How firebrand Louise Haigh grew up in staunch Labour family

Louise Haigh stands out with her bright red hair – but her commitment to the socialist cause runs deep in her roots.

She was born in Sheffield into a staunch Labour family, with her grandfather and uncle both trade union officials. 

Having made her name as a shop steward for Unite, she went on to court controversy by showering the rail unions with cash to end their strikes.

Despite her Left-wing background, Ms Haigh was educated at Sheffield High School for Girls, making her one of only two members of Sir Keir Starmer's Cabinet to be privately educated. 

The Transport Secretary, 37, started a degree in government and economics at the London School of Economics before transferring to Nottingham University to complete a BA in politics.

After two years she landed a job in Parliament co-ordinating an all-party parliamentary group on international corporate responsibility while also working for Unite.

Ms Haigh then worked for insurance company Aviva for three years before being elected as the MP for Sheffield Heeley in 2015 aged only 27.

She was one of the 36 Labour MPs to nominate Jeremy Corbyn as a leadership candidate in 2015 – although she has since said she regrets doing this and had been 'naive'. 

She was quickly elevated to the Labour front bench by Mr Corbyn.

Haigh was named the hardest-working of the new intake of MPs in 2015, by the House of Commons Library and when Sir Keir became Leader of the Opposition in 2020, he made Ms Haigh his Northern Ireland spokeswoman before moving her to the transport brief in 2021.

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Her first few months as Transport Secretary have been characterised by a string of controversies. 

While boasting about the Government's new Employments Rights Bill, she urged the audience to join her in boycotting 'rogue operator' P&O Ferries, whose parent company responded by threatening to pull £1billion of investment in the UK.

She has also been accused of 'emboldening' militant union barons. 

In August Ms Haigh handed rail drivers in the Aslef union a 14.25 per cent hike over three years with no strings attached. 

Two days later the hard-Left union announced fresh strikes.

Since the election, she has received a £10,000 donation from Unite. She has also had a colourful personal life. 

In 2019 it was reported that she had a fling with DIY SOS star Nick Knowles the previous year after meeting at the Police Bravery awards.