Abena Oppong-Asare (born 8 February 1983)[1] is a British Labour Party politician. She was elected as the Member of Parliament (MP) for Erith and Thamesmead in the 2019 general election.[2] She and Bell Ribeiro-Addy, both elected in the 2019 general election, are the first female British Ghanaian MPs.[3][4]
Abena Oppong-Asare | |
|---|---|
 Official portrait, 2019 | |
| Shadow Minister for Women's Health and Mental Health | |
| Assumed office 5 September 2023 | |
| Leader | Keir Starmer |
| Preceded by | Rosena Allin-Khan |
| Shadow Exchequer Secretary to the Treasury | |
| In office 16 October 2020 – 5 September 2023 | |
| Leader | Keir Starmer |
| Preceded by | Wes Streeting |
| Succeeded by | Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi |
| Member of Parliament for Erith and Thamesmead | |
| Assumed office 12 December 2019 | |
| Preceded by | Teresa Pearce |
| Majority | 3,758 (9.1%) |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Abena Oppong-Asare[1] 8 February 1983 |
| Political party | Labour |
| Alma mater | University of Kent (BA, MA) |
| Occupation | Politician |
| Website | Official website |
She was appointed to the Official Opposition frontbench in 2020, becoming Shadow Exchequer Secretary to the Treasury, and later Shadow Minister for Women's Health and Mental Health.[5]
Early life
Oppong-Asare is of Ghanaian descent[6] and studied Politics with International Relations at the University of Kent, where she also attained a master's degree in International Law with International Relations.
Political career
She is the chair of Labour Women's Network. From 2014 to 2018, she was a Labour Party Councillor for Erith ward on Bexley Council, serving as Deputy Leader of the opposition Labour Group from 2014 to 2016 and acted as the spokesperson on education.[7] She has also previously served as a parliamentary assistant and constituency liaison officer, and has advised the shadow minister for Preventing Violence Against Women and Girls.[8] Prior to her election, Oppong-Asare worked at the Greater London Authority, supporting GLA members to effectively represent the people of London. During this time, she led community engagement following the Grenfell Tower fire.
In 2019, she ran to be the Labour prospective parliamentary candidate in Erith and Thamesmead when the incumbent MP Teresa Pearce announced she would stand down at the next election.
In 2020, she released a report, Leaving Nobody Behind in Erith and Thamesmead, examining the impact of the pandemic on key groups in her constituency, including disabled people, people from an ethnic minority background, women, young people and those from a lower socio-economic background. The report was widely praised upon publication and picked up by local and national media outlets.
On 14 January 2020 she was announced as the Parliamentary Private Secretary to the new Shadow Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, Luke Pollard.[9]
On 16 April 2020, Oppong-Asare was announced as the Parliamentary Private Secretary to the newly appointed Shadow Chancellor of the Exchequer, Anneliese Dodds.[10]
On 16 October 2020, Oppong-Asare was promoted to Shadow Exchequer Secretary to the Treasury, replacing Wes Streeting, who was moved to the position of Shadow Minister for Schools following resignations the previous day relating to the Covert Human Intelligence Sources (Criminal Conduct) Bill.[11]
In November 2021, the political monitoring organisation Vuelio identified Oppong-Asare as amongst the top three newly-elected MPs who tabled the most Parliamentary Questions that session.[12] In June 2021, PR firm Edelman included her in their list of "ones to watch" from the 2019 intake[citation needed].
In 2022, Oppong-Asare was included in the Women in Westminster 100 list to mark International Women's Day.[13]
Each year, Oppong-Asare holds a political and campaigning Summer School for local young people in which she invites high-profile speakers to deliver training and workshops designed at encouraging political engagement from those often under-represented.[14]
In July 2023, The Independent revealed that Oppong-Asare had claimed a £55 parking fine on her MP expenses.[15]
In the 2023 British shadow cabinet reshuffle she was appointed Shadow Minister for Women's Health and Mental Health.[16]
Oppong-Asare is a member of Labour Friends of Israel.[17]