Chuka Umunna facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Chuka Umunna
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Official portrait, 2017
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| Shadow Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills | |
| In office 7 October 2011 – 13 September 2015 |
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| Leader |
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| Preceded by | John Denham |
| Succeeded by | Angela Eagle |
| Parliamentary Private Secretary to the Leader of the Opposition | |
| In office 10 October 2010 – 23 May 2011 Serving with Anne McGuire
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| Leader | Ed Miliband |
| Preceded by | Desmond Swayne |
| Succeeded by | Michael Dugher |
| Member of Parliament for Streatham |
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| In office 6 May 2010 – 6 November 2019 |
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| Preceded by | Keith Hill |
| Succeeded by | Bell Ribeiro-Addy |
| Change UK portfolios | |
| 2019 | Group Spokesperson |
| 2019 | Cabinet Office |
| Liberal Democrat portfolios | |
| 2019 | Business and Industrial Strategy |
| 2019 | HM Treasury |
| 2019 | International Development |
| 2019 | International Trade |
| 2019 | Foreign and Commonwealth Office |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
Chuka Harrison Umunna
17 October 1978 Lambeth, London, England |
| Political party | Liberal Democrats (since 2019; before 1997) |
| Other political affiliations |
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| Spouse |
Alice Sullivan
(m. 2016) |
| Relations | Sir Helenus Milmo (grandfather) |
| Children | 3 |
| Alma mater |
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Chuka Umunna (born 17 October 1978) is a British businessman and former politician. He was a Member of Parliament (MP) for Streatham from 2010 to 2019. An MP represents a specific area in the UK Parliament.
He was part of the Labour Party's top team, known as the Shadow Cabinet, from 2011 to 2015. In 2019, he left Labour to help start a new group called The Independent Group, which later became Change UK. Later that year, he joined the Liberal Democrats. He did not win his seat in the 2019 general election and left Parliament.
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Early Life and Education
Chuka Umunna was born in Lambeth, south London, on 17 October 1978. His father, Bennett, was from Nigeria and ran an import-export business. His mother, Patricia Milmo, was a lawyer with English-Irish roots.
He went to Hitherfield Primary School and Christ Church Primary School. Later, he attended St Dunstan's College, a private school in Catford, London. He also sang in the choir at Southwark Cathedral. As a teenager, he was a member of the Liberal Democrats.
Umunna studied law at the University of Manchester and Nottingham Trent University. After university, he worked as a solicitor, which is a type of lawyer. He also wrote articles about politics and social issues.
Political Journey
Becoming an MP
In 2008, Chuka Umunna was chosen to be the Labour Party's candidate for Streatham. He won the election in 2010 and became an MP. In Parliament, he focused on economic policy. He believed the government should be tougher on banks.
He was elected to the Treasury Select Committee in 2010. This committee looks closely at how the government spends money.
Role in the Shadow Cabinet
In 2010, Umunna became a special assistant to Ed Miliband, who was the leader of the Labour Party. In 2011, he was promoted to Shadow Minister for Small Business. This meant he was the main spokesperson for his party on small business issues.
Later in 2011, he became the Shadow Business Secretary. This was a very important role, where he spoke for the Labour Party on business, innovation, and skills. He often challenged the government's decisions. For example, he questioned the sale of Royal Mail, saying taxpayers might have lost money.
In 2014, he raised concerns about a big American company, Pfizer, trying to buy a British pharmaceutical company called AstraZeneca. He wanted to protect British jobs and interests. The takeover did not happen.
Leaving the Frontbench
Umunna won his seat again in the 2015 and 2017 general elections. After the 2015 election, Ed Miliband resigned as Labour leader. Chuka Umunna thought about running for leader himself but decided not to.
When Jeremy Corbyn became the new Labour leader in 2015, Umunna left the Shadow Cabinet. He disagreed with some of the new leader's ideas. He then became a "backbencher," which means he was still an MP but not part of the main leadership team.
Views on Brexit
Umunna supported the UK staying in the European Union during the 2016 referendum. His local area, Streatham, voted strongly to remain in the EU. After the UK voted to leave, he pushed for a second public vote on the final deal with the EU. He believed people should have another say once they knew more about the deal.
Joining New Parties
In February 2019, Umunna and six other MPs left the Labour Party. They were unhappy with the party's leadership. They formed a new group called The Independent Group, which later became Change UK. Umunna was their main spokesperson.
However, after poor results in the European Parliament elections, Umunna left Change UK in June 2019. He then became an independent MP for a short time.
Moving to the Liberal Democrats
In June 2019, Chuka Umunna announced he was joining the Liberal Democrats. He explained that it was very hard to start a new political party from scratch. He felt there was only room for one "centre ground" party in UK politics.
He became a spokesperson for the Liberal Democrats on important topics like Treasury (money matters) and Business. In the 2019 general election, he stood for a different area, Cities of London and Westminster, but he did not win.
Business Career
After leaving politics, Chuka Umunna moved into the business world. In 2020, he became an executive director at Edelman UK, a public relations company. He focused on helping businesses with their Environmental, Social, Governance (ESG) strategies. This means helping companies be more responsible towards the environment, society, and how they are run.
In 2021, he joined JPMorgan Chase, a large investment bank. He became a Managing Director and leads their ESG advisory efforts in Europe, the Middle East, and Africa. In 2024, he was promoted to a global role, helping to lead the firm's worldwide ESG work.
Personal Life
In 2015, Chuka Umunna got engaged to Alice Sullivan, who is also a lawyer. They married in 2016 and have three daughters, born in 2017, 2020, and 2024.
He is a fan of Crystal Palace F.C., a football team. He has said that his Christian faith influences his values, even though he is not very religious. In 2015, he was named one of the Top 100 most influential Africans by New African magazine.
Images for kids
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Official portrait, 2017
