Background
From a family of shipyard workers, Lewell-Buck was born in South Shields. She is a direct descendant of William Wouldhave, the inventor of the lifeboat.
From a family of shipyard workers, Lewell-Buck was born in South Shields. She is a direct descendant of William Wouldhave, the inventor of the lifeboat.
Lewell-Buck studied politics and media studies at Northumbria University, before gaining a master"s degree in social work from Durham University.
She is South Shields" first ever female Member of Parliament. As a social worker, she specialised in child protection, and has represented the Primrose ward in Jarrow as a South Tyneside councillor since 2004. In June 2013, she was added to the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Select Committee replacing Thomas Docherty. In October 2013 she was appointed Private Parliamentary Secretary to Ivan Lewis Member of Parliament, Labour"s shadow Northern Ireland Secretary.
In 2014, she claimed that some people were "having to bury their relatives in their back gardens" as she proposed a Funeral Services Bill intended to require funeral providers to offer a low-cost option
Hunger and Food Poverty
Lewell-Buck joined the All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) chaired by Frank Field and the Bishop of Truro.
The group launched an inquiry into the root causes behind hunger, food poverty and the rise in demand of food banks across the United Kingdom, and published its final report in the House of Commons on the 8th of December 2014. After the report Lewell-Buck said in Parliament "Food poverty is a clear consequence of the Government"s ideological assault on the social safety Netto and the people who rely on lieutenant
One hungry person is a complete disgrace, but thousands of hungry people are a national disaster."
Jobs Fairs
During Lewell-Buck"s election campaign she stated that helping to bring jobs to those who were unemployed in South Shields was a priority. She organised a jobs fair in her constituency in November 2013 promoting over 1000 jobs, which was repeated in November 2014 after she pledged to make it into an annual event.
55th United Kingdom Parliament. 56th United Kingdom Parliament]
In July 2015, she was elected as a member of the Work and Pensions Select Committee.