Gerard Killen

Gerard "Ged" Killen[1] (born 1 May 1986)[2] is a Labour and Co-operative politician. He served as the Member of Parliament (MP) for Rutherglen and Hamilton West from 2017 until 2019.

Gerard Killen
Killen in 2017
Member of Parliament
for Rutherglen and Hamilton West
In office
8 June 2017 – 6 November 2019
Preceded byMargaret Ferrier
Succeeded byMargaret Ferrier
Personal details
Born (1986-05-01) 1 May 1986
NationalityBritish
Political partyLabour Co-op
Spouse(s)
Peter Killen
(
m. 2013)
WebsiteOfficial website

Killen won the Rutherglen and Hamilton West at the 2017 general election,[3] achieving a narrow majority of 265 votes over the sitting Scottish National Party MP, Margaret Ferrier.[4][5] At the 2019 general election, Ferrier regained the seat from Killen with a majority of 5,230 votes.

During his short time as an MP, Killen was an active campaigner for LGBT rights issues,[6] men's mental health[7] and banking reform.[8]

Early life

Killen was born in Glasgow, living in the Gorbals before moving to Blantyre where he spent most of his youth. He attended Trinity High School in Rutherglen.[9][10]

Political career

Killen joined the Labour Party in 2007. He was a candidate at the 2012 South Lanarkshire Council election. Following the death of Cllr Anne Higgins, he contested the 2013 Rutherglen South ward by-election and was elected to South Lanarkshire Council aged 26.[9][11]

Killen retained his council seat at the 2017 UK local elections, this time in the Rutherglen Central and North ward.[12]

On 13 June 2018, Killen and five other Labour MPs resigned their roles as frontbenchers for the Labour Party in protest at Labour's position on Brexit. Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn had instructed his MPs to abstain in a vote which the UK would remain in the single market by joining the European Economic Area (EEA). The MPs resigned and voted in favour of the EEA.[13][14]

Personal life

Killen is gay, and married his husband Peter in 2013. They hope to retire to Peter's hometown in Northern Ireland, which has influenced Killen's campaigning to equalise same-sex marriage laws between Northern Ireland and the rest of the UK.[15][16]

References
  1. "Ged Killen MP: Maiden speech". Scottish Labour. 27 June 2017. Retrieved 6 October 2017.
  2. "Gerard Killen MP". myparliament.info. MyParliament. Retrieved 15 September 2017.
  3. "Gerard Killen MP". UK Parliament.
  4. Kerr, Aiden (9 June 2017). "Labour gain first Scottish seat from SNP in election". STV Group. Retrieved 9 June 2017.
  5. Spooner, Murray (9 June 2017). "Labour takes Rutherglen and Hamilton West". Daily Record / Rutherglen Reformer. Trinity Mirror. Retrieved 9 June 2017.
  6. "Ged Killen MP: We must end 'stitch-up' blocking equal marriage in Northern Ireland". PinkNews. Retrieved 18 September 2018.
  7. McEwen, Alan (19 December 2017). "Concerns raised as suicide rate increase by 8% in one year in Scotland". dailyrecord. Retrieved 18 September 2018.
  8. "Scots MP in bid to ban fee-charging cash machines". HeraldScotland. Retrieved 18 September 2018.
  9. Dickie, Douglas (20 February 2013). "Killen wins Rutherglen South for Labour". Daily Record / Rutherglen Reformer. Trinity Mirror. Retrieved 9 June 2017.
  10. Edel Kenealy (15 June 2016). "Rutherglen LGBT community stands strong with Orlando friends in face of terror". Daily Record. Retrieved 9 June 2017.
  11. "Seven to contest Rutherglen South by-election". Daily Record / Rutherglen Reformer. 16 January 2013. Retrieved 13 June 2017.
  12. "Council elections: SNP biggest party in Rutherglen and Cambuslang but Tory success is big talking point". Daily Record / Rutherglen Reformer. 5 May 2017. Retrieved 6 June 2017.
  13. Culbertson, Alix (14 June 2018). "Six Labour MPs quit frontbench roles over key Brexit vote". Sky News. Retrieved 14 June 2018.
  14. Morris, Nigel (13 June 2018). "Six Labour frontbenchers resign in protest at Labour's Brexit position". i News. Retrieved 14 June 2018.
  15. E23: Ged Killen MP - #MeetTheMPs, retrieved 14 August 2019
  16. "Gay Scottish Labour MP attacks Tory deal with DUP". HeraldScotland. Retrieved 14 August 2019.
Parliament of the United Kingdom
Preceded by
Margaret Ferrier		 Member of Parliament
for Rutherglen and Hamilton West
2017–2019		 Succeeded by
Margaret Ferrier


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