21 Facts About Phyllis Starkey

Phyllis Margaret Starkey is a British Labour party politician, who was the Member of Parliament for Milton Keynes South West from 1997 to 2010.

Phyllis Starkey had previously served as Leader of Oxford City Council.

Phyllis Starkey was the daughter of Dr John Williams, a food chemist, and Catherine Hooson Williams.

Phyllis Starkey attended the independent Perse School for Girls in Cambridge then read for a Bachelor of Arts degree in Biochemistry at Lady Margaret Hall, Oxford, graduating in 1970.

Phyllis Starkey later headed a group at the University of Oxford researching problems of pregnancy.

Phyllis Starkey was at the Sir William Dunn School of Pathology in Oxford from 1981 to 1984.

Phyllis Starkey lectured in Obstetrics at the University of Oxford and was a fellow of Somerville College, Oxford, from 1984 to 1993.

Phyllis Starkey joined the Labour Party in 1974 and became a councillor on Oxford City Council in 1983.

Phyllis Starkey held various positions on the council, including that of Leader of the council and Chair of the Finance Committee.

Phyllis Starkey was selected to stand for election for Labour through an all-women shortlist.

Phyllis Starkey's Parliamentary voting record showed she was a staunch supporter of the legislation introduced by the Labour governments, including the occasional contentious issues within her party.

Phyllis Starkey was a Member of the Select Committee on the Modernisation of the House of Commons between 1997 and 1999, during which time significant changes to parliamentary procedures were introduced, including the establishment of the Westminster Hall debating chamber and the beginning of alterations to sitting hours of Parliament to make them more 'family friendly'.

In 1998 Phyllis Starkey highlighted the need for a national register for door supervisors to protect young people's safety while clubbing, and introduced a Private Members Bill to Parliament to establish one.

Between 1999 and 2001, Phyllis Starkey was a member of the Foreign Affairs Select Committee.

In 2006, there were some notable examples of Phyllis Starkey becoming increasingly critical of the Prime Minister Tony Blair.

Phyllis Starkey has pressed the Government to regulate nail bars and for a ban on a potentially harmful chemical glue used in some outlets to affix fake nails.

Phyllis Starkey took a close interest in the political situation in the Middle East in her last Parliament, and travelled to both Palestine and Lebanon.

Phyllis Starkey was comparatively untroubled by The Daily Telegraph's investigation of the MPs' expenses scandal in 2009, though she was one of the MPs to have travelled abroad as a guest of the British Council, a taxpayer-funded organisation, which became the subject of controversy when the Speaker Michael Martin withheld information relating to the declaration of the hospitality provided.

Phyllis Starkey said she could not remember if she had spoken to the Registrar about her trip, but was of the opinion she did not have to declare a trip that was effectively paid for by the Government and the taxpayer; a position endorsed by the Commons Registrar of Members' Interests.

At the 2010 general election, Phyllis Starkey ran in the redrawn seat of Milton Keynes South but lost to Conservative candidate Iain Stewart, whom she had previously defeated in 2001 and 2005.

Phyllis Starkey married Hugh Walton Starkey on 6 September 1969.