Rosie Duffield
MP for Canterbury, Whitstable and the Villages
ABOUT
ROSIE
Growing up in central London and moving to Kent in her 20s, Rosie Duffield has lived and worked in Canterbury and Whitstable for over 26 years. Rosie has worked as a Teaching Assistant in local schools, and with local charities, churches, parents’ groups, arts events and schools in the area.
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As a working single parent, Rosie knows the impact of drastic cuts on this area from personal experience. Rosie really understands what life is like for those who need Tax Credits, benefits and decent housing. Rosie's politics is driven by her desire to make life better for the whole community, including those who fall on hard times, the homeless, refugees, people with disabilities, pensioners and families struggling to cope with the soaring cost of living.
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Prior to being elected to Parliament in 2017, Rosie was Chair of the Canterbury branch of the Labour Party and its representative on local cross-party forums such as Canterbury For Europe, Amnesty’s Canterbury & District Human Rights Network, Kent Anti-Racist Network and the Canterbury Clean Air Group.
YOUR MP SINCE 2017.
Rosie made history in 2017 when she beat the longstanding Conservative candidate to become the first female- Labour MP in Kent - and only Labour MP at the time. Rosie has made cross party working a priority, conscious of being elected by a broad coalition of voters.
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Opposed to Brexit, Rosie was a leading figure in cross-party efforts to secure a People's Vote, and helped to organise a Parliamentary 'rebel alliance' that very nearly brought down the Government.
Rosie runs a fully-staffed, busy office in the constituency to deal with local people's everyday issues. These include problems relating to housing, education, benefits, and immigration. Since being elected, her team of dedicated, caring caseworkers has dealt with tens of thousands of cases, providing a vital service to the people of the Canterbury area.
As you may have seen, Rosie believes in speaking her mind. Some people don't like that but many more people do, reflected in Rosie's increased vote share in December 2019 . Nationally in 2019, Labour suffered its worst defeat in decades, whereas Rosie increased her majority ten times over, one of only 4 Labour MPs to do so.​​
HOLDING THE GOVERNMENT TO ACCOUNT.
A current member of the Women and Equalities Select Committee, Rosie has previously served on the Work and Pensions and Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Committees. ​
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​Select Committees have a vital role in scrutinising the Government, holding Ministers, officials and big business leaders to account on your behalf. They commission investigations and publish reports on a wide range of issues that are relevant to everyday life.
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Rosie has also served on Bill Committees and is particularly active in a wide range of All Party Parliamentary Groups (APPGs). Rosie chairs the APPG on dog and animal welfare (APDAWG) and the APPG on Women's Rights, is a longstanding member of the APPG against antisemitism and chairs the APPG on Birth Trauma, which published its groundbreaking Birth Trauma Inquiry Report in 2024. ​​​
WORKING HARD FOR YOU.
In September 2024, Rosie took the difficult decision to resign the Labour Party whip in Parliament. You can read Rosie's Resignation Letter here.
She currently represents Canterbury constituency as an Independent MP.
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