Jo Stevens facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Jo Stevens
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Official portrait, 2024
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| Secretary of State for Wales | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Assumed office 5 July 2024 |
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| Prime Minister | Keir Starmer | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Preceded by | David T. C. Davies | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Member of Parliament for Cardiff East Cardiff Central (2015–2024) |
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| Assumed office 7 May 2015 |
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| Preceded by | Jenny Willott | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Majority | 9,097 (23.3%) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Born |
Joanna Meriel Stevens
6 September 1966 Swansea, Wales |
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| Political party | Labour | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Alma mater | University of Manchester Manchester Metropolitan University |
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Joanna Meriel Stevens (born September 6, 1966) is a politician from Wales. She is a member of the Labour Party. Since 2024, she has been the Secretary of State for Wales.
Jo Stevens has been a Member of Parliament (MP) since 2015. She first represented Cardiff Central. Since 2024, she has represented Cardiff East. Before her current role, she was a "Shadow Secretary of State." This means she was the main opposition spokesperson for certain areas. She held this role for Wales (2016-2017 and 2021-2024) and for Digital, Culture, Media, and Sport (2020-2021).
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Early Life and Education
Jo Stevens was born in Swansea, Wales. She grew up in a town called Mynydd Isa in Flintshire. For her high school education, she attended Argoed High School and Elfed High School.
She went on to study law at Manchester University. In 1989, she finished her professional legal training at Manchester Polytechnic. Before becoming an MP, she worked as a director at Thompsons Solicitors. This company helps people with legal issues.
Becoming a Member of Parliament
Jo Stevens was first elected as an MP for Cardiff Central on May 7, 2015. She won with 4,981 more votes than the previous MP, Jenny Willott.
When she was running for election in 2015, Jo Stevens said she would be happy as a "backbench MP." This means an MP who is not a government minister or a main opposition spokesperson. However, she later took on important roles in the "shadow cabinets" of Jeremy Corbyn and Keir Starmer. A shadow cabinet is a group of opposition MPs who watch over government departments.
Key Roles and Votes
In January 2016, Jo Stevens became a "shadow solicitor general." This role involves advising on legal matters for the opposition. She also became a shadow justice minister. She supported Owen Smith in the 2016 Labour Party leadership election.
Later, in October 2016, she became the Shadow Secretary of State for Wales. This meant she was the main opposition spokesperson for Welsh affairs. Jo Stevens was against Brexit, which was the UK leaving the European Union. In January 2017, she resigned from her shadow minister role. She did this so she could vote against triggering Article 50 of the Treaty on European Union. This article started the process of leaving the EU. Her party had told MPs to vote in favour, but she voted against it.
In March 2019, she voted against her party's instructions again. She supported an amendment that called for a second public vote on Brexit. Jo Stevens also leads the GMB parliamentary group. This group makes sure that issues important to members of the GMB trade union are discussed in Parliament.
Support for Keir Starmer
Jo Stevens supported Keir Starmer in the 2020 Labour Party leadership election. After he became leader, he appointed her Shadow Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport. In this role, she spoke for the opposition on topics like technology, culture, and sports.
On November 29, 2021, Keir Starmer moved her back to the position of Shadow Secretary of State for Wales. In 2023, her office was protested by some people. She described the incident as 'intimidating'.
Recent Election and Cabinet Role
In the 2024 United Kingdom general election, Jo Stevens ran for the new Cardiff East constituency. Her old constituency, Cardiff Central, was no longer going to exist. She won the Cardiff East seat with a large majority of 9,097 votes.
After the 2024 election, she was appointed Secretary of State for Wales. This means she is now a government minister in Keir Starmer's first cabinet. On July 10, 2024, she joined the Privy Council. This allows her to be called "The Right Honourable" for the rest of her life.
Political Views
Jo Stevens is a "unionist." This means she believes that the countries of the United Kingdom should remain united. She has opposed some ideas for giving more power to Wales. For example, she has been against giving Wales full control over policing and justice. She also opposed full control over the "Shared Prosperity Fund" after Brexit.
She was strongly against Brexit. In 2017, she said she was a "passionate European." She believes there should be laws to fine social media companies that do not stop false information. She also supports making it easier for people to register to vote. She thinks the voting age should be lowered to 16.
Personal Life
In January 2021, Jo Stevens was treated in hospital for COVID-19.
