisions, and influence the formulation of public policy. The roles ...
and former MEP for Northamptonshire and Blaby.


Early life

Born Angela Theodora Case in
Liverpool Liverpool is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. It is situated on the eastern side of the River Mersey, Mersey Estuary, near the Irish Sea, north-west of London. With a population ...
, she was educated at
Aylesbury Grammar School Aylesbury Grammar School is an 11–18 boys grammar school in Aylesbury, in the England, English county of Buckinghamshire, which educates approximately 1300 boys. Founded in 1598 by Sir Henry Lee, Champion of Queen Elizabeth I, Aylesbury Gramm ...
, the
Institute of Education The UCL Institute of Education (IOE) is the faculty of education and society of University College London (UCL). It specialises in postgraduate study and research in the field of education and is one of UCL's 11 constituent faculties. Prior t ...
and the Department of Education,
Oxford University The University of Oxford is a collegiate research university in Oxford, England. There is evidence of teaching as early as 1096, making it the oldest university in the English-speaking world and the second-oldest continuously operating u ...
. She became a teacher, working in education for thirty five years until 1995.


Political career

Baroness Billingham was a councillor for many years. From 1970 until 1974, she served on
Banbury Banbury is an historic market town and civil parish on the River Cherwell in Oxfordshire, South East England. The parish had a population of 54,335 at the 2021 Census. Banbury is a significant commercial and retail centre for the surrounding ...
Borough Council A borough is an administrative division in various English-speaking countries. In principle, the term ''borough'' designates a self-governing walled town, although in practice, official use of the term varies widely. History In the Middle Ag ...
, then from 1974 to 1984 on
Cherwell District Cherwell ( or ) is a local government district in northern Oxfordshire, England. The district was created in 1974 and takes its name from the River Cherwell, which drains south through the region to flow into the River Thames at Oxford. Towns ...
Council. She was Mayor of Banbury in 1976. She was an
Oxfordshire Oxfordshire ( ; abbreviated ''Oxon'') is a ceremonial county in South East England. The county is bordered by Northamptonshire and Warwickshire to the north, Buckinghamshire to the east, Berkshire to the south, and Wiltshire and Glouceste ...
county council A county council is the elected administrative body governing an area known as a county. This term has slightly different meanings in different countries. Australia In the Australian state of New South Wales, county councils are special purpose ...
lor 1993–94. She stood for Parliament in 1992 for
Banbury Banbury is an historic market town and civil parish on the River Cherwell in Oxfordshire, South East England. The parish had a population of 54,335 at the 2021 Census. Banbury is a significant commercial and retail centre for the surrounding ...
, without success. Billingham was elected to the
European Parliament The European Parliament (EP) is one of the two legislative bodies of the European Union and one of its seven institutions. Together with the Council of the European Union (known as the Council and informally as the Council of Ministers), it ...
for Northamptonshire and Blaby in 1994. In 1999 she unsuccessfully stood for the European Parliament in the new
East Midlands The East Midlands is one of nine official regions of England. It comprises the eastern half of the area traditionally known as the Midlands. It consists of Derbyshire, Leicestershire, Lincolnshire (except for North Lincolnshire and North East ...
Region. She was made a
life peer In the United Kingdom, life peers are appointed members of the peerage whose titles cannot be inherited, in contrast to hereditary peers. Life peers are appointed by the monarch on the advice of the prime minister. With the exception of the D ...
as Baroness Billingham, of Banbury in the County of Oxfordshire on 2 May 2000 and sits on the Labour benches.


Interests

She has promoted sports for people with disabilities and is a regular on Sky News where she previews the following morning's newspapers. Angela also campaigns for reform of the current
Daylight Saving Daylight saving time (DST), also referred to as daylight savings time, daylight time (United States and Canada), or summer time (United Kingdom, European Union, and others), is the practice of advancing clocks to make better use of the long ...
system, arguing that lighter evenings could end the national scourge of
childhood obesity Childhood obesity is a condition where excess adipose tissue, body fat negatively affects a child's health or well-being. As methods to determine body fat directly are difficult, the diagnosis of obesity is often based on Body mass index, BMI. ...
by allowing children to do an extra hour of
physical activity Physical activity is defined as any voluntary movement produced by skeletal muscles that requires energy expenditure.Global Recommendations on Physical Activity for Health, 2009. World Health Organization. Geneva, Switzerland. Accessed 13/07/2018 ...
a day. She also cites economic, environmental and safety concerns as important reasons for reform of the current system. She is also a keen tennis player, and is Chair/Captain of the Commons and Lords Tennis Club and the Chair of the All-Party Parliamentary Tennis Group.


Personal life

She married Peter Billingham in 1962 and they had two daughters, Zoë and Caroline. Peter died in 1992. Zoë is married to Dennis Skinner, son of
Dennis Skinner Dennis Edward Skinner (born 11 February 1932) is a British former politician who served as Member of Parliament (United Kingdom), Member of Parliament (MP) for Bolsover (UK Parliament constituency), Bolsover for 49 years, from 1970 to 2019. A m ...
, the long-serving former Labour MP for
Bolsover Bolsover is a market town and the administrative centre of the Bolsover District, Derbyshire, England. It is from Sheffield, from Nottingham and from Derby. It is the main town in the Bolsover district. The civil parish for the town is c ...
.


Parliamentary expenses

Subsistence Allowances are designed to help peers who live in the country to attend late-night votes and debates in Parliament, Billingham, who has a flat in Hampstead and a country house in Suffolk claimed £26,983 in 2006–07 in overnight allowances, prompting calls for an inquiry.


References


External links


Baroness Billingham page on theyworkforyou.com
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Billingham, Angela 1939 births Living people Alumni of the UCL Institute of Education Life peeresses created by Elizabeth II Life peers created by Elizabeth II Labour Party (UK) life peers Mayors of places in Oxfordshire 20th-century women MEPs for England Labour Party (UK) MEPs MEPs for England 1994–1999 People educated at Aylesbury Grammar School Women mayors of places in England