Lucy Powell

Lucy Powell is the Member of Parliament for Manchester Central. Lucy was elected in a by-election on November 15th 2012 and is the first female Labour MP to represent a Manchester constituency.

Lucy was born and brought up in Manchester, where she attended Parrs Wood High School and Xaverian Sixth Form College, before going onto study Chemistry at Oxford University and King's college London. She lives in the city with her husband James, an A+E Doctor, their children Katie and Tom and her step son Joe.

Since her election Lucy has campaigned hard against the Government's cuts to Manchester's public services, the privatisation of the ambulance services and the Bedroom Tax. She has been a passionate advocate of better childcare provision, help for small businesses and more apprenticeships for young people. She is also conducting an inquiry into how to reinvigorate politics and increase voter turnout locally.

Before becoming an MP Lucy led a major investment project in Manchester for NESTA, the UK's innovation agency, working with local businesses and other partners to support start-ups and creative companies. This investment programme brought over £10million to the city between 2007-2010, and created many new jobs.