Layla Michelle Moran ( ; born 12 September 1982) is a British

Liberal Democrat Several political parties from around the world have been called the Liberal Democratic Party, Democratic Liberal Party or Liberal Democrats. These parties have usually followed liberalism as ideology, although they can vary widely from very progr ...

politician. She has served as the Chair of the

Health and Social Care Select Committee The Health and Social Care Select Committee (abbreviated to HSC, HSCC and HSCSC) is a Departmental Select Committee of the British House of Commons, the lower house of the United Kingdom Parliament. Its remit is to examine the policy, administ ...

since September 2024, and has been Member of Parliament (MP) for Oxford West and Abingdon since 2017. Moran attended schools in

Brussels Brussels, officially the Brussels-Capital Region, (All text and all but one graphic show the English name as Brussels-Capital Region.) is a Communities, regions and language areas of Belgium#Regions, region of Belgium comprising #Municipalit ...

and

Kingston Kingston may refer to: Places * List of places called Kingston, including the six most populated: ** Kingston, Jamaica ** Kingston upon Hull, England ** City of Kingston, Victoria, Australia ** Kingston, Ontario, Canada ** Kingston upon Thames, ...

before taking her

A-levels The A-level (Advanced Level) is a subject-based qualification conferred as part of the General Certificate of Education, as well as a school leaving qualification offered by the educational bodies in the United Kingdom and the educational ...

Roedean School Roedean () is a private boarding school governed by royal charter on the outskirts of Brighton, United Kingdom. It was founded in 1885 by three sisters to educate wealthy daughters and heiresses of aristocracy and industrial elites of the 19t ...

near

Brighton Brighton ( ) is a seaside resort in the city status in the United Kingdom, city of Brighton and Hove, East Sussex, England, south of London. Archaeological evidence of settlement in the area dates back to the Bronze Age Britain, Bronze Age, R ...

. She studied

physics Physics is the scientific study of matter, its Elementary particle, fundamental constituents, its motion and behavior through space and time, and the related entities of energy and force. "Physical science is that department of knowledge whi ...

Imperial College London Imperial College London, also known as Imperial, is a Public university, public research university in London, England. Its history began with Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, Prince Albert, husband of Queen Victoria, who envisioned a Al ...

and completed her PGCE at

Brunel University London Brunel University of London (BUL) is a Public university, public Research universities, research university located in the Uxbridge area of London, England. It is named after Isambard Kingdom Brunel, a Victorian era, Victorian engineer and pione ...

. She subsequently worked as a maths and physics teacher. Moran unsuccessfully campaigned as the Liberal Democrat candidate in

Battersea Battersea is a large district in southwest London, part of the London Borough of Wandsworth, England. It is centred southwest of Charing Cross and also extends along the south bank of the Thames Tideway. It includes the Battersea Park. Hist ...

at the 2010 general election; in the West Central constituency at the

2012 London Assembly election The London Assembly election of 2012 was an election of members to the London Assembly which took place on Thursday, 3 May 2012, the same day as the 2012 London mayoral election, and the 2012 United Kingdom local elections. Although Conservati ...

; and in Oxford West and Abingdon at the 2015 general election. Moran was selected for the seat again at the 2017 general election and was elected to the

House of Commons The House of Commons is the name for the elected lower house of the Bicameralism, bicameral parliaments of the United Kingdom and Canada. In both of these countries, the Commons holds much more legislative power than the nominally upper house of ...

, defeating Conservative MP

Nicola Blackwood Nicola Claire Blackwood, Baroness Blackwood of North Oxford (born 16 October 1979) is a British politician of the Conservative Party. Baroness Blackwood was a Member of Parliament (MP) for Oxford West and Abingdon from 2010 to 2017. She has al ...

. She was the Liberal Democrat spokesperson for the

Department for Education The Department for Education (DfE) is a Departments of the Government of the United Kingdom, ministerial department of the Government of the United Kingdom. It is responsible for child protection, child services, education in England, educati ...

under three leaders from 2017 to 2020, and was spokesperson for the

Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport The Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) is a ministerial department of the Government of the United Kingdom. It holds the responsibility for culture and sport, and some aspects of the media throughout the UK, such as broadcasting. I ...

from 2019 to 2020. After

Jo Swinson Joanne Kate Swinson (born 5 February 1980) is a former British politician who was Leader of the Liberal Democrats from July to December 2019. Swinson was Member of Parliament (United Kingdom), Member of Parliament (MP) for East Dunbartonshire ( ...

lost her seat at the 2019 general election, Moran stood to become the

leader of the Liberal Democrats The Liberal Democrats are a political party in the United Kingdom. Party members elect the leader of the Liberal Democrats, the head and highest-ranking member of the party. Liberal Democrat members of Parliament also elect a deputy leader of ...

in the 2020 leadership election, which she lost to acting leader

Sir Ed Davey Sir Edward Jonathan Davey (born 25 December 1965) is a British politician who has served as the leader of the Liberal Democrat party since 2020. He served in the Cameron–Clegg coalition as Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change f ...

. On 31 August 2020, Davey appointed Moran as the Liberal Democrats' shadow foreign secretary, and international development spokesperson the following day, she served in these roles until her election as Chair of the Health and Social Care Select Committee. Moran came out as

pansexual Pansexuality is sexual, romantic, or emotional attraction towards people of all genders, or regardless of their sex or gender identity. Pansexual people may refer to themselves as gender-blind, asserting that gender and sex are not determ ...

in 2020 and is the first UK parliamentarian to do so. She is the first MP of

Palestinian Palestinians () are an Arab ethnonational group native to the Levantine region of Palestine. *: "Palestine was part of the first wave of conquest following Muhammad's death in 632 CE; Jerusalem fell to the Caliph Umar in 638. The indigenous p ...

descent.

Early life and career

Moran was born on 12 September 1982 in

Hammersmith Hammersmith is a district of West London, England, southwest of Charing Cross. It is the administrative centre of the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham, and identified in the London Plan as one of 35 major centres in Greater London. It ...

, the elder daughter of diplomat James Moran and Randa Moran, a Christian Palestinian from

Jerusalem Jerusalem is a city in the Southern Levant, on a plateau in the Judaean Mountains between the Mediterranean Sea, Mediterranean and the Dead Sea. It is one of the List of oldest continuously inhabited cities, oldest cities in the world, and ...

. Her great-grandfather was the Palestinian writer

Wasif Jawhariyyeh Wasif Jawhariyyeh (; 14 January 1897 – 1972) was a Palestinian people, Palestinian composer, oud player, poet and chronicler. He is known for his memoirs, ''The Diaries of Wasif Jawhariyyeh'', that spans over six decades from 1904 to 1968, ...

, who published extensive memoirs. Moran describes herself as British-Palestinian. On her upbringing, Moran said "My Palestinian background has made me interested at a global level. Politics was always at the dinner table; it primed me to engage." Baptised and raised in the

Greek Orthodox Church Greek Orthodox Church (, , ) is a term that can refer to any one of three classes of Christian Churches, each associated in some way with Christianity in Greece, Greek Christianity, Antiochian Greek Christians, Levantine Arabic-speaking Christian ...

, Moran now identifies as a

humanist Humanism is a philosophical stance that emphasizes the individual and social potential, and agency of human beings, whom it considers the starting point for serious moral and philosophical inquiry. The meaning of the term "humanism" ha ...

. As her father was a diplomat for the

European Union The European Union (EU) is a supranational union, supranational political union, political and economic union of Member state of the European Union, member states that are Geography of the European Union, located primarily in Europe. The u ...

, Moran grew up in various countries, including Belgium, Greece, Ethiopia, Jamaica and Jordan. She attended private schools in

, and

, before going to

. From 2000 to 2003, she studied physics at

, and from 2005 to 2007 completed a PGCE at

. From 2007 to 2008, she studied for a master's degree in comparative education at 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 ...

(now the

UCL 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 University College London#Facultie ...

). From 2003 to 2012, Moran was a maths and physics teacher at the

International School of Brussels The International School of Brussels (ISB) is an English-language international school in the Brussels municipality of Watermael-Boitsfort. History The International School of Brussels (ISB) was established in October 1951 under the name of ...

, and at two schools in London: Queensmead School and

Southbank International School Southbank International School is a Mixed-sex education, co-educational Private schools in the United Kingdom, private school located in the City of Westminster, Kensington and Hampstead, London, England. It is an international school for 2 to ...

. Between 2009 and 2013 she worked as a part-time course tutor for Oxford Study Courses, a company that helps

International Baccalaureate The International Baccalaureate Organization (IBO), more commonly known as the International Baccalaureate (IB), is a nonprofit foundation headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland, and founded in 1968. It offers four educational programmes: the I ...

teachers and students, and from 2013 she was full-time academic manager.

Parliamentary career

Moran was selected as the Liberal Democrat candidate for

at the 2010 general election, coming third with 14.7% of the vote behind the

Conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy and ideology that seeks to promote and preserve traditional institutions, customs, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civiliza ...

candidate Jane Ellison and the Labour candidate Martin Linton. She also stood as a candidate for the West Central constituency in the

, coming fourth with 6.9% of the vote behind the Conservative incumbent

Kit Malthouse Christopher Laurie "Kit" Malthouse (born 27 October 1966) is a British Conservative Party politician and businessman who has served as Member of Parliament (MP) for North West Hampshire since 2015. He served as Secretary of State for Education ...

, and the Labour and

Green Party A green party is a formally organized political party based on the principles of green politics, such as environmentalism and social justice. Green party platforms typically embrace Social democracy, social democratic economic policies and fo ...

candidate. Moran contested Oxford West and Abingdon at the 2015 general election, coming second with 28.9% of the vote behind the incumbent Conservative MP

. She was selected for the seat again at the snap 2017 general election and was elected with 43.7% of the vote and a majority of 816. Moran became the first UK Member of Parliament of

descent and the first female Liberal Democrat MP from an ethnic minority background. In June 2017, Moran was named Liberal Democrat spokesperson for education, science and young people in the

. That month she used her maiden speech to call for fairer funding for schools, and in July 2017 she spoke out against the closure of all the

Sure Start Sure Start (named Flying Start in Wales, Best Start in Scotland) is a UK Government area-based initiative, announced in 1998 by the then Chancellor of the Exchequer, Gordon Brown, applying primarily in England with slightly different versions in ...

children's centres in Oxfordshire earlier in the year. Also in July 2017, Moran was jeered at for accusing the Conservatives of underfunding a new scheme to provide 30 hours of free child care for the children of working parents. Later in 2017, she was appointed a member of the

Public Accounts Committee A public accounts committee (PAC) is a committee within a legislature whose role is to study public audits, invite ministers, permanent secretaries or other ministry officials to the committee for questioning, and report on their findings subseque ...

, which is responsible for overseeing government expenditure. In May 2019, Moran announced that, being a relatively new MP, she would not be running in the

2019 Liberal Democrats leadership election Nineteen or 19 may refer to: * 19 (number) * One of the years 19 BC, AD 19, 1919, 2019 Films * ''19'' (film), a 2001 Japanese film * ''Nineteen'' (1987 film), a 1987 science fiction film * '' 19-Nineteen'', a 2009 South Korean film * '' D ...

. She had been considered a frontrunner to replace

Vince Cable Sir John Vincent Cable (born 9 May 1943) is a British politician who was Leader of the Liberal Democrats from 2017 to 2019. He was Member of Parliament (United Kingdom), Member of Parliament (MP) for Twickenham (UK Parliament constituency), Twic ...

as leader, following his announcement in September 2018 that he intended to step down from the post. At the 2019 general election, Moran was re-elected as MP for Oxford West and Abingdon with an increased vote share of 53.3% and an increased majority of 8,943. Official portrait of Layla Moran MP crop 2

Official portrait of Layla Moran MP crop 2

In March 2020, Moran announced that she would be running in the 2020 leadership election. Moran finished in second place with 35.6% of the vote, losing to

Ed Davey Sir Edward Jonathan Davey (born 25 December 1965) is a British politician who has served as the Leader of the Liberal Democrats, leader of the Liberal Democrat party since 2020. He served in the Cameron–Clegg coalition as Secretary of State ...

, the acting co-leader. Moran has also been a leading voice in the call for a full review of the

GCSE The General Certificate of Secondary Education (GCSE) is an academic qualification in a range of subjects taken in England, Wales, and Northern Ireland, having been introduced in September 1986 and its first exams taken in 1988. State schools ...

history curriculum. She argues that to tackle

institutional racism Institutional racism, also known as systemic racism, is a form of institutional discrimination based on Race (human categorization), race or ethnic group and can include policies and practices that exist throughout a whole society or organizati ...

in society students must be taught of Britain's colonial past and the injustices that took place within it. In 2020 over 250,000 people signed a petition calling for 'Britain's colonial history to be made a compulsory part of the curriculum' which prompted Moran and 30 other cross-party MP's to apply greater pressure on the government to make significant changes to the history curriculum. In 2021, Moran was one of three MPs who successfully took legal action against the

Department of Health and Social Care The Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) is a ministerial department of the Government of the United Kingdom. It is responsible for government policy on health and adult social care matters in England, along with a few elements of the s ...

over contracts awarded during the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...

. On 9 September 2024, Layla Moran was elected as Chair of the

Political positions

Environment

Moran has stated that she supports

action on climate change Climate action (or climate change action) refers to a range of activities, mechanisms, policy instruments, and so forth that aim at reducing the severity of human-induced climate change and its impacts. "More climate action" is a central demand o ...

, and was the only Oxfordshire MP to support the

Climate and Ecological Emergency Bill The Climate and Nature Bill, formerly the Climate and Ecology Bill, is a private member's bill before the Parliament of the United Kingdom aimed at tackling the Climate crisis, climate and Environmental degradation, ecological emergencies throu ...

. In 2023, she campaigned against solar farms in her constituency.

European Union

Moran opposed Brexit and supported a second referendum on EU membership. Despite her opposition to Brexit, after the 2019 general election, she said that a Liberal Democrat policy to cancel the departure without a second referendum was a mistake.

Foreign policy

Moran opposed the 2003 invasion of Iraq. She opposed cuts to foreign aid to

Yemen Yemen, officially the Republic of Yemen, is a country in West Asia. Located in South Arabia, southern Arabia, it borders Saudi Arabia to Saudi Arabia–Yemen border, the north, Oman to Oman–Yemen border, the northeast, the south-eastern part ...

. She is also critical of

Saudi Arabian-led intervention in Yemen On 26 March 2015, Saudi Arabia, leading a coalition of nine countries from West Asia and North Africa, launched a military intervention in Yemen at the request of Yemeni president Abdrabbuh Mansur Hadi, who had been ousted from the capital, Sa ...

. Moran believes that the United Kingdom should announce recognition of the

State of Palestine Palestine, officially the State of Palestine, is a country in West Asia. Recognized by International recognition of Palestine, 147 of the UN's 193 member states, it encompasses the Israeli-occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem, and th ...

. She called out the names of the children killed in the

2021 Israel–Palestine crisis The 2021 Israel–Palestine crisis, sometimes called the Unity Intifada, was a major outbreak of violence in the Israeli–Palestinian conflict that mainly commenced on 10 May 2021, and continued until a ceasefire came into effect on 21 May. I ...

in Parliament. Following the 2023 attacks on Israel by Hamas, Moran appeared and spoke at vigils for Israeli victims in Oxford and denounced Hamas as a terrorist organisation. Moran supported an inquiry into the disappearances of

Mohammed Bin Nayef Muhammad bin Nayef Al Saud (; born 30 August 1959), colloquially known by his initials MBN or MbN, is a former Saudi Arabian politician and businessman who served as the crown prince and first deputy prime minister of Saudi Arabia from 2015 to 2 ...

and Prince Ahmed Bin Abdulaziz of

Saudi Arabia Saudi Arabia, officially the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), is a country in West Asia. Located in the centre of the Middle East, it covers the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula and has a land area of about , making it the List of Asian countries ...

. She is also critical of the arms trade between Britain and Saudi Arabia, and is a critic of Russia. In February 2022, she used the cover of

Parliamentary privilege Parliamentary privilege is a legal immunity enjoyed by members of certain legislatures, in which legislators are granted protection against civil or criminal liability for actions done or statements made in the course of their legislative duties ...

to name the Navalny 35, Russian oligarchs who, as allies of Vladimir Putin, should have sanctions imposed on them. Moran is a supporter of

Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe (; ; born 26 December 1978) is an Iranian-British dual citizen who was detained in Iran from 3 April 2016 to 16 March 2022 as part of a long-running dispute between Britain and Iran. In early September 2016, she was sent ...

and called for her release from prison in

Iran Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran (IRI) and also known as Persia, is a country in West Asia. It borders Iraq to the west, Turkey, Azerbaijan, and Armenia to the northwest, the Caspian Sea to the north, Turkmenistan to the nort ...

. During the

Gaza war The Gaza war is an armed conflict in the Gaza Strip and southern Israel fought since 7 October 2023. A part of the unresolved Israeli–Palestinian conflict, Israeli–Palestinian and Gaza–Israel conflict, Gaza–Israel conflicts dating ...

, she has advocated for allowing

humanitarian aid Humanitarian aid is material and Humanitarian Logistics, logistic assistance, usually in the short-term, to people in need. Among the people in need are the homelessness, homeless, refugees, and victims of natural disasters, wars, and famines. Th ...

into the Gaza Strip and urged the former

Prime Minister A prime minister or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. A prime minister is not the head of state, but r ...

Rishi Sunak Rishi Sunak (born 12 May 1980) is a British politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Conservative Party (UK), Leader of the Conservative Party from 2022 to 2024. Following his defeat to Keir Starmer's La ...

to take a stronger stance regarding the

humanitarian crisis A humanitarian crisis (or sometimes humanitarian disaster) is defined as a singular event or a series of events that are threatening in terms of health, safety or well-being of a community or large group of people. It may be an internal or exter ...

. Furthermore, she has advocated for a permanent ceasefire, citing the desperate situation of her own family members trapped in Gaza.

Housing

In 2020, Moran campaigned against a proposal to build 11,000 new homes in Oxford by 2036. In 2023, she urged voters to vote tactically for the Green Party in order to block increases in housing supply in her constituency.

Personal life

In an interview with ''

The Times ''The Times'' is a British Newspaper#Daily, daily Newspaper#National, national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its modern name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its si ...

'', Moran stated that she suffered from depression when she was a student and attributed it to a negative self-image resulting from the

social stigma of obesity Social stigma of obesity is bias or discriminatory behaviors targeted at overweight and obese individuals because of their weight and high body fat percentage. Such social stigmas can span one's entire life as long as excess weight is pre ...

. She underwent stomach-stapling surgery to assist her in losing weight. In 2013, Moran and her then-boyfriend, Richard Davis, were briefly questioned by police after she slapped him during an argument in their hotel room at the

Liberal Democrat Federal Conference The Liberal Democrat Conference, also known inside the party as the ''Liberal Democrat Federal Conference'', is a twice-per-year political conference of the British Liberal Democrats (UK), Liberal Democrats, the third-largest political party in ...

. She was charged with

domestic violence Domestic violence is violence that occurs in a domestic setting, such as in a marriage Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognised union between people called spouses. It establishes r ...

but the case was subsequently dropped. On 2 January 2020, Moran revealed in an interview with ''

PinkNews ''PinkNews'' is a UK-based online newspaper marketed to the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, and questioning community (LGBTQ+) in the UK and worldwide. It was founded by Benjamin Cohen in July 2005, initially released in print, b ...

'' that she is

; she is believed to be the first UK parliamentarian to come out as pansexual. Moran also disclosed that she was in a relationship with former Liberal Democrat

press officer A press secretary or press officer is a senior advisor who provides advice on how to deal with the news media and, using news management techniques, helps their employer to maintain a positive public image and avoid negative media coverage. Duties ...

Rosy Cobb. The couple live in

West Oxfordshire West Oxfordshire is a local government district in northwest Oxfordshire, England, including towns such as Woodstock, Burford, Chipping Norton, Charlbury, Carterton and Witney, where the council is based. Area The area is mainly rural downla ...

. In the

, Moran revealed she had extended family stranded in

Gaza City Gaza City, also called Gaza, is a city in the Gaza Strip, Palestine, and the capital of the Gaza Governorate. Located on the Mediterranean coast, southwest of Jerusalem, it was home to Port of Gaza, Palestine's only port. With a population of ...

. On 15 November 2023, she revealed during a debate in parliament that a family member had died in Gaza. In May 2025, Moran announced the birth of her first child and that she would be taking parental leave for about five months. Moran's baby was born at the

John Radcliffe Hospital John Radcliffe Hospital (informally known as the JR or the John Radcliffe) is a large tertiary teaching hospital in Oxford, England. It forms part of Oxford University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust and is named after John Radcliffe (physician) ...

in Oxford.

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Moran, Layla 1982 births 21st-century English women politicians Alumni of Brunel University London Alumni of Imperial College London British humanists British pansexual people English people of Palestinian descent Female members of the Parliament of the United Kingdom for English constituencies LGBTQ members of the Parliament of the United Kingdom LGBTQ people from London English LGBTQ politicians Liberal Democrats (UK) MPs for English constituencies Living people Pansexual women People educated at Roedean School, East Sussex People from Hammersmith Politicians from the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham UK MPs 2017–2019 UK MPs 2019–2024 UK MPs 2024–present Pansexual politicians