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Preet Kaur Gill is a British MP for the constituency of Birmingham Edgbaston covering Bartley Green, Edgbaston, Harborne, Quinton and North Edgbaston. She represents the Labour and Co-operative Party and when she was elected in 2017, she became the UK’s first female British Sikh MP.
In Keir Starmer’s reshuffle following deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner’s resignation in September 2025, Preet Kaur Gill was appointed Parliamentary Private Secretary (PPS) to the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology, working with the new Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, Liz Kendall MP.
Before that, she served as Parliamentary Private Secretary (PPS) to the now former Business Secretary, Jonathan Reynolds, since Labour formed a government in July 2024.
Preet Kaur Gill has also served as Shadow Minister for Primary Care and Public Health from September 2023 to July 2024, working in her own words: “to build an NHS fit for the future”. She also served as Shadow Secretary of State for International Development from 2018 to 2020.. On her website, she says: In this role, I championed the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals, advocated for ending poverty, improving global health, gender equality, pandemic preparedness and a new model for international climate finance.”
Preet Kaur Gill is also Chair of the Co-operative Party Parliamentary Group, and Vice-President of the Local Government Association.
On Preet Kaur Gill’s website she also writes: “It has been the privilege of my life to represent the place where I was born and raised in Parliament.”
Preet Kaur Gill’s story
Preet Kaur Gill was born in Edgbaston, Birmingham, to Indian parents on November 21, 1972. Her father Daljit Singh Shergill was a foreman and then a bus driver and her mother Kuldeep Kaur Shergill was a seamstress. They were immigrants to the UK from Punjab, India. Preet Kaur Gill credits her father as the main reason she entered politics as he was the longest serving president (for about 18 years) of the Guru Nanak Gurdwara Smethwick, the first gurdwara (Sikh place of worship) in the UK. Preet Kaur Gill is the eldest of seven siblings.
Preet Kaur Gill went to school at Lordswood Girls’ School in Knightlow Road, Harborne, Birmingham and then Bournville College, Longbridge Lane, Longbridge, Birmingham, where she was elected student president. She studied Sociology and Social Work at the University of East London (UEL), where she graduated with a first class honours. She was the first person in her family to go to university.
She then became a social worker, including international work in India and Israel and specialised in child protection as a social worker in Waltham Forest, London and then Birmingham. She became Children’s Services Manager in Birmingham from 2010 to 2017.
Alongside, her social work, she entered local politics as a councillor for Sandwell Metropolitan Borough Council, elected in 2012 for the St Paul’s ward. She was re-elected in 2016 and served on the council until 2018. During that time, she held the role of Cabinet Member for Public Health & Protection. When she became an MP, she stepped down from this role but stayed on as a councillor.
Preet Kaur Gill Personal Life
In 2009, Preet Kaur Gill married Suresh Singh Chopra, who is also a social worker. They have two daughters. On December 31, 2009, Preet Kaur Gill posted a photo of her wedding day, dressed in traditional Sikh dress alongside a photo of her as an MP. She wrote on Twitter: “What a decade it’s been. 2009 got married v 2019 re- elected as MP. Happy New Year.”
Preet Kaur Gill regularly shares how her father is her inspiration. She said: “He was very passionate and active and always said you should contribute and try to give something back. He would have been immensely proud of me becoming an MP.” She also has shared that it was her father’s dream for her to become the first female Sikh MP. Her father Daljit Singh Shergill died on October 6, 2014, aged 70.
The UK’s first female British Sikh MP
On Thursday, June 8, 2017, Preet Kaur Gill was elected the first female British Sikh MP. Her predecessor was Gisela Stuart, who had held the Birmingham Edgbaston seat for Labour since 1997. She received 21,217 votes, accounting for 50.1% of the vote. Alex Yip for the Conservative Party gained 36.9% of the vote (15,603).
In her acceptance speech Preet credited her father who drove the Number 11 bus in the city. She said: “My father came to this country from India with great aspirations for us all and tonight this is the beginning of a journey that he would have been proud of had he been here.
“The British electorate have made important decisions and it’s now my job to go to Westminster as part of a Labour team for the many, not the few, so thank you.”
Preet Kaur Gill: Values
Preet Kaur Gill has strong Sikh values, such as community service, fairness, giving back and equality. She was born and raised in Edgbaston, yet also keeps strong connections with the Jamsher village in the Jalandhar district of Punjab, India.
She was featured on Birmingham City University’s Brummies Who Inspire in 2018 and presented an award for Sikh Woman of Substance by the Sikh Women’s Alliance. In 2020,she received MP of the Year from the Patchwork Foundation.
Preet campaigns for stronger regulation of the exempt accommodation sector, leasehold reform, measures to tackle fuel poverty, offensive weapons, curbs on 3D-printed firearms and fairness in data collection. As MP for Birmingham Edgbaston, Preet focuses on local concerns such as NHS services, community resources, and public safety and chairs the APPG for British Sikhs.
Preet introduced the Firearms (3D Printing) Bill in October 2024, which was later adopted by the government. Preet also spearheaded an amendment to the Offensive Weapons Act to protect the right of Sikhs to carry the Kirpan, a blade that is part of a Sikh religious uniform.
Preet Gill: Oldbury Attack
Preet Gill has been vocal around the “horrendous” attack on a Sikh woman as she was walking to work in Oldbury. On the news section of her website, Preet urged people to come forward. Preet said: “During this vile crime, she was told she “does not belong here.” This was not only an attack on her, but an attack motivated by hate.
“Hate crimes against Sikhs are on the rise, with our community experiencing overt racism far too often.
“I will continue working with the police and government to tackle racism, misogyny, and hate in all its forms, and ensuring that anti-Sikh hate is recognised and addressed with the seriousness it demands.”
Preet Gill: In the news
Preet Gill’s latest updates have included improving healthcare access, strengthening justice and accountability, advancing tech innovation, defending workers’ rights, tackling hate crime, supporting children and schools, and backing local businesses and communities in Birmingham Edgbaston.
She also regularly posts updates on early years and childcare, community empowerment, children’s health, border security, support for hospitality/creative sectors, NHS prevention, and local Birmingham safety and services.
