Kim Johnson

Labour’s Kim Johnson was elected as Liverpool, Riverside’s new MP at the 2019 general election, succeeding the long-serving Dame Louise Ellman, who had resigned from the party over complaints of anti-Semitism within the Labour ranks. Born and raised in the city herself, Johnson worked as a community development officer in Liverpool before working on behalf of the city council as part of its successful bid to be crowned European Capital of Culture in 2008, later joining the council’s adult social care department. Johnson is also a trade unionist and was deputy chair of Unison’s national black members’ committee. Following her election victory, she became the first ever black MP to represent one of Liverpool’s constituencies. In the 2020 Labour leadership elections Johnson backed Rebecca Long-Bailey’s unsuccessful campaign but has since joined three parliamentary committees: women and equalities; education; and the speaker’s advisory committee on works of art. Johnson recently expressed her dismay at statistics showing that black residents of Liverpool were still nearly three times more likely to be stopped and searched by Merseyside Police than their white counterparts.