Rosie Cooper has officially stood down as Labour MP for West Lancashire.
Rosie Cooper has officially stood down as Labour MP for West Lancashire.
Ms Cooper has been appointed Steward and Bailiff of the Three Hundreds of Chiltern by the Chancellor - an archaic process that effectively resigns an MP. She previously said she had accepted the position of chair of Mersey Care NHS Foundation Trust "after a considerable period of soul-searching and reflection".
Ms Cooper, who held her seat for 17 years, previously said the appointment meant she was unable to continue with her duties as an MP. She currently has a majority of just over 8,300.
Her resignation will mean a by-election in a constituency firmly in the "Red Wall" which Labour boss Sir Keir Starmer will be looking to hold. A statement from the Treasury said: "The Chancellor of the Exchequer has this day appointed Rosemary Elizabeth Cooper to be Steward and Bailiff of the Three Hundreds of Chiltern."
In a statement in September Ms Cooper said: "I appreciate this will come as a surprise to many people having recently secured re-selection to stand as West Lancashire's Labour Party candidate for the next general election. This was prior to the recruitment process for the Mersey Care position.
"This decision to apply for the role was taken after a considerable period of soul-searching and reflection. The events I have faced over the last few years are well documented and undoubtedly have taken their toll."
Ms Cooper was at the centre of a murder plot in 2017 that saw convicted neo-Nazi Jack Renshaw jailed for life for his plans to kill her. Ms Cooper criticised ITV's decision to broadcast a drama series detailing the plot, telling the Commons she had been used as a "marketing tool" by both the broadcaster and the anti-fascism campaign group Hope Not Hate.