Jacqui Smith, English lawyer and politician
Jacqueline Jill Smith (born 3 November 1962) is a British broadcaster, political commentator and former Labour Party politician. She was Member of Parliament (MP) for Redditch from 1997 to 2010. She served as Home Secretary from 2007 to 2009 and was the first woman to hold the position.
Smith was born and raised in Malvern, Worcestershire. She attended Hertford College, Oxford, before training to become a teacher at Worcester College of Higher Education and having a career as an economics and business studies teacher. She was elected for Redditch at the 1997 general election. She joined the government in 1999 and served in a series of ministerial positions under Prime Minister Tony Blair. In the 2006 cabinet reshuffle she was promoted to Chief Whip.
Following Gordon Brown's appointment as Prime Minister, Smith became the first female Home Secretary. She resigned as Home Secretary in June 2009 following her involvement in the United Kingdom parliamentary expenses scandal in which she had falsely claimed that a room in her sister's house was her main home. Smith, one of the highest profile figures involved in the scandal, then lost her seat as MP for Redditch in the 2010 general election. After leaving the House of Commons, she remained in public life as a political pundit and took up roles in various other sectors, such as health and media.
1962Nov, 3
Jacqui Smith
Choose Another Date
Events on 1962
- 5Feb
Charles de Gaulle
French President Charles de Gaulle calls for Algeria to be granted independence. - 5Aug
Nelson Mandela
Apartheid in South Africa: Nelson Mandela is jailed. He would not be released until 1990. - 15Sep
Cuban Missile Crisis
The Soviet ship Poltava heads toward Cuba, one of the events that sets into motion the Cuban Missile Crisis. - 18Sep
Jamaica
Burundi, Jamaica, Rwanda and Trinidad and Tobago are admitted to the United Nations. - 6Nov
Apartheid
The United Nations General Assembly passes a resolution condemning South Africa's apartheid policies and calls for all UN member states to cease military and economic relations with the nation.