Alex Phillips (Green politician) explained

Alex Phillips
Party:Green Party of England and Wales (since 2003)
Otherparty:Labour Party (2001–2003)
Constituency Mp:South East England
Term Start:2 July 2019[1]
Term End:31 January 2020
Predecessor:Keith Taylor
Successor:Constituency abolished
Parliament:European
Office2:Mayor of Brighton and Hove
Term Start2:22 May 2019
Term End2:15 May 2020
Predecessor2:Dee Simson
Successor2:Alan Robins
Birth Date:9 July 1985
Nationality:British
Spouse:Tom Druitt
Children:2
Residence:Brighton
Occupation:Politician

Alexandra Louise Rosenfield Phillips (born 9 July 1985) is a British politician. She served as a Green Party Member of the European Parliament (MEP) for South East England from 2019 to 2020. She was Mayor of Brighton and Hove from May 2019 to May 2020; the youngest person to hold the office. Phillips was a Brighton and Hove City councillor between 2009 and 2023.

Early life and local political career

Phillips was born on 9 July 1985 in Liverpool, Merseyside, to Roger Phillips and Margaret Rosenfield.[2] [3] She is of Jewish heritage.[4] Her father worked as a presenter for BBC Radio Merseyside for 42 years before retiring in 2020.[5] Her younger sister, Ellie Phillips, works as a television presenter and journalist.[6] [7]

Brought up in Liverpool, Phillips was initially a Labour Party activist with her mother, joining the party at the age of 16.[8] In 2003 she resigned from Labour and joined the Green Party as a result of the then Labour government's decision to invade Iraq.[9] She holds a bachelor's degree in French Studies from the University of London Institute in Paris and a PGCE from the UCL Institute of Education.

Phillips moved to Brighton in 2008.[10] She was elected to represent the Goldsmid ward on Brighton and Hove City Council in a 2009 by-election,[11] and re-elected in 2011.[12] In subsequent council elections she contested the Regency ward, winning a seat in both 2015 and 2019.[13] [14] She became Brighton's youngest mayor in 2019 after being selected for the role by her fellow councillors.[15] [16] [17] She finished her term as mayor in May 2020.[18] Outside of her council roles, she has worked as the policy lead at the HIV and sexual health charity, Terrence Higgins Trust, and as a French and German language secondary school teacher in Croydon, London, and later Hampshire.[19] [16] [20] In 2022, Phillips announced that she and her husband were stepping down as councillors ahead of the May 2023 elections.[21]

European Parliament

In the 2014 European parliamentary election, Phillips stood as a candidate in the South East England constituency. She was second on her party's list after Keith Taylor (Green Party MEP since 2010).[22] [23] In the election, the Green Party won just one seat in South East England which therefore went to Taylor as their first-placed candidate.[24] Phillips worked as Senior Campaigns Coordinator for Green Party MP Caroline Lucas's successful general election campaigns in 2010 and 2015.[25] She supported the United Kingdom remaining within the European Union (EU) in the 2016 United Kingdom European Union membership referendum.[26]

Phillips contested the 2019 European Parliament election in the South East England constituency. This time she was first on her party's list, Taylor having chosen not to seek re-election.[27] In the same constituency, another candidate called Alexandra Phillips also stood as a candidate but for the Brexit Party.[28] In the election, both were elected as MEPs.[29] In the European Parliament, she was a member of the Committee on Employment and Social Affairs, and part of the delegation to the ACP–EU Joint Parliamentary Assembly.[2]

House of Commons bid

Phillips was the Green Party candidate for at the 2019 general election. She finished fourth out of five candidates.[30]

Personal life

Phillips is married to Tom Druitt, a fellow Green Party Brighton and Hove councillor and managing director of The Big Lemon (a bus and coach operator in Brighton). They both hold shares in the company which has a contract with the city council.[31] They have two children.[32]

External links

Notes and References

  1. Web site: After the European Parliament elections – what happens next?. European Parliament. 10 August 2019. 13 June 2019.
  2. Web site: Alexandra Louise Rosenfield Phillips. 9 July 1985 . 8 August 2019. European Parliament.
  3. News: I emailed myself to say: If I die tonight my boyfriend did it. Liverpool Echo. 13 April 2016. Tansley. Janet. 8 August 2019.
  4. alexforeurope. 1174431178314670080. My 3rd #Strasbourg session and I'm still learning... I wasn't able to do an 'explanation of vote' video in the end - which would have been in the hemicycle itself. So have done a standard video instead which covers what I wanted to say in the plenary debate.. Phillips. Alexandra. 19 September 2019.
  5. News: Roger Phillips: BBC boss Tony Hall leads tributes to radio 'legend'. BBC News. 28 August 2020. 9 January 2023.
  6. News: Manchester born but made in Liverpool. Liverpool Echo. 11 December 2003. 8 August 2019.
  7. Web site: Ellie Phillips. Muck Rack. 8 August 2019.
  8. Web site: Meet Alex Phillips. Green European Foundation. 21 August 2019.
  9. Web site: Alex Phillips is first candidate for Green Party Deputy Leader. Bright Green. 31 May 2012. 9 August 2019.
  10. Web site: South East: Alexandra Phillips. Green Party. Green World. 16 May 2019. 8 August 2019.
  11. Web site: Election results for Goldsmid. Brighton and Hove City Council. 8 August 2019. 23 July 2009.
  12. Web site: Election results for Goldsmid. Brighton and Hove City Council. 8 August 2019. 5 May 2011.
  13. Web site: Election results for Regency. 7 May 2015. 8 August 2019. Brighton and Hove City Council.
  14. Web site: Election results for Regency. Brighton and Hove City Council. 2 May 2019. 8 August 2019.
  15. Web site: Cllr Alexandra Phillips: New Mayor of Brighton & Hove. Brighton and Hove City Council. 22 May 2019. 8 August 2019.
  16. Web site: Youngest ever mayor chosen for Brighton and Hove. Brighton and Hove News. 16 December 2017. 8 August 2019. de Luc. Frank.
  17. News: Council leader, opposition leader and committee chairs announced. The Argus. 23 May 2019. Bullmore. Harry. 9 October 2020.
  18. News: Cllr Alan Robins elected Brighton and Hove mayor. The Argus. 16 May 2020. Bullmore. Harry. 9 October 2020.
  19. Web site: Alexandra Phillips, MEP candidate for SE England. Green Party. 8 August 2019. 23 May 2019. https://web.archive.org/web/20190523160905/https://www.segreens.com/alex4europe. dead.
  20. Web site: Declaration of Members' Financial Interests. European Parliament. 1. 8 August 2019.
  21. News: Green councillors Tom Druitt and Alex Phillips announce they will not stand in 2023. Green. Daniel. The Argus. 12 January 2022. 9 January 2023.
  22. Web site: Vote 2014: European election candidates for the South East. BBC News. 28 April 2014. 9 August 2019.
  23. Web site: Declaration of return as a member of the European Parliament. 1. Adur and Worthing Council. 9 August 2019. 1 June 2010.
  24. Web site: Results of the 2014 European Parliament elections in the UK. European Parliament. 9 August 2019.
  25. Web site: Alexandra Phillips. 9 August 2019. South East England Green Party. 28 March 2022. https://web.archive.org/web/20220328233307/https://www.segreens.com/alex_phillips. dead.
  26. News: These two MEPs both called Alexandra Phillips with opposite views won in the same region. The Independent. 27 May 2019. 9 August 2019. Snaith. Emma.
  27. Web site: 2019 European elections: List of candidates for the South East. BBC News. 28 April 2019. 9 August 2019.
  28. News: Two candidates called Alexandra Phillips in European elections. Brighton and Hove News. 7 May 2019. 4 August 2019. le Duc. Frank.
  29. News: Alexandra Phillips: Confusion as South East elects two MEPs with same name. 27 May 2019. The Irish News. 4 August 2019.
  30. Web site: Brighton, Kemptown (Constituency) 2019 results. UK Parliament. 30 December 2022.
  31. Web site: Register of Interests. 9 August 2019. 22 October 2018. Brighton and Hove City Council.
  32. News: Audit into councillor Alex Phillips's expenses finds overpayments. 25 June 2022. 30 December 2022. The Argus. Booker-Lewis. Sarah.

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