The first Sikh woman lawmaker in the UK, Preet Kaur Gill, was born on 21st November 1972. Preet is a British politician serving as the Shadow Cabinet Minister for International Development since 2020. She is a member of the Labour and Co-operative parties and has been serving as a Member of Parliament (MP) in Birmingham Edgbaston since 2017.
Family and early life
Preet Kaur Gill was born in Edgbaston, Birmingham, to Indian parents, Daljit Singh Shergill and Kuldeep Kaur Shergill, on 21st November 1972. Her father worked as a foreman, then as a bus driver, and her mother worked as a seamstress.
Her father Sardar Daljit Singh Shergill was the longest-serving president of Guru Nanak Gurdwara Smethwick. The two people who most influenced Gill's desire to pursue politics were her father and Baron Tarsem King of West Bromwich.
Her family consists of six younger siblings. In her early years, she attended Lordswood Girls' School and Bournville College. During her college years, Gill served as president of the student union. Gill graduated with a first-class B.Sc in Sociology with social work from the University of East London. After her graduation, she worked with street kids in India and an Israeli kibbutz as a social worker. She worked as a social worker with a focus on child protection in Waltham Forest and Birmingham, where she also held the position of children's services manager from 2010 to 2017.
She was first elected as a councillor for Sandwell Metropolitan Borough Council, and was re-elected in 2016; her term ended in May 2018. During her term as a member of the council, she served as the Cabinet Member for Public Health and Protection.
A glimpse into her political career
The Labour Party selected Gill to contest in Birmingham Edgbaston on 28 April 2017. Her selection followed Gisela Stuart's decision not to run for re-election. During the 2017 general election, Gill won the seat with 24,124 (55.3%) votes and a majority of 6,917 (15.8%). After winning the elections she became the first Sikh woman MP in the UK.
She was elected to the Home Affairs Select Committee in July 2017. The shadow cabinet appointed her as International Development Minister (shared with Dan Carden) on 12 January 2018. Gill signed a letter supporting the People's Vote campaign for a second referendum on EU membership in March 2019. Gill is the chair of the All Party Parliamentary Groups on Mentoring and for British Sikhs.
In the 2020 Labour Party leadership election, Gill supported Keir Starmer. Following Starmer's election as leader, she became Shadow Secretary of State for International Development. Gill shadowed Secretary Anne-Marie Trevelyan until the department was abolished in September 2020.
Since then, she has shadowed ministers of the newly established Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office. She remained in the shadow cabinet following the November 2021 reshuffle, but her position was re-named Shadow Cabinet Minister for International Development and she joined the new shadow Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs team. In November 2020 ,Gill was elected Chair of the Parliamentary Group of MPs for the Co-operative Party.
Personal life
Gill has been married to Suresh Singh Chopra, a social worker and the couple has been blessed with two daughters. Her husband has been a social worker since 2009. In addition to serving as vice-president of the Local Government Association, Gill also serves as a non-executive director of the Spring Housing Association.
Proud to live her father’s dream
On being elected the first ever female Sikh MP in the UK, Preet goes down the memory lane sharing great memories of her father Daljit Singh Shergill.
“He was president of the Smethwick gurdwara... and was involved in the community. He was very passionate and active and always said you should contribute and try to give something back. He died three years ago but he would have been immensely proud of me becoming an MP."
More about Preet Kaur Gill
She still feels connected to her Punjabi roots and enjoys going back to her village, Jamsher in the Jalandhar district of Punjab. Remembering her childhood days, she recalls receiving letters from India in blue airmail envelopes, written in Punjabi.
She says that she became a social worker by training, but had learnt it while growing up too, from her father and her religion. She believes that a lot of values that Sikhism talks about ‘Sarbat da bhala’ are for the betterment of all mankind, not just Sikhs. She thinks social work is just about helping everyone, all people from all diverse backgrounds.
Preet Kaur Gill says that it is her strong sense of faith that has helped her help others, and helped herself remain steadfast. She has been respected by many and criticized by more, but nothing has affected her confidence or decision-making ability. With her conviction and resolve, she has set an example for not just the Sikh women, but for women all over the world.