Shabana Mahmood | |||||||||||||||||||||||
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.jpg) Official portrait, 2025 | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Home Secretary | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Assumed office 5 September 2025 | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Prime Minister | Keir Starmer | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| Preceded by | Yvette Cooper | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| In office 5 July 2024 – 5 September 2025 | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Prime Minister | Keir Starmer | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| Preceded by | Alex Chalk | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| Succeeded by | David Lammy | ||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Member of Parliament forBirmingham Ladywood | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Assumed office 6 May 2010 | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Preceded by | Clare Short | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| Majority | 3,421 (9.4%)[1] | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| Personal details | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Born | (1980-09-17)17 September 1980 (age 45) Small Heath,Birmingham, England | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| Political party | Labour | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| Alma mater | Lincoln College, Oxford (BA) | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| Website | www | ||||||||||||||||||||||
Shabana Mahmood (/ʃəˈbɑːnəməˈmuːd/, born 17 September 1980) is a British politician and barrister who has been serving asHome Secretary since 2025. She previously served asSecretary of State for Justice andLord Chancellor from 2024 to 2025. A member of theLabour Party, she has beenMember of Parliament (MP) forBirmingham Ladywood since2010. Mahmood identifies as belonging to the more socially conservativeBlue Labour faction of the Labour Party.
In 2002 Mahmood graduated with a degree in law fromLincoln College, Oxford. She went on to complete theBar Vocational Course at theInns of Court School of Law in 2003. As a barrister her specialism isprofessional indemnity. Her selection as the Labour Party candidate for Birmingham Ladywood for the2010 general election caused some dissent in the constituency party, but was found by an inquiry led by a member of theNational Executive Committee to be legitimate. She became one of the first femaleMuslim MPs, along withRushanara Ali andYasmin Qureshi. Between 2010 and 2024, while the Labour Party was theOfficial Opposition, she held variousshadow frontbench positions, includingShadow Financial Secretary to the Treasury from 2013 to 2015.
After the2015 general election Mahmood was promoted to the Shadow Cabinet and served asShadow Chief Secretary to the Treasury in the interimShadow Cabinet of Harriet Harman. FollowingJeremy Corbyn'selection as Labour leader, Mahmood resigned from the position and declined to serve inCorbyn's Shadow Cabinet. She supportedOwen Smith in the attempt to replace Corbyn at the2016 leadership election. After serving on the backbenches between 2015 and 2021, Mahmood returned to the Shadow Cabinet in theMay 2021 British shadow cabinet reshuffle underKeir Starmer as the National Campaign Coordinator. In hisSeptember 2023 Shadow Cabinet reshuffle Starmer appointed MahmoodShadow Secretary of State for Justice andShadow Lord Chancellor.
Following Labour's victory at the2024 general election Mahmood was appointedLord Chancellor andSecretary of State for Justice in theStarmer ministry. She implemented an early release scheme for thousands of prisoners to reduce prison overcrowding. In the2025 cabinet reshuffle, she was promoted to Home Secretary.
Shabana Mahmood was born on 17 September 1980 inBirmingham, the daughter of Zubaida and Mahmood Ahmed.[2] Her parents are ofKashmiri descent with roots inMirpur, Azad Kashmir.[3] She is the eldest of four, is a twin with her brother, and has a younger sister and brother.[4][5] From 1981 to 1986 she lived with her family inTaif, Saudi Arabia, where her father was working as a civil engineer ondesalination.[3][4] After that, she was brought up in Birmingham, where, having failed theeleven-plus, she attendedSmall Heath School andKing Edward VI Camp Hill School for Girls.[6][2][4]
Her mother worked in aconvenience shop that the family bought after returning to England.[4] Her father became the chair of the local Labour Party.[7] Mahmood often helped him to campaign in local elections.[8] In an interview withNick Robinson in 2024, Mahmood said that, although politics "had always been part of [her] life", her ambition when younger was to be abarrister, and cited the example of the fictionalKavanagh QC.[9]
Mahmood read law atLincoln College at theUniversity of Oxford. She was president of theJunior Common Room (JCR).[10] She was awarded a2:1 in 2002.[11][12] In 2023, she recalled thatRishi Sunak, who would go on to becomeprime minister, was in the year above her at Lincoln College, and had promised to vote for her in the JCR election.[8] She went on to complete theBar Vocational Course at theInns of Court School of Law in 2003,[2] having received a scholarship fromGray's Inn.[13][14]
Mahmood is a qualified barrister, specialising inprofessional indemnity law.[15] She worked at 12King's Bench Walk from 2003 to 2004, and atBerrymans Lace Mawer from 2004 to 2007.[2]
Clare Short, the incumbent MP for Birmingham Ladywood, decided not to contest the2010 general election.[16] Mahmood and a local councillor,Yvonne Mosquito, both sought the Labour nomination.[16] In the vote of Constituency Labour Party (CLP) members to select the candidate, Mahmood secured 118 votes, while Mosquito received 99.[17] Supporters of Mosquito claimed that up to 30 members were prevented from voting for her following a rule change affecting eligibility.[17] According to the political scholars Parveen Akhtar and Timothy Peace, "This led to the CLP being temporarily split on race lines between Asian and Afro-Caribbean factions, demonstrating the complicated ethnic tensions at play in some U.K. constituencies."[16] Mahmood said that she did not feel that the local party was divided in this way, and commented that "I know there is a line out there about divisions, my experience doesn't mirror that in any way."[18][19] An inquiry led by theNational Executive Committee of the Labour Party member Mike Griffiths found that Mahmood's victory was legitimate.[17]
At the 2010 general election, Mahmood was elected MP for Birmingham Ladywood with 55.7 per cent of the vote and a majority of 10,105.[20][21][22][23] Along withRushanara Ali andYasmin Qureshi, Mahmood became one of the UK's first femaleMuslim MPs.[6] The Labour Party was theOfficial Opposition, and Mahmood held variousShadow Cabinet front-bench positions under the new leader,Ed Miliband, including Shadow Minister for Prisons, Shadow Minister for Higher Education, andShadow Financial Secretary to the Treasury.[24][25]
In 2011, it was reported that Mahmood was on the list of people spied on by theprivate investigator Derek Webb for theNews of the World, which was seeking information about the people of most interest to their readers.[26]
At the2015 general election Mahmood was re-elected MP for Birmingham Ladywood with an increased vote share of 73.6 per cent and an increased majority of 21,868.[27] She was appointed to the Shadow Cabinet asShadow Chief Secretary to the Treasury.[28] Nationwide the Labour Party's election results were below expectations, and Miliband resigned the following day.[29] Mahmood was a co-chair of the campaign to electYvette Cooper at the2015 party leadership election, and made a pledge to avoid negative briefing during the campaign.[30]
In September 2015, followingJeremy Corbyn's election as leader, Mahmood stepped down from her shadow cabinet role, saying she "strongly disagreed" with him on economic matters.[31] The following month she was one of the winners of the women's magazineMarie Claire's Women at the Top Awards.[32]
In January 2016, Mahmood was elected to represent theParliamentary Labour Party on the National Executive Committee, and was re-elected in July 2016.[33][34] She was offered a place inCorbyn's Shadow Cabinet, but declined, telling him that "I'll be miserable, and I'll make you miserable as well."[8] In November 2016, she was elected one of the vice chairs of Labour'sNational Policy Forum.[35] She supportedOwen Smith in the failed attempt to replaceJeremy Corbyn at the2016 party leadership election.[36]
At the snap2017 general election, Mahmood was again re-elected with an increased vote share of 82.7 per cent and an increased majority of 28,714.[37]
Mahmood was again re-elected at the2019 general election with a decreased vote share of 79.2 per cent and a decreased majority of 28,582.[38] After Labour's election loss she was asked to commission a review launched byLabour Together of the party's election performance.[39]
In theMay 2021 Shadow Cabinet reshuffle, Mahmood returned to the Shadow Cabinet as National Campaign Coordinator, succeedingAngela Rayner.[40] Peter Walker ofThe Guardian considered that Mahmood and Labour's campaign directorMorgan McSweeney had improved the campaign organisation and use of data by the party by 2023.[41]
In September 2023,Keir Starmer appointed Mahmood, seen as an ally of his, asShadow Secretary of State for Justice.[42][43] She was replaced as campaign co-ordinator byPat McFadden.[43] Also that month, Mahmood was named by theNew Statesman as the 20th-most-powerful left-wing figure in Britain.[44]
At the2024 general election, Mahmood was re-elected with a decreased share of 42.5 per cent and a majority of 3,421.[45] She had been challenged by theindependent candidateAkhmed Yakoob, whose campaign focused on support forPalestine.[46][47] Yakoob finished second behind Mahmood, with 12,137 votes,[48] following a campaign that Mahmood described as "sullied by harassment and intimidation".[47]
On 5 July 2024, Starmer appointed MahmoodSecretary of State for Justice andLord Chancellor.[49] This made her the first Muslim and third female lord chancellor in history afterHenry III's wife and Liz Truss.[50][51][a]
A week after her appointment, she announced measures intended to decreaseprison overcrowding, describing the situation in prisons as a ticking "time bomb" and saying that prisons were on the "point of collapse".[54][55] Under her plans some prisoners would be released after serving 40 per cent of their sentences inEngland and Wales, rather than the 50 per cent announced previously in October 2023.[56] She stated that she expected that the number of prisoners to be released in September 2024 would be "in the low thousands", with further releases over the following 18 months with updates in Parliament every three months.[57][54] This included 37 who were not eligible for early release. At least one is suspected to have gone on to offend again.[58]
Following the2024 United Kingdom riots, Mahmood pledged that "the full force of the law [would] be brought against" the rioters, and those inciting them.[59] She also remarked that the volume of cases relating to the riots would affect the UK's justice system for years.[59]
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On 5 September 2025, Mahmood was appointedHome Secretary in the2025 British cabinet reshuffle, replacingYvette Cooper.[60] Her appointment was seen as signalling a shift towards a more hard-line stance on immigration and was welcomed byMaurice Glasman, the founder of Blue Labour, as "fantastic".[61][62] The following day, on 6 September, the UK saw its first 'uncontrolled landing' (an unescorted migrant boat reaching British shores) since December 2022.[63]
Defence SecretaryJohn Healey said he expected Mahmood to be "just as tough" as Yvette Cooper onPalestine Action.[64]
On 5 October, Mahmood announced plans to enable the police to impose restrictions in location and duration or ban outright "repeat protests", in response to demonstrations against theGaza war and theproscription of Palestine Action.[65][66] The "cumulative impact" of earlier protests would be grounds "in and of itself" for the police to impose restrictions. The announcement was criticised byAmnesty International andLiberty.[66] Former director of LibertyShami Chakrabarti warned what a futureNigel Farage government may do with these powers, and pointed out that protests are disruptive in order to be effective.[66]
Ideologically, Mahmood identifies as asocial conservative and as belonging to theBlue Labour faction of the Labour Party.[67][61] Following her appointment as Home Secretary in 2025, Blue Labour founderMaurice Glasman described her as "clearly the leader of our part of the party".[61] In an interview withMichael Gove, the editor ofThe Spectator in 2025, she described herself as asmall-c social conservative and namedMargaret Thatcher andBenazir Bhutto as her political idols, but said this was because they were women who came to power in "tight patriarchal systems" rather than for their political ideas.[68][69]
On the issue of theGrooming gangs scandal, she said that "there is still a moment of reckoning", adding "there is still an outstanding question of why so many people looked the other way".[70]
Mahmood supported Starmer's efforts to reducelegal immigration to the United Kingdom.[71]
Mahmood says on her website that she is a passionate supporter of Palestinian rights.[72] In 2014 she took part in a demonstration outside a branch ofSainsbury's inBirmingham city centre. She said "We lay down in the street and we lay down inside Sainsbury's to say we object to them stocking goods from illegal settlements – and that they must stop. We managed to close down that store at peak time on a Saturday. This is how we can make a difference."[73]The Jewish Chronicle reported that she was criticised for this by members of theBoard of Deputies of British Jews and theJewish Leadership Council. The report also said that the chair of theJewish Labour Movement and the director of Antisemitism Policy Trust both said that she had taken action againstantisemitism.[74]
On 13 October 2023, following the7 October 2023 Hamas massacre of Israelis, Mahmoud published a statement to her parliamentary constituents in which she wrote that "I unequivocally condemn the despicable actions ofHamas, who targeted innocent Israeli civilians. Thehostages must be returned. These atrocities were committed byterrorists who do not seek peace and have set back the just cause of Palestinian freedom and statehood, which I have supported my whole life."[75]
In July 2024, Mahmood was promoted to the role ofSecretary of State for Justice. Following a wave of Islamophobic and racist abuse directed at her on social media, senior leaders of the British Jewish community made public statements in support of her, including Danny Stone, director of the Antisemitism Policy Trust, who stated that she "has been kind, thoughtful, and supportive in all of my dealings with her, including on serious issues of conspiratorial antisemitism. She has been relentlessly abused and deserves some kindness" and that she had "taken direct action against antisemitism."[76]
In 2024, Mahmood voted against makingBDS illegal. She did not sign a letter urging the UK to uphold the International Criminal Court'sarrest warrants for Israeli officials. She abstained from several key votes on issues related to thewar in Gaza, including a call for a ceasefire in Gaza in November 2023 and a call to suspendarms sales to Israel in March 2024. She chose to abstain from proscribingPalestine Action as a terrorist group.[77]
In March 2019 Mahmood was criticised by activists within her party after stating that the "religious background" of pupils and "age appropriateness" should be considered when teachingLGBTQ content duringRelationship and Sex Education (RSE) lessons in schools, after 1,700 of her constituents signed a petition objecting to teaching such content at a primary school.[78] The columnistOwen Jones said onTwitter that her remarks were "shocking", feeling that they supported parents "trying to stop lessons educating pupils about the existence of gay people".[79] Mahmood replied that she had never advocated exclusion of LGBT relationships from RSE lessons.[79]
In a 2024 interview withThe Daily Telegraph Mahmood said that she was concerned with the treatment ofgender-critical activists, saying that "many women have had to go to court, usually in employment tribunals, in order to clarify ... their right to say that biological sex is real and is immutable – a position that I also agree with" and that women "shouldn't be in the position of losing their jobs" for espousing those views. She also said that she "agrees withJ. K. Rowling" regarding the view that "biological sex is real and is immutable", and that Rowling was "leading the fight in this area".[80][81] Following theSupreme Court's 2025 ruling inFor Women Scotland Ltd v The Scottish Ministers, which concerns transgender people, Mahmood said that criticism of the ruling was "absolutely unacceptable".[82][83]
Mahmood publicly opposed and voted against theTerminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill on assisted dying.[84]
In October 2024 she said: "I voted against the bill when it was last introduced in 2015. I'll be voting against it again. As a Muslim, I have an unshakable belief in the sanctity and value of human life. I don't think death is a service that the state should be offering."[85]
In November 2024, she stated that "Sadly, recent scandals – such asHillsborough,infected blood and thePost Office Horizon – have reminded us that the state and those acting on its behalf are not always benign. I have always held the view that, for this reason, the state should serve a clear role. It should protect and preserve life, not take it away. The state should never offer death as a service."[86] She also stated that "We must never accept the wrongful deaths of some in exchange for the desired deaths of others. That line, once crossed, will be crossed for ever. The right to die, for some, will – inexorably and inevitably – become the duty to die for others. And that is why I will be voting against this bill."[86]
In a 2024 interview withGabriel Pogrund ofThe Sunday Times, Mahmood was described as a "devout Muslim". She said, "My faith is the centrepoint of my life and it drives me to public service, it drives me in the way that I live my life and I see my life."[4] She lives next door to her parents.[4]
Mahmood was sworn into thePrivy Council on 6 July 2024, entitling her to be styled "The Right Honourable".[87]
| Parliament of the United Kingdom | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Member of Parliament forBirmingham, Ladywood 2010–present | Incumbent |
| Political offices | ||
| Preceded by | Shadow Minister for Prisons 2010–2011 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Shadow Minister for Higher Education 2011–2013 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Shadow Financial Secretary to the Treasury 2013–2015 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Shadow Chief Secretary to the Treasury 2015 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Shadow Secretary of State for Justice 2023–2024 | Succeeded by |
| Shadow Lord Chancellor 2023–2024 | ||
| Preceded by | Secretary of State for Justice 2024–2025 | Succeeded by |
| Lord High Chancellor of Great Britain 2024–2025 | ||
| Preceded by | Home Secretary 2025–present | Incumbent |
| Party political offices | ||
| Preceded by | Labour Party National Campaign Coordinator 2021–2023 | Succeeded by |
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| Lord High Chancellor of Great Britain andSecretary of State for Constitutional Affairs 2003–2007 | | |
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| Lord High Chancellor of Great Britain andSecretary of State for Justice 2007–present | ||
| .svg) | |
| Cabinet members | | |
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| Also attending meetings | ||
| International | |
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| People | |
