40 Facts About Richard Burgon

Richard Burgon read English Literature at St John's College, Cambridge, where he was chairman of the Cambridge University Labour Club.

Richard Burgon was appointed as Shadow Economic Secretary to the Treasury in September 2015 by new Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn.

Richard Burgon was promoted to Shadow Justice Secretary in June 2016 following the organised mass resignations in protest against the leadership of Corbyn.

Richard Burgon was a candidate in the 2020 Labour Party deputy leadership election.

Richard Burgon was dismissed from the Shadow Cabinet in April 2020 after Keir Starmer became Labour Leader.

Richard Burgon was brought up in Leeds and has distant Irish ancestry.

Richard Burgon was educated at Cardinal Heenan Roman Catholic High School in Leeds.

Richard Burgon moved to St Aidan's and St John Fisher Associated Sixth Form in Harrogate to complete his A Levels.

Richard Burgon was the first person in his immediate family to go to university, studying English Literature at St John's College, Cambridge.

Richard Burgon's aunt was a member of Women Against Pit Closures and was married to a striking miner.

Richard Burgon is the nephew of the former Labour MP Colin Burgon.

In 2004, Richard Burgon first contested a public election as one of the Labour Party candidates for the Wetherby ward of Leeds City Council.

On previous boundaries, the ward's majorities suggested a safe seat for the Conservative Party, and Richard Burgon was unsuccessful in being elected.

Richard Burgon stood for selection as the Labour prospective parliamentary candidate for the 2011 Barnsley Central by-election, coming second to Dan Jarvis after tying in the penultimate round of voting.

Richard Burgon applied to be selected as the candidate for the 2012 Rotherham by-election, but was not shortlisted.

Richard Burgon was elected as MP for Leeds East at the 2015 general election, increasing the Labour Party's majority in the seat from 10,293 to 12,533 votes.

Richard Burgon was described by The Observer as one of "the stars of the [2015] intake".

Richard Burgon nominated Corbyn again as leader during the 2016 Labour leadership election.

Richard Burgon is a member of the Bakers, Food and Allied Workers' Union.

Richard Burgon is the Secretary of the Socialist Campaign Group of Labour MPs, and is regarded as being on the left of the Labour Party; he has taken part in People's Assembly Against Austerity protests.

Richard Burgon successfully defended his Leeds East seat at the December 2019 general election, winning with 19,464 votes.

Richard Burgon was re-elected as the Member of Parliament for Leeds East at the 2024 General Election with an increased majority of over 11,000.

Richard Burgon was promoted to Shadow Justice Secretary and Shadow Lord Chancellor on 27 June 2016 following the organised mass resignations in protest against the leadership of Corbyn.

Richard Burgon has called for a reversal of Ministry of Justice cuts and for emergency funding to recruit more prison officers and provide prison staff with new equipment, action to end overcrowding and for plans to build new private prisons to be scrapped.

At Labour Party Conference in 2017 Richard Burgon announced that a Labour Government would "properly support law centres as engines of empowerment for working-class communities".

On 6 April 2020, upon the election of Keir Starmer as Leader of the Labour Party, Richard Burgon was sacked from the shadow cabinet.

Richard Burgon opposed military intervention and the bombing of Syria following the November 2015 Paris attacks by ISIS militants.

Richard Burgon has criticised alleged human rights abuses by the Israeli Government in Palestine, and visited the West Bank in March 2016 as part of a group of Labour MPs.

Richard Burgon responded, "No and that was not my view", adding "I didn't make those comments".

Richard Burgon said that he had not recalled using what he called a "simplistic" phrase that he would not now use.

Richard Burgon has previously expressed support for the PSUV government in Venezuela and tweeted a congratulatory message to Nicolas Maduro when he became president in 2013.

Richard Burgon has expressed support for the Communist Party government in Cuba and spoke at a memorial event for Cuban President Fidel Castro following his death in 2016.

Richard Burgon called Corbyn's speech arguing for Parliament to declare a Climate Emergency "one of the most important ever made in Parliament".

In 2021, Richard Burgon put forward a Ten Minute Rule Bill that would ban arms trade with Israel supported by Caroline Lucas, Liz Saville Roberts and Tommy Sheppard.

On 24 February 2022, following the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine, Richard Burgon was one of 11 Labour MPs threatened with losing the party whip after they signed a statement by the Stop the War Coalition which questioned the legitimacy of NATO and accused the military alliance of "eastward expansion".

In October 2023 95 MPs signed Early Day Motion 1685: Protecting civilians in Gaza and Israel raised by Richard Burgon, which called for an immediate ceasefire in the hopes of saving the lives of Israeli and Palestinian civilians.

On 15 November 2023, during the Israel - Palestine conflict, Richard Burgon MP was one of 56 Labour MPs to vote in favour of a ceasefire, as part of the SNP's amendment to the King's Speech calling for a ceasefire in Gaza.

Richard Burgon was part of a rebellion against leader Keir Starmer's wishes that his MPs abstain from voting for a ceasefire.

On 6 February 2019, Richard Burgon won a libel case against The Sun newspaper after it falsely claimed that he had performed with a music group who "delighted" in Nazi imagery.

Richard Burgon's uncle is Colin Burgon, the former Labour MP for Elmet.