She is currently the Independent Member of Parliament for Birmingham Ladywood, having been elected as a Labour Party MP in 1983, and was Secretary of State for International Development in the UK Labour government from 3 May 1997 until her resignation on 12 May 2003.
She is currently the Independent Member of Parliament for Birmingham Ladywood, having been elected as a Labour Party MP in 1983 but resigning the whip in 2004. She was Secretary of State for International Development in the government from 3 May 1997 until her resignation on 12 May 2003.