The Irish Post, a community newspaper for the Irish in England, Wales and Scotland, reports that Dublin born trade unionist and Labour Member of Parliament for Ealing Southall, Dierdre Costigan, has been appointed to a prestigious junior role in Andy Burnham's government. Ms Costigan, who was a member of public sector trade union UNISON and worked for both its LGBT+and disability conferences, until her election to the House of Commons in 2024. She has this week been appointed as a Private Parliamentary Secretary to the Department of Trade. The Irish Post notes that although junior, this prestigious role underlines the Labour Party establishment's confidence in Costigan.

Ms Costigan holds the Ealing Southall constituency by a huge majority of 15,000. In the 2024 General Election, The Conservatives came second with 7000 votes and the Greens third with over 4,300.