Deja vu: The 12 former Labour MPs returning to Parliament once more

The 2024 election has brought a huge new Labour intake: the party gained an extra 209 seats on its 2019 tally. But not all of those MPs are fresh faces – indeed, some have seen the inside of the House of Commons before.

Douglas Alexander 

Arguably the most high profile of the parliamentary returnees, Alexander was a secretary of state under both Blair and Brown. He lost his seat to a 20-year-old Mhairi Black in 2015, but has now returned to Parliament after winning East Lothian – Labour’s top Scottish target seat. He has been appointed as a Minister in the Department for Business and Trade in the new government.

Dan Norris 

Labour’s MP for Wansdyke between 1997 and 2010 has returned to Parliament by beating Jacob Rees-Mogg. He served as a parliamentary under-secretary of state under Brown, and since 2021 has been Mayor of West of England.

Heidi Alexander

The Swindon-born Alexander has been elected to represent a seat in the Wiltshire locality. She represented Lewisham East in Parliament between 2010 and 2018, resigning to become Deputy Mayor of London for Transport.

Sir Nic Dakin 

Dakin returns in the Scunthorpe seat he represented between 2010 and 2019. He was Shadow Minister for Schools from 2015 to 2016, and an opposition whip from 2011 to 2015 and then again from 2016 to 2019. He was knighted in the 2020 Birthday Honours for political service.

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Anna Turley 

Anna Turley lost her Redcar seat in 2019 but is now back in that very same constituency.  She was a prominent pro-European voice during her last spell in Parliament and also served as chair of the Co-operative Party towards the end of her time there.

Gareth Snell 

Gareth Snell represented Stoke-on-Trent Central from 2017 until 2019, regaining the seat at the 2024 election. He was also leader of Newcastle-under-Lyme Borough Council between 2012 and 2014, and managed Liam Byrne’s 2021 West Midlands mayoral campaign.

Emma Reynolds

Wolverhampton-born Reynolds represented a constituency in that city until she lost her seat in 2019, but now returns to Parliament representing Wycombe in Buckinghamshire. She served on Ed Miliband’s shadow frontbench.

Jo Platt 

Platt was elected as the first female MP for Leigh at the 2017 election, only to lose at the following election in 2019. During her time in parliament she was Parliamentary Private Secretary to Angela Rayner as Shadow Education Secretary and was a shadow minister for the Cabinet Office. She now returns as MP for the redrawn Leigh and Atherton seat.

Read more of our 2024 general election results coverage (article continues below):

Election night as it happened: Key results unpacked in historic landslide

Labour results tracker: Full list and map of Labour gains, holds, losses, new MPs

‘We did it’: Keir Starmer’s victory speech as Labour crosses key 326 seat line

‘A landslide masks discontent left, right and centre. Labour has its work cut out’

‘What should we look for in Keir Starmer’s cabinet?’

‘Keir Starmer is at the peak of his power. How should he make the most of it?’

James Frith 

Ex-rock frontman Frith previously represented Bury North between 2017 and 2019, and now returns in that seat. He was a Parliamentary Private Secretary to John Healey as Shadow Housing Secretary during his time in Parliament.

Melanie Onn 

Onn has returned to Parliament as MP for Great Grimsby and Cleethorpes on a majority of close to 5,000 votes. She previously represented Great Grimsby between 2015 and 2019. She served on Labour’s frontbench but resigned in opposition to Corbyn in 2016 and then again to vote against a second referendum in 2019.

Pamela Nash 

Nash has been out of Parliament slightly longer than some of the other names here, previously holding the Airdrie and Shotts seat between 2010 and 2015. 2024 saw her elected as MP for Motherwell, Wishaw and Carluke.

Mary Creagh

Creagh, who was briefly a contender for the Labour leadership in 2015, lost her Wakefield seat in the 2019 general election. She has now returned to parliament representing Coventry East.

Read more on how the night unfolded:

Liz Truss loses South West Norfolk: Beaten by a lettuce, beaten by Labour

Scotland results: Labour makes big gains as SNP obliterated

Wales results: Labour bags 27 of 32 seats as Tories wiped off the map

Red Wall: Gains in Stoke, Grimsby, Redcar, Workington, Hartlepool, Barrow, Bishop Auckland, Darlington, Bolsover

Jacob Rees-Mogg: Senior Tory loses seat as Labour mayor Dan Norris wins

Gaza: Jon Ashworth loses in Leicester as independents win Blackburn and Batley

Islington North: Jeremy Corbyn holds on in strong result over Labour

Nuneaton, Stevenage, Swindon, Worcester: Labour wins in key bellwether marginals

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