07/02/2021
Pink News reports that Maureen Colquhoun, the first out gay or lesbian person to sit in the House of Commons, has passed on at the age of ninety two. She was the Member of Parliament for the seat of Northampton North between 1974 and 1979 and represented the Labour Party. She was a woman ahead of the curve, speaking out in favour of decriminalising sex work, seeking child care support at Labour conferences, and asking to be referred to as Ms, the first politician to do so. She was in a long term relationship with Barbara Todd, who edited the groundbreaking lesbian magazine Sappho, which championed lesbian and women's culture, music and arts. Ms Colquhoun survived an attempt by sexist and homophobic people in her own constituency Labour Party to deselect her, but lost her seat in the high tide of Margaret Thatcher's 1979 Conservative victory. She remained involved in politics for decades however, serving as a local councillor and continuing to make a difference for women and for LGBTQ people. She was a trailblazer and we pay tribute to her.
