Ann McKechin facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Ann McKechin
Official portrait, c. 2008–09
Shadow Secretary of State for Scotland
In office 8 October 2010 – 7 October 2011
Leader	Ed Miliband
Preceded by	Jim Murphy
Succeeded by	Margaret Curran
Shadow Minister for Scotland
In office 11 May 2010 – 8 October 2010
Leader	Harriet Harman (Acting)
Preceded by	Position established
Succeeded by	Tom Greatrex
Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Scotland
In office 16 September 2008 – 11 May 2010
Prime Minister	Gordon Brown
Preceded by	David Cairns
Succeeded by	David Mundell
Member of Parliament for Glasgow North Glasgow Maryhill (2001–2005)
In office 7 June 2001 – 30 March 2015
Preceded by	Maria Fyfe
Succeeded by	Patrick Grady
Personal details
Born	(1961-04-22) 22 April 1961 (age 64) Paisley, Scotland
Political party	Labour
Alma mater	University of Strathclyde

Ann McKechin, born on April 22, 1961, is a former politician from the Labour Party in Britain. She was a Member of Parliament (MP) for two areas in Glasgow. She represented Glasgow Maryhill from 2001 to 2005. Later, she served as the MP for Glasgow North from 2005 until 2015.

Ann McKechin worked as a junior minister under Prime Minister Gordon Brown. After that, she became a member of the Shadow Cabinet of Ed Miliband. She lost her seat in the 2015 general election to the Scottish National Party.

Early Life and Education

Ann McKechin was born in Paisley, Scotland. Her parents were Anne and William Joseph McKechin. She went to Paisley Grammar School and Sacred Heart High School.

After school, she studied Scots law at the University of Strathclyde. In 1983, she started working as a solicitor at Pacitti Jones in Glasgow. She became a partner in the firm in 1990 and left in 2000.

Getting Involved in Politics

Ann McKechin held several roles within the Labour Party in the Glasgow Kelvin area starting in 1995. This area was represented by George Galloway, who was a Labour MP at the time.

She was chosen as a candidate for the 1999 European election. However, she was not elected to the European Parliament.

Political Career Highlights

Ann McKechin was first elected to the House of Commons in the 2001 general election. She became the MP for the Glasgow Maryhill area. She took over from the previous Labour MP, Maria Fyfe, who retired.

She won the Maryhill seat with a large lead of almost 10,000 votes. In 2005, the boundaries of the constituencies changed. The Maryhill area was removed. Ann McKechin was then elected for the new Glasgow North area. Her lead was smaller this time, with 3,338 more votes than the Scottish Liberal Democrats candidate.

Roles in Parliament

In the House of Commons, Ann McKechin had several important jobs. In 2005, she briefly worked as a Parliamentary Private Secretary for Jacqui Smith. This role supported Jacqui Smith when she was a minister in charge of trade and industry, and later education.

McKechin also served on different special groups called select committees. These committees look closely at specific topics. She was part of the Scottish Affairs committee from 2001 to 2005. She also served on the International Development committee starting in 2005.

On September 16, 2008, she became a Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State at the Scotland Office. This meant she was a junior minister helping to manage Scottish affairs. She took over this role from David Cairns.

Shadow Cabinet Role

In October 2010, Ann McKechin was chosen to be part of the Shadow Cabinet. The Shadow Cabinet is a group of senior politicians from the main opposition party. They act as a "shadow" government, watching over the real government's departments.

She was appointed as the Shadow Secretary of State for Scotland. This meant she led the opposition's work on Scottish issues. However, she was replaced by Margaret Curran in a change to the Shadow Cabinet on October 7, 2011.

Leaving Parliament

Ann McKechin lost her seat in the 2015 general election. She was defeated by Patrick Grady from the Scottish National Party.