Ann Taylor, Baroness Taylor of Bolton

The Right Honourable The Baroness Taylor of Bolton PC
Parliamentary portrait, 2024
Chief Whip of the House of Commons Parliamentary Secretary to the Treasury
In office 27 July 1998 – 8 June 2001
Prime Minister	Tony Blair
Deputy	Keith Bradley
Preceded by	Nick Brown
Succeeded by	Hilary Armstrong
Leader of the House of Commons Lord President of the Council
In office 2 May 1997 – 27 July 1998
Prime Minister	Tony Blair
Preceded by	Tony Newton
Succeeded by	Margaret Beckett
Junior ministerial offices Minister of State for International Defence and Security In office 5 October 2008 – 11 May 2010 Prime Minister Gordon Brown Preceded by Office established Succeeded by Gerald Howarth Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Defence Equipment and Support In office 7 November 2007 – 5 October 2008 Prime Minister Gordon Brown Preceded by The Lord Drayson Succeeded by Quentin Davies
Parliamentary offices Chair of the Intelligence and Security Committee In office 9 June 2001 – 11 April 2005 Prime Minister Tony Blair Preceded by Tom King Succeeded by Paul Murphy Member of the House of Lords Lord Temporal Incumbent Assumed office 14 June 2005 Life peerage Member of Parliament for Dewsbury In office 11 June 1987 – 11 April 2005 Preceded by John Whitfield Succeeded by Shahid Malik Member of Parliament for Bolton West In office 10 October 1974 – 13 May 1983 Preceded by Robert Redmond Succeeded by Tom Sackville
Shadow cabinet portfolios
1994–1997	Shadow Leader of the House of Commons
1994–1995	Shadow Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster, Shadow Minister for the Citizen's Charter
1992–1994	Shadow Secretary of State for Education
Personal details
Born	Winifred Ann Taylor (1947-07-02) 2 July 1947 London, United Kingdom
Political party	Labour
Alma mater	University of Bradford (BSc)

Winifred Ann Taylor, Baroness Taylor of Bolton, PC (born 2 July 1947) is a British politician and life peer who served in the Cabinet of the United Kingdom from 1997 to 2001. A member of the Labour Party, she was Member of Parliament (MP) for Bolton West from 1974 to 1983, and Dewsbury from 1987 to 2005.

Early life and education

Winifred Ann Taylor was born on 2 July 1947 in London, England. Her mother was born in Lancashire and her grandfather hailed from Motherwell, Scotland, serving as chairman of local Labour Party. Taylor was educated at Bolton School, where she was head girl. She studied at the University of Bradford, where she graduated with a BSc in Politics and History in 1969.

Political career

Taylor contested the marginal Bolton West constituency at the February 1974 general election, but lost to incumbent Conservative Robert Redmond by a majority of 603 votes. However, she was elected to represent the same constituency in October 1974, defeating Redmond with a majority of 903.

During her first term in Parliament, she served in the Callaghan government as an assistant whip from 1977 to 1979. Notably the first female whip in the UK Parliament, she was later depicted in the 2012 play This House.

Re-elected at the 1979 general election with a reduced majority of 600 votes, she unsuccessfully contested the new Bolton North East seat in 1983, defeated by Conservative Peter Thurnham. Taylor returned to Parliament upon her election to the Dewsbury constituency at the 1987 general election, representing the seat until her retirement in 2005.

When she returned to the House of Commons in 1987, Taylor became a shadow minister under Labour leader Neil Kinnock; covering education and science from 1979 to 1981 and the environment from 1981 to 1992. She then served in the Shadow Cabinets of John Smith and Tony Blair as Shadow Secretary of State for Education from 1992 to 1994, Shadow Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster from 1994 to 1995 and Shadow Leader of the House of Commons from 1994 to 1997.

In the first Blair ministry, Taylor became the first woman to serve as Leader of the House of Commons and Lord President of the Privy Council in 1997. After a 1998 cabinet reshuffle, she went on to become the first woman to serve as Government Chief Whip (Parliamentary Secretary to the Treasury).

As a backbencher, Taylor served as chair of the Intelligence and Security Committee from 2001 to 2005. Her appointment to this post was criticised by opposition Liberal Democrats. She also sponsored a Private Member's Bill, the 'Succession to the Crown (no 2)' Bill, which sought to eliminate gender and religious discrimination in the royal succession.

On 13 May 2005 it was announced that Taylor was to be given a life peerage, and she was created Baroness Taylor of Bolton, of Bolton in the County of Greater Manchester, on 13 June 2005. She was made Minister for Defence Procurement on 7 November 2007, following Lord Drayson's decision to resign to compete in the American Le Mans Series; unlike her predecessor, she was paid. Following the Brown reshuffle of October 2008, she was moved to a new post at both the Ministry of Defence and the Foreign and Commonwealth Office as Minister for International Defence and Security.

In September 2022 she became a member of the House of Lords Appointments Commission, filling the quota for the Labour Party.

External links

• Guardian Politics Ask Aristotle – Ann Taylor
• Hansard 1803–2005: contributions in Parliament by Ann Taylor
• They Work For You – Ann Taylor