Sally Oppenheim-Barnes, Baroness Oppenheim-Barnes, PC ( Sarah Amelia Viner; 26 July 1928 – 1 January 2025) was a British

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 ...

politician.

Early life

Born Sarah Amelia Viner to Jewish parents (whose original surname was spelled Veiner) in

Dublin Dublin is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. Situated on Dublin Bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, and is bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, pa ...

on 26 July 1928, * ''See also'': she was raised and educated in

Sheffield Sheffield is a city in South Yorkshire, England, situated south of Leeds and east of Manchester. The city is the administrative centre of the City of Sheffield. It is historically part of the West Riding of Yorkshire and some of its so ...

, where her father founded a steel and cutlery company. She attended Lowther College and worked as a social worker in London before entering politics. She changed her forename legally to "Sally" in 1968.

Career

At the 1970 general election, she defeated Labour candidate Jack Diamond to represent the constituency of

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for the Conservative Party; Diamond was the only cabinet minister to lose his seat at that election. She continued as Member of Parliament for Gloucester until 1987 and was

Minister of State Minister of state is a designation for a government minister, with varying meanings in different jurisdictions. In a number of European countries, the title is given as an honorific conferring a higher rank, often bestowed upon senior minister ...

for Consumer Affairs in the

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between 1979 and 1982. She chaired the

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from 1987-89 and was later a vice-president of the National Union of Townswomen’s Guilds and chair of the

National Waterways Museum The National Waterways Museum (NWM) is a transport museum, at Ellesmere Port in the English county of Cheshire, which concentrates on the history of Britain's navigable inland waterways. Until 2010, the Waterways Trust operated three sites, incl ...

. Oppenheim-Barnes was created 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 Oppenheim-Barnes of

in the County of

Gloucestershire Gloucestershire ( , ; abbreviated Glos.) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South West England. It is bordered by Herefordshire to the north-west, Worcestershire to the north, Warwickshire to the north-east, Oxfordshire ...

, on 9 February 1989. Her son Phillip Oppenheim is a former Conservative MP for

Amber Valley Amber Valley is a local government district with borough status in the east of Derbyshire, England, taking its name from the River Amber. Its council is based in Ripley. The district covers a semi-rural area lying to the north of the city of ...

. Between 1983 and 1987 mother and son served simultaneously in the

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. On 25 February 2019, she retired from the House of Lords under the

House of Lords Reform Act 2014 The House of Lords Reform Act 2014 is an Act of Parliament of the United Kingdom. The Act was a private member's bill. It received royal assent on 14 May 2014. The Act allows members of the House of Lords to retire or resign – actions previous ...

Personal life and death

In 1949, she married Henry Oppenheim, a property tycoon, with whom she had three children. Widowed in 1980, in 1984 she married her second husband, John Barnes. Oppenheim-Barnes died on 1 January 2025, at the age of 96.

References

External links

*
Women's Rights: Radical Change
– video of Oppenheim appearing in a BBC debate first televised in 1974 * 1928 births 2025 deaths Conservative Party (UK) MPs for English constituencies Life peeresses created by Elizabeth II Life peers created by Elizabeth II Conservative Party (UK) life peers Female members of the Parliament of the United Kingdom for English constituencies Irish emigrants to the United Kingdom UK MPs 1970–1974 UK MPs 1974 UK MPs 1974–1979 UK MPs 1979–1983 UK MPs 1983–1987 Members of Parliament for Gloucester Members of the Privy Council of the United Kingdom Jewish British politicians People educated at Lowther College Politicians from Sheffield Politicians from Dublin (city) 20th-century British women politicians 20th-century English women 20th-century English politicians Peers retired under the House of Lords Reform Act 2014 20th-century Irish Jews 21st-century British Jews {{England-Conservative-UK-MP-1920s-stub