Karen Lumley

Karen Elizabeth Lumley (born 28 March 1964) is a Conservative Party politician in England. She has been the Member of Parliament (MP) for Redditch in Worcestershire since the 2010 general election, when she defeated former Home Secretary Jacqui Smith.

Personal life

Lumley was born in Barnsley, but grew up in the county of Warwickshire, in the town of Rugby. Her early education was at the Rugby High School for Girls and subsequently the East Warwickshire College. Since becoming a MP she has lived in the Brockhill area of Redditch. She is married to Richard Lumley, a geologist, and has two children.

Political career

Lumley was the deputy chair of the Welsh Young Conservatives in 1986-7 and the group leader of Wrexham Maelor district from 1991 to 1996. She also served on Clwyd County Council between 1993 and 1996 and on Redditch Borough Council from 2001 to 2003. She then unsuccessfully contested the Delyn constituency in 1997 and Redditch in both 2001 and 2005, before winning her seat in the 2010 election in Redditch. In the election she defeated the former Home Secretary Jacqui Smith. In 2013, she was one of 175 MPs to vote against the Marriage (Same Sex Couples) Act 2013 which legalised same sex marriage in England and Wales. Lumley had said that while she supported civil partnerships, she had felt that the bill would redefine the meaning of marriage and that her decision would be supported by the majority of her constituents. Lumley held her seat in the 2015 election. In 2016, she indicated her support for voting to leave the European Union in the EU referendum. Lumley commented that the move would regain the UK's sovereignty.

In the House of Commons, Lumley sits on the Finance Committee as of July 2015. She has previously been part of the Welsh Affairs Select Committee and the Transport Select Committee. Lumley is also a Parliamentary Private Secretary in the Department of Health.