Ellie Reeves

British Labour politician

Ellie Reeves

Official portrait, 2017

Labour Party Deputy National Campaign Coordinator

Incumbent

Assumed office
4 September 2023
Leader| Keir Starmer
Preceded by| Conor McGinn
Shadow Minister for Prisons and Probation
In office
4 December 2021 – 5 September 2023
Leader| Keir Starmer
Preceded by| Lyn Brown
Succeeded by| Ruth Cadbury
Shadow Solicitor General for England and Wales
In office
9 April 2020 – 4 December 2021
Leader| Keir Starmer
Preceded by| Nick Thomas-Symonds
Succeeded by| Andy Slaughter
Member of Parliament
for Lewisham West and Penge

Incumbent

Assumed office
8 June 2017
Preceded by| Jim Dowd
Majority| 21,543 (41.3%)
Personal details
Born|  (1980-12-11) 11 December 1980 (age 43)[1]
Beckenham, London, England
Political party| Labour
Spouse|

John Cryer

(m. 2012)​

Children| 2
Relatives| Rachel Reeves (sister)
Alma mater| St Catherine's College, Oxford
Profession| Barrister
Website| Official website

Eleanor Claire Reeves[2] (born 11 December 1980) is a British politician who has served as Member of Parliament (MP) for Lewisham West and Penge since 2017.[3] A member of the Labour Party, she has served as Labour Party Deputy National Campaign Coordinator since 2023.[4] She previously served as Shadow Solicitor General for England and Wales from April 2020 to December 2021 and Shadow Minister for Prisons and Probation from 2021 to 2023.

## Early life and career[edit]

Ellie Reeves was born in Lewisham, the daughter of teachers[5] Graham and Sally Reeves.[6][7] Her older sister, Rachel, is the Labour MP for Leeds West[8] and the Shadow Chancellor of the Exchequer under party leader Keir Starmer.

Reeves grew up in Sydenham and was educated at Adamsrill Primary School and Cator Park Secondary School.[9] She has a bachelor's degree in law from St Catherine's College, Oxford.[10]

Before entering Parliament, Reeves worked as an employment law barrister representing trade unions.

## Political career[edit]

Reeves joined the Labour Party at 15,[5] chaired the Oxford University Labour Club in 2001 and was National Chair of Labour Students from 2002 to 2003.

In 2006, she was first elected as a constituency party representative on Labour's National Executive Committee (NEC), supported by Progress and Labour First.[3] Reeves was returned to the governing body in subsequent elections, and served as Vice-Chair from 2015 to 2016,[11] until she was defeated by Momentum in 2016.[12] She later served as vice-chair of the London Labour Party.[13][14]

Reeves was selected as the Labour candidate for Lewisham West and Penge in April 2017, chosen over a left-wing Momentum activist.[15][3]

### Parliamentary career[edit]

Reeves was elected for the Labour-held seat of Lewisham West and Penge at the 2017 general election, almost doubling the party's majority.

She was appointed to the opposition front bench as Parliamentary Private Secretary to Kate Osamor, Shadow International Development Secretary, in March 2018.[16] On 13 June 2018, Reeves and five other MPs resigned as frontbenchers to vote in favour of remaining in the single market, defying the party whip.[17][18]

After signing a letter criticising the decision to re-admit Chris Williamson into Labour, a heavily pregnant Reeves was threatened with deselection by a party member in July 2019.[19] Following backlash, Party Leader Jeremy Corbyn wrote that pregnant MPs wouldn't face deselection and the member withdrew their plans to challenge her.[20]

On 9 April 2020, Reeves was re-appointed to the opposition front bench as Shadow Solicitor General for England and Wales.[21]

She served as Labour's political lead for the 2021 Old Bexley and Sidcup by-election,[22] in which there was a 7.4% increase in the party's vote share and 10.2% swing from the Conservatives to Labour, however the Conservatives held the seat with a 20.6% majority.[23]

In the 2023 British shadow cabinet reshuffle she joined the Shadow Cabinet as Labour Party Deputy National Campaign Coordinator.[24]

## Personal life[edit]

She is married to John Cryer MP, Parliamentary Labour Party Chair.[3] She had a son with Cryer in 2015, and another in late 2019.[5]

## References[edit]

1. ^ "Members' Names Data Platform query". UK Parliament. Retrieved 24 April 2019.
2. ^ "No. 61961". The London Gazette. 19 June 2017. p. 11776.
3. ^ a b c d "Former Labour official Ellie Reeves selected for safe seat in London". LabourList. Retrieved 8 June 2017.
4. ^ "Labour reshuffle live: Angela Rayner gets new role as Keir Starmer reshuffles team". BBC News. Retrieved 4 September 2023.
5. ^ a b c Forrester, Kate (8 October 2017). "17 From '17: Ellie Reeves On Her Journey Into Politics At A Young Age". HuffPost. Retrieved 3 October 2019.
6. ^ Whale, Sebastian (23 May 2020). "Rachel Reeves interview". politicshome. Retrieved 27 January 2021.
7. ^ Hello (13 September 2007). "The legal eagle who left sisters scuppered". Yorkshire Evening Post. Archived from the original on 4 June 2016. Retrieved 8 June 2017.
8. ^ Rampen, Julia (26 April 2017). "How Labour's power-brokers will divide up the party's safe seats". New Statesman. Retrieved 8 June 2017.
9. ^ Little, Mandy (28 April 2017). "Ellie Reeves to fight for Lewisham West and Penge seat for Labour". London News Online. Retrieved 8 June 2017.
10. ^ "The Year 2017 – alumni magazine for St Catherine's College, Oxford" (PDF). Retrieved 18 February 2019.
11. ^ Savage, Michael. "Hard left set for Labour power grab". The Times. ISSN 0140-0460. Retrieved 3 December 2021.
12. ^ "Corbyn's Allies Run Rings Round Eddie Izzard". Sky News. Retrieved 3 December 2021.
13. ^ Savage, Michael. "Hard left set for Labour power grab". The Times. ISSN 0140-0460. Retrieved 3 December 2021.
14. ^ Kenber, Billy. "Labour hopefuls aiming for Westminster". The Times. ISSN 0140-0460. Retrieved 3 December 2021.
15. ^ "General election 2017: Key Corbyn allies not selected by Labour". BBC News. 28 April 2017. Retrieved 3 December 2021.
16. ^ Aweys, Suleega (3 March 2018). "Ellie Reeves MP for Lewisham West and Penge gets front bench promotion". East London Lines. Retrieved 3 October 2019.
17. ^ Culbertson, Alix (14 June 2018). "Six Labour MPs quit frontbench roles over key Brexit vote". Sky News. Retrieved 14 June 2018.
18. ^ Morris, Nigel (13 June 2018). "Six Labour frontbenchers resign in protest at Labour's Brexit position". i News. Retrieved 14 June 2018.
19. ^ "EXCL Pregnant Labour MP facing deselection threat for signing Chris Williamson statement". Politics Home. 25 February 2020. Retrieved 3 December 2021.
20. ^ "Corbyn Blocks Activist's Bid To Oust Pregnant Labour MP". HuffPost UK. 3 July 2019. Retrieved 3 December 2021.
21. ^ Rodgers, Sienna (9 April 2020). "Shadow ministers appointed as Starmer completes frontbench". LabourList. Retrieved 9 April 2020.
22. ^ Reeves, Ellie (31 October 2021). "As Labour's political lead on the Old Bexley & Sidcup by-election..." Twitter. Archived from the original on 31 October 2021.
23. ^ "Conservatives hold seat in Old Bexley and Sidcup byelection". ITV News. 3 December 2021. Retrieved 3 December 2021.
24. ^ "Labour reshuffle live: Angela Rayner gets new role as Keir Starmer reshuffles team". BBC News. 4 September 2023. Retrieved 8 September 2023.

## External links[edit]

*   * Profile at Parliament of the United Kingdom
* Contributions in Parliament at Hansard
* Voting record at Public Whip
* Record in Parliament at TheyWorkForYou

Parliament of the United Kingdom

Preceded by

Jim Dowd

|  Member of Parliament
for Lewisham West and Penge
2017–present  | Incumbent
Political offices
Preceded by

Nick Thomas-Symonds

|  Shadow Solicitor General for England and Wales
2020–present  | Incumbent

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