Diane Abbott MP

Speaker Diane Abbott MP thumbnail

Politician; MP, Hackney North and Stoke Newington

Diane Abbott attended Harrow County School and Newnham College, Cambridge where she studied History. On leaving university she joined the Civil Service, before working on the lobby group the National Council for Civil Liberties. Between 1980 and 1987 she worked in journalism, whilst also moving into politics as a councillor for Westminster City Council. In 1987 she was elected to the House of Commons, replacing Ernest Roberts as Labour MP for Hackney North and Stoke Newington, becoming the first black woman to be elected to parliament. She has served on a number of parliamentary committees, including the Treasury Select Committee and the Foreign Affairs Select Committee.

Abbott is a well-known public speaker and also regularly features on BBC’s This Week with Michael Portillo and Andrew Neill. She held her seat in the 2010 general election and following the resignation of Gordon Brown formally entered the race for the leadership of the Labour Party.

Previous IQ² events featuring Diane Abbott MP

Season tickets

Season tickets are £100 each and include one ticket and a glass of wine for all five debates in our autumn 2010 series

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Middle East debate

Buy tickets for 'The Middle East peace process is a charade' on September 21, featuring Edward Luttwak and Martin Indyk

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What's new on IQ²

See all of the latest IQ² content on one page, including written debates, live debates, and talks from our partners

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Pervez Musharraf

Former president of Pakistan Pervez Musharraf will talk to Sir Christopher Meyer at this IQ² World Leaders event on September 29

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IQ² Magazine

This week, The Magazine brings you both sides of the story on WikiLeaks and the pros and cons of government stimulus spending

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