Taiwo Owatemi
Taiwo Owatemi (born 22 July 1992) is a British politician who has served as Member of Parliament (MP) for Coventry North West since 2019. A member of the Labour Party, she has been Shadow Minister for Women and Equalities since 2021. Early life. Owatemi grew up in Plumstead, with close links to an extended family via her aunt and cousins in Coventry. Her father died when she was six, an event which she has identified as being formative of her political views. She was brought up alongside her twin and her elder brother by her mother, a nurse . Owatemi has a Master's from the University of Kent and is a qualified pharmacist. She worked as a senior oncology pharmacist at a cancer unit in Dartford and Gravesham NHS Trust before she entered Parliament. Political career. Owatemi was selected for a parliamentary internship by the Social Mobility Foundation and gained experience working in the Westminster office of Conservative MP Oliver Letwin. She served in a number of roles in the Young Fabians and published on health policy. She was also a governor at a local primary school from 2016. She was selected as Labour's candidate for Coventry  North West at the 2019 general election after the incumbent Labour MP, Geoffrey Robinson, announced his intention to stand down. Owatemi narrowly held the seat for Labour with a majority of 208 votes. She is one of three female MPs elected from Coventry in 2019, alongside Zarah Sultana and Colleen Fletcher. In the 2020 Labour Party leadership election Owatemi nominated Lisa Nandy. Owatemi served as Parliamentary Private Secretary (PPS) to the Shadow Home Secretary, Nick Thomas-Symonds, from April 2020 to September 2021. She was appointed as Shadow Minister for Women and Equalities in September 2021.