(CLP) Yorkshire and Humber Region
I was the first of my family to work in an office. The rest were manual workers in cotton, footwear or coal. In 1958, aged 18, I joined CND and later that year the Labour Party. A few years later, aged 22, I became the youngest councillor in the country on Darwen Borough Council. From 1974 I worked as an assistant to my late husband Bob Cryer when he was MP for Keighley and latterly Bradford South. Following Bob’s death in 1994 I was encouraged to seek nomination, then election in 1997 for the marginal Keighley constituency. I retired undefeated in 2010. As MP I took on difficult issues challenging communities to end forcing daughters into marriage and voting in Parliament against the Iraq war. I have no regrets. I have represented Yorkshire on the NPF since 2012. I recently stood down as Chair of the Forum in order to focus on regional activities, issues and campaigns.
