Background
The daughter of a miner, she would later serve on the Miners" Welfare Commission.
Member of Parliament in the United Kingdom
The daughter of a miner, she would later serve on the Miners" Welfare Commission.
University of Glasgow.
Educated at Bellshill Academy and the University of Glasgow, her early career was spent as a teacher of English and history and as an economics lecturer for the National Council of Labour Colleges. She held the seat until she retired at the 1970 general election. In government, she held office as Joint Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Scotland from 1950 to 1951, as Minister of Pensions and National Insurance from 1964 to 1966, and as Minister of Social Security from 1966 to 1967.
She was opposition spokesperson on Scotland (1951–1956, 1959–1962), Education (1956–1959), and Pensions (1958–1959 and 1962–1964).
In the House of Commons, she was Chairman of Select Committee on Overseas Aid in 1969-1970. She was a British delegate to the Council of Europe.
She died of cancer on 29 December 1996 at Street Mary"s Hospital, Lanark.
38th United Kingdom Parliament. 39th United Kingdom Parliament. 40th United Kingdom Parliament.
41st United Kingdom Parliament.
42nd United Kingdom Parliament. 43rd United Kingdom Parliament.
44th United Kingdom Parliament]
She was elected as Labour Member of Parliament for North Lanarkshire at the 1945 general election, defeating the Conservative incumbent, future Deputy Speaker of the House William Anstruther-Gray. She was a Member of Labour National Executive Committee, and Labour Party Chairman in 1957.