Louise Haigh facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Louise Haigh
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Official portrait, 2024
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| Secretary of State for Transport | |||||||||||||||||||
| Assumed office 5 July 2024 |
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| Prime Minister | Keir Starmer | ||||||||||||||||||
| Preceded by | Mark Harper | ||||||||||||||||||
| Succeeded by | Heidi Alexander | ||||||||||||||||||
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| Member of Parliament for Sheffield Heeley |
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| Assumed office 7 May 2015 |
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| Preceded by | Meg Munn | ||||||||||||||||||
| Majority | 15,304 (39.8%) | ||||||||||||||||||
| Personal details | |||||||||||||||||||
| Born |
Louise Margaret Haigh
Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England |
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| Political party | Labour | ||||||||||||||||||
| Alma mater | University of Nottingham | ||||||||||||||||||
Louise Margaret Haigh is a British politician. She was the Secretary of State for Transport from July to November 2024. She is a member of the Labour Party. Since 2015, she has been the Member of Parliament (MP) for Sheffield Heeley. Before becoming a government minister, she held various important roles for her party.
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Who is Louise Haigh?
Louise Haigh was born in Sheffield, England. She grew up in the city and later went to the University of Nottingham. Before becoming an MP, she worked in the UK Parliament. She also worked for a large insurance company called Aviva.
In 2015, Louise Haigh was first elected as an MP. She represented the area of Sheffield Heeley. Since then, she has held several important jobs within her party. These roles are called "shadow" roles because her party was not in power. She was the Shadow Minister for Policing and later the Shadow Secretary of State for Northern Ireland.
In 2021, she became the Shadow Secretary of State for Transport. This meant she was in charge of her party's plans for transport. After the 2024 general election, her party won. She was then made the actual Secretary of State for Transport. This is a very important job in the government. She held this role until November 2024.
Early Life and Education
Louise Haigh was born in Sheffield, South Yorkshire. She grew up on Abbeydale Road. Her family has a history of working in trade unions. These are groups that protect workers' rights.
She went to Sheffield High School, which is a private school. After school, she studied government and economics. She first went to the London School of Economics. Later, she chose to study politics at the University of Nottingham.
Starting Her Career
After finishing university, Louise Haigh worked for the local council's youth service. This was from 2006 to 2008. Then, she started working in Parliament. She helped coordinate a group that focused on how companies act responsibly around the world.
During this time, she was also a "shop steward" for a union called Unite. This means she represented workers in her workplace. From 2009 to 2011, she volunteered as a special constable. This is a part-time police officer in London.
From 2012 until 2015, she worked for Aviva. She was a public policy manager. Her job was to look after how the company was run and how it invested responsibly.
Becoming a Member of Parliament
Louise Haigh was chosen to represent the Labour Party in Sheffield Heeley in May 2014. In the 2015 general election, she was elected as the MP for Sheffield Heeley. She won with 48.2% of the votes.
Early Work as an MP (2015–2020)
In September 2015, Louise Haigh became a "Shadow Minister". This means she was part of the opposition party's team. Her role was Shadow Minister for Civil Service and Digital Reform. She looked at the government's digital plans. She also worked on rules about getting information from the government.
She spoke out when fewer women were chosen to lead government departments. She also disagreed with closing a government office in Sheffield. She said it showed "contempt" for her city.
In February 2016, a study found she was the "most hard-working" new MP. This was based on how active she was in Parliament.
In September 2016, she helped show that many women had their tax credits wrongly stopped. This was due to a company called Concentrix. Because of her work, the government decided not to renew the company's contract.
In December 2016, she received threats. This was after she asked for a debate about banning a far-right group. Police installed panic alarms in her office and home. They also gave her protection when she was working in her local area.
In October 2016, she became the Shadow Minister for the Digital Economy. She helped with a new law called the Digital Economy Act. She added rules to make sure online TV shows had subtitles. She also often spoke about protecting children online. She said social media companies have a responsibility to deal with harmful content.
In the 2017 general election, she was re-elected. She won with even more votes than before.
In July 2017, she became the Shadow Policing Minister. She asked for more protection for police officers. She also spoke about the stress and mental health of officers. She said that police officers taking time off for mental health issues had greatly increased. She believes that cuts to police and public services have led to more crime.
Louise Haigh was part of many "all-party parliamentary groups". These are groups of MPs from different parties. They work on specific topics. She was involved in groups on company rules, refugees, and children in care.
In October 2018, she said that making police pay more for pensions was wrong. She felt it left less money for public safety. She also believes police should not have to deal with mental health crises. She said this is because the health service is not funded enough.
In the 2019 general election, she was re-elected again.
Working on Northern Ireland Issues (2020–2021)
In April 2020, Louise Haigh became the Shadow Secretary of State for Northern Ireland. This is a very important role in the opposition party. She was the second woman to hold this job.
She visited Northern Ireland in August 2020. After Brexit, she was in charge of her party's policy for Northern Ireland. She said that if there was a vote on Northern Ireland's future, her party should stay neutral.
Focusing on Transport (2021–2024)
In November 2021, Louise Haigh became the Shadow Secretary of State for Transport. This meant she was in charge of her party's plans for transport. Another MP, Peter Kyle, took over her Northern Ireland role.
In April 2024, she announced her party's plans for British railways. She said they would bring the railways back under public control. This would happen if her party won the next election.
Serving as Transport Secretary (2024)
Louise Haigh was re-elected in the 2024 general election. She won with an even bigger majority. On 5 July 2024, she was appointed Secretary of State for Transport. This is a senior role in the government. She was sworn into the Privy Council a few days later. This means she can be called "The Right Honourable" for life.
In October, she spoke about a ferry company called P&O Ferries. She urged people not to use them. She said the company had treated its workers badly. The Prime Minister later said that her view was not the government's official view.
Louise Haigh resigned from her role as Transport Secretary in November 2024. She said she was still committed to her party's goals. However, she felt her situation would be a "distraction" from the government's work. The Prime Minister accepted her resignation. She was succeeded by Heidi Alexander.
Her Views and Beliefs
Louise Haigh has clear views on many political topics. In 2015, she supported Jeremy Corbyn for Labour leader. However, she later said she regretted this choice. In 2016, she supported Owen Smith for the leadership.
In the 2020 Labour leadership election, she led the campaign for Lisa Nandy. Lisa Nandy came second to Keir Starmer. Haigh also supported Angela Rayner for deputy leader, who won.
During the 2016 vote on whether the UK should stay in the European Union, she supported staying. She has also called for schools to teach about online safety. She believes this should be taught alongside sex education.
