Fiona Twycross

Fiona Twycross (born 29 May 1969) is a London Labour Party politician. She was born in South London before moving to Oxford. She studied at Cheney School in Oxford before going on to study Scandinavian Studies at the University of Edinburgh and has a PhD in contemporary Scandinavian literature. She subsequently studied Public Policy and Management at Birkbeck University.^[1] She has lived and worked in the East Midlands, Yorkshire and the Humber and the North East.

Career

Before her election as a London Assembly Member, Fiona Twycross worked for Diabetes UK, as Head of Governance having previously worked as the charity’s Head of Campaigns and Volunteer Development. She has also worked for the Labour Party as Regional Director in Yorkshire and the Humber and the North East, and was Agent for the Sedgefield by-election in which Phil Wilson MP replaced Tony Blair after his resignation from parliament.

Twycross was placed third on Labour’s assembly list for the 2012 London Assembly election ^[2] and was elected as a Londonwide Assembly Member in May 2012.^[3] She sits on the Assembly’s Economy, Housing and Health Committees and is spokesperson for the Group on Economy, Welfare and Fire. Since June 2012, Twycross has been a member of the London Fire and Emergency Planning Authority (LFEPA) and Labour Group leader on LFEPA since July 2013.^[4][5]

As well as the Labour Party, Twycross is also a member of the Co-operative Party, the Fabian Society and the Socialist Health Association. She sits on the Labour Party’s policy making body, the National Policy Forum and is on the Education and Policy Commission.

Campaigns and activities

Twycross has led a number of campaigns since being elected to the Assembly, notably leading a London Assembly investigation into the rise in food poverty in London which called for London to be a Zero Hunger City.^[6] Boris Johnson subsequently adopted the goal as part of his 2020 vision making London one of just two cities worldwide to sign up to the UN’s Zero Hunger Challenge.^[7]

Twycross has led the Labour 999SOS campaign, fighting cuts to emergency services since its launch in October 2012.^[8] As Economy spokesperson, Twycross has challenged Mayor of London Boris Johnson over low pay and poverty in London and over the use of zero hours contracts at City Hall.^[9]

In September 2013, Twycross co-founded the Labour Campaign for Universal Free School Meals with the GMB Union and Richard Watts, Leader of Islington Council.^[10]

References