1. Emma Ann Hardy was born on 17 July 1979 and is a British Labour Party politician who has served as Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Water and Flooding since July 2024.
21 Facts About Emma Hardy
1. 2.
Emma Hardy was previously the Member of Parliament for Kingston upon Hull West and Hessle until the 2024 general election and is the current Member of Parliament for Kingston upon Hull West and Haltemprice.
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Emma Hardy was brought up in North Newbald, Humberside, a few miles from the Kingston upon Hull West and Haltemprice constituency she now represents in Parliament.
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Emma Hardy attended Wyke Sixth Form College to study her A-Levels before studying for an undergraduate degree in Politics at the University of Liverpool, graduating in 2001.
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Emma Hardy then completed a PGCE at the University of Leeds in 2004, and taught for over ten years at Willerby Carr Lane Primary School.
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Emma Hardy became politically active in 2011, after joining a campaign protesting against school cuts and meeting Alan Johnson, the then-MP for Kingston upon Hull West and Hessle.
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Emma Hardy left teaching in 2015 to become a full-time organiser for the National Union of Teachers, and served as Deputy General Secretary of the Socialist Educational Association before being elected to Parliament.
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Emma Hardy was selected as the Labour Party's prospective parliamentary candidate for Kingston upon Hull West and Hessle after the then-MP, Alan Johnson, announced his retirement just weeks before the general election in 2017.
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Emma Hardy was one of 256 women candidates put forward by the Labour Party at that election, and was elected on 9 June 2017, with a majority of 8,025.
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Emma Hardy has sat on the House of Commons Education Select Committee.
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From 2017 to 2020, Emma Hardy served as Parliamentary Private Secretary to Keir Starmer in his role as Shadow Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union.
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Emma Hardy continues to work with local charity HEY Endo to enable better recognition of endometriosis in the workplace.
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Emma Hardy was the Vice Chair of the All Party Parliamentary Group on Mesh, and campaigned to suspend the use of vaginal surgical mesh in the NHS.
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Emma Hardy campaigned locally in her constituency to secure the funding for the A63 Castle Street development, prevent any further delays and ensure a bridge was built as soon as possible.
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Emma Hardy lobbied successfully to bring money to Hull for a new Children and Adolescent Mental Health Unit.
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In January 2020, Emma Hardy was appointed to Labour's frontbench as a Shadow Education Minister, succeeding Gordon Marsden, who lost his seat in the 2019 general election.
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Emma Hardy nominated Keir Starmer in the 2020 Labour Party leadership election and Angela Rayner in the deputy leadership election.
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In March 2021 Emma Hardy resigned from her role as a Shadow Education Minister, being succeeded by Matt Western.
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Emma Hardy cited an increase in constituency work due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
20.
Emma Hardy campaigned for better flood prevention, protections and insurance, presenting a ten minute rule Bill, Flooding on 16 November 2021, referencing the 2007 floods which devastated parts of Hull and the East Riding.
21.
Emma Hardy was appointed Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State at the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs on 9 July 2024.