Hart, Judith (1924–)

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Hart, Judith (1924–)

British politician. Name variations: Lady Hart; Dame Judith Constance Mary Hart, Baroness Hart of South Lanark. Born Constance Mary Judith Ridehalgh in Burnley, Lancashire, England, 1924; attended London School of Economics; m. Dr. Anthony Hart, 1946; children: 2 sons.

As Labour Party candidate, became a member of Parliament (1959), elected by Scottish constituency of Lanark; held a number of ministerial posts (1964–71), including joint parliamentary under-secretary of state at Scottish Office (1964–66), minister of state for Commonwealth Affairs (1966–67), minister of social security (1967), and paymaster-general (1968); trained as a sociologist, was also minister of overseas development (1969–70, 1974–75, and 1977–79) and particularly outspoken about United Kingdom's moral responsibility to third world countries, a subject she also explored in Aid and Liberation: A Socialist Study of Aid Policies (1973); starting in 1969, also served as a member of the Labour Party National Executive, and chaired the industrial policy sub-committee and the finance and economic sub-committee.

See also Women in World History.