LUCIANA BERGER
MP at 28, Shadow Minister, called out her party for antisemitism, handled death threats.
Luciana Berger is featured in the 2019 Vogue Magazine’s 25 'high-powered and visionary women whose work is shaping Britain’s future’. She has also topped the Evening Standard’s Progress 1000 - an annual celebration of London’s most influential people
She was first elected as the Labour Member of Parliament for Liverpool in 2010 aged just 28, after roles with Accenture, the NHS Confederation and the Labour Friends of Israel. During her three terms in Parliament Luciana served as a shadow Minister for Energy and Climate Change, Shadow Minister for Public Health and was the first ever Shadow Cabinet Minister for Mental Health.
Luciana has long called for increased awareness and improvement of mental health services and led a campaign that was successful in amending a bill to introduce a breathing space for those in a mental health crisis struggling with serious debt.
In early 2019, Luciana left the Labour party, identifying it as 'institutionally racist' under Jeremy Corbyn's leadership. During her time in Parliament, Luciana saw six people convicted for the death threats and harassment directed towards her (four of whom served a prison sentence).
Luciana was acknowledged as a member of the “Rebel Alliance” group of MPs described as “ the courageous MPs who put their careers on the line to stop a potentially disastrous departure from the European Union without an agreement with Brussels”. Luciana is recognised in the Algemeiner’s J100 - the top 100 people globally who are positively influencing Jewish life in 2019.
Awards:
The Political Courage Award 2019 from the Political Studies Association. The annual Jewish Care Woman of Distinction award 2019. The Jo Cox Memorial Award for Bravery & Heroism at the No To Hate Crime Awards 2018. Parliamentary Campaigner of the Year, Positive Practice Collaborative National Mental Health Awards 2016.
Between 2017 and 2019 Luciana served as the mental health advisor to the Liverpool City Region Metro Mayor.
Today, Luciana is the Chair of the UK Maternal Mental Health Alliance, an advisory board member of the Money and Mental Health Policy Institute, Vice President of the British Association of Counselling and Psychotherapy and Vice President of the Jewish Leadership Council. Since leaving Parliament, alongside her charitable work, Luciana has been working in public affairs, advocacy and communications and features in the PRWeek UK Power Book 2023.
“Luciana is both an engaging and inspirational speaker. She came to our firm and spoke about her personal and professional journey, relating it back to challenges we as a firm face day to day including unconscious bias and how to expand our diversity and inclusivity. What sets her apart is the fact she has operated at the very heart of our political system, in the gaze of the media and experienced huge challenge and discrimination. You didn't feel she was holding back. A speaker who is, and will remain someone we continue to talk about for a long time to come.”
"She was excellent. We had a really terrific program with her- our community really enjoyed her."
