The Baroness Featherstone | |
|---|---|
 Official portrait, 2022 | |
| Liberal Democrat Spokesperson for Energy and Climate Change | |
| In office 29 July 2015 – 7 February 2019 | |
| Leader | Tim Farron Vince Cable |
| Preceded by | Ed Davey |
| Succeeded by | Wera Hobhouse |
| Liberal Democrat Spokesperson for Home Affairs | |
| In office 7 January 2015 – 16 July 2015 | |
| Leader | Nick Clegg |
| Preceded by | Chris Huhne[a] |
| Succeeded by | Alistair Carmichael |
| Minister of State for Crime Prevention | |
| In office 4 November 2014 – 8 May 2015 | |
| Prime Minister | David Cameron |
| Preceded by | Norman Baker |
| Succeeded by | The Lord Bates |
| Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for International Development | |
| In office 4 September 2012 – 4 November 2014 | |
| Prime Minister | David Cameron |
| Preceded by | Stephen O'Brien |
| Succeeded by | The Baroness Northover |
| Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Equalities | |
| In office 12 May 2010 – 4 September 2012 | |
| Prime Minister | David Cameron |
| Preceded by | Maria Eagle (Minister of State) |
| Succeeded by | Helen Grant[1] |
| Liberal Democrat Spokesman for Youth and Equality Issues | |
| In office 2 July 2007 – 12 May 2010 | |
| Leader | Menzies Campbell Nick Clegg |
| Preceded by | Susan Kramer |
| Member of the House of Lords Lord Temporal | |
| Assumed office 26 November 2015 Life Peerage | |
| Member of Parliament for Hornsey and Wood Green | |
| In office 5 May 2005 – 30 March 2015 | |
| Preceded by | Barbara Roche |
| Succeeded by | Catherine West |
| Member of the London Assembly as the 4th Additional Member | |
| In office 4 May 2000 – 6 June 2005 | |
| Preceded by | Constituency created |
| Succeeded by | Geoff Pope |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Lynne Choona Ryness 20 December 1951 Highgate, Middlesex, England |
| Political party | Liberal Democrats |
| Spouse(s) | Stephen Featherstone 1982–96 (divorced) |
| Children | 2 |
| Residence(s) | Highgate, N6 |
| Alma mater | Oxford Polytechnic |
| Profession | Businesswoman and subsequently Politician |
| a. ^ Office vacant from 12 May 2010 to 7 January 2015. | |
Lynne Choona Featherstone, Baroness Featherstone, PC (née Ryness; born 20 December 1951)[2] is a British politician, businesswoman and Liberal Democrat member of the House of Lords.[3]
Prior to entering politics, Featherstone was a successful businesswoman owning and running a London design company. She was also a director of the Ryness chain of lighting and electrical shops.
A Member of the London Assembly (MLA) from 2000 to 2005, she was Member of Parliament (MP) for Hornsey and Wood Green between 2005 and 2015, before being nominated for a peerage in the Dissolution Peerages List 2015.[3] She was created Baroness Featherstone, of Highgate in the London Borough of Haringey on 20 October.[4]
Under the Conservative – Liberal Democrat coalition in 2010 she was appointed as a Home Office Minister with responsibility for criminal information and equalities,[5] before being promoted, in 2012, to Minister with responsibility for International Development.[6] Previously she was Liberal Democrat spokesman for Youth and Equality issues, and chair of the Liberal Democrats technology board.[7] As originator and architect of the same sex marriage law during the coalition, Featherstone launched the consultation by the UK Government on introducing same-sex marriage and was the first politician to take part in the Out4Marriage campaign,[8][9] gaining a special Ben and Jerry's ice cream tub and flavour Lynne Honeycomb[10] and returned to the Home Office as Minister of State in November 2014.[11] Featherstone is a patron of Humanists UK.[12]
- ^ Roberts, Scott (4 September 2012). "Lynne Featherstone moved from equalities role in UK Government reshuffle". PinkNews.co.uk. Archived from the original on 8 November 2012. Retrieved 30 June 2013.
- ^ "Index entry". FreeBMD. ONS. Archived from the original on 19 October 2015. Retrieved 15 May 2012.
- ^ a b "Dissolution Peerages 2015 - GOV.UK". www.gov.uk. Archived from the original on 27 March 2019. Retrieved 27 August 2015.
- ^ "No. 61390". The London Gazette. 26 October 2015. p. 20046.
- ^ Ashton, Emily; Hughes, David (14 May 2010). "Equality Job for Lib Dem MP". The Independent. London. Archived from the original on 12 March 2018. Retrieved 4 September 2017.
- ^ "Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for International Development – Inside Government". GOV.UK. Archived from the original on 20 July 2013. Retrieved 30 June 2013.
- ^ "Clegg reshuffles top Lib Dem team". BBC News. BBC. 8 January 2009. Archived from the original on 16 January 2009. Retrieved 12 January 2009.
- ^ "Ben and Jerry's renames Equality Minister Lynne Featherstone as Lynne Honeycomb". PinkNews. 16 May 2012. Retrieved 14 March 2022.
- ^ "Lynne Featherstone's honeycomb surprise". Libdemvoice.org. 16 May 2012. Archived from the original on 3 June 2013. Retrieved 30 June 2013.
- ^ "'Lynne Honeycomb': Ice Cream Makers Lobby MP On Gay Marriage". HuffPost UK. 18 May 2012. Retrieved 14 March 2022.
- ^ "Ministerial appointments: November 2014". www.gov.uk. Archived from the original on 4 November 2014. Retrieved 4 November 2014.
- ^ "Humanists UK Patron: Lynne Featherstone". Humanists UK. Retrieved 3 August 2023.