Emily Thornberry

The Right Honourable Emily Thornberry MP
Official portrait, 2024
Member of Parliament for Islington South and Finsbury
Incumbent
Assumed office 5 May 2005[1]
Preceded by	Chris Smith
Majority	15,455 (36.2%)
Shadow portfolios Shadow Secretary of State 2021-2024 Attorney General 2020–2021 International Trade 2017–2020 First Secretary of State 2016–2020 Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs 2016 Exiting the European Union 2016 Defence 2011-2014 Attorney General Shadow Minister 2015–2016 Employment 2010–2011 Social Care 2010 Climate Change
Personal details
Born	Emily Anne Thornberry (1960-07-27) 27 July 1960 (age 64) Guildford, Surrey, England
Political party	Labour
Spouse	Christopher Nugee ​ (m. 1991)​
Children	3
Parents	Cedric Thornberry Sallie Thornberry
Alma mater	University of Kent (LLB)
Signature
Website	www.emilythornberry.com

Emily Anne Thornberry, Lady Nugee (born 27 July 1960) is a British Labour politician who has been Member of Parliament (MP) for Islington South and Finsbury since 2005. She served as Shadow Attorney General for England and Wales from 2021 until the 2024 UK general election, and previously from 2011 to 2014. Thornberry has also served in a number of other senior positions on Labour's front bench, namely as Shadow Foreign Secretary from 2016 to 2020, Shadow First Secretary of State from 2017 to 2020 and Shadow Secretary of State for International Trade from 2020 to 2021.

The daughter of a teacher and a diplomat, Thornberry was born in Guildford, Surrey, and attended a local secondary modern school. After graduating from the University of Kent in Canterbury, she worked as a human rights lawyer from 1985 to 2005 and joined the Transport and General Workers' Union.

Thornberry was first elected to Parliament in 2005 and served as Shadow Attorney General for England and Wales in Ed Miliband's shadow cabinet from 2011 until she resigned in 2014 after sending a tweet mocking a house with England flags. After Jeremy Corbyn won the 2015 Labour leadership election, Thornberry was appointed Shadow Minister of State for Employment in September 2015, Shadow Secretary of State for Defence in January 2016 and Shadow Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs in June 2016. She was a candidate to succeed Corbyn as Leader of the Labour Party in the 2020 leadership election but was eliminated from the race after failing to obtain the number of nominations needed.

Thornberry was appointed to Keir Starmer's shadow cabinet as Shadow Secretary of State for International Trade and Shadow President of the Board of Trade in April 2020. She was appointed Shadow Attorney General for England and Wales in November 2021, but did not receive a ministerial position in Starmer's post-election government formed in July 2024.