Barbara Thomson
Barbara Thomson | |
|---|---|
| Deputy Minister of Environmental Affairs | |
| In office 26 May 2014 – 25 May 2019 | |
| President | Jacob Zuma Cyril Ramaphosa |
| Minister | Edna Molewa Nomvula Mokonyane |
| Preceded by | Rejoice Mabudafhasi (for Water and Environmental Affairs) |
| Succeeded by | Maggie Sotyu (for Environment, Forestry and Fisheries) |
| Deputy Minister of Energy | |
| In office 1 November 2010 – 25 May 2014 | |
| President | Jacob Zuma |
| Minister | Dipuo Peters Ben Martins |
| Preceded by | Position established |
| Succeeded by | Thembi Majola |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 3 February 1954 Natal, South Africa |
| Political party | African National Congress |
Barbara Thomson (born 3 February 1954), also spelled Barbara Thompson, is a South African politician. She represented the African National Congress in the South African Parliament between 1995 and 2019. During that time, she served as Deputy Minister of Environmental Affairs from 2014 to 2019 and as Deputy Minister of Energy from 2010 to 2014. In 2006, she was convicted of fraud in the Travelgate scandal.
Early life and career
[edit]Thomson was born on 3 February 1954 in the former Natal Province (now KwaZulu-Natal).[1] She trained as a development worker and became involved in politics and community activism in the Natal Midlands, where she later served as secretary of a regional branch of the African National Congress (ANC) Women's League.[1]
Parliament: 1995–2019
[edit]Thomson joined the first democratic Parliament in 1995, filling a casual vacancy.[2] She represented the ANC in Parliament for the next 14 years, serving a stint in the National Council of Provinces as well as longer stints in the National Assembly. In 2004, she was one of several representatives implicated by the Scorpions in the Travelgate scandal,[3] and in October 2006 she pled guilty to having defrauded Parliament in that connection.[4] The fraud reportedly pertained to an amount of R74,000.[5]
On 31 October 2010, President Jacob Zuma announced a major cabinet reshuffle, in which he appointed Thomson as Deputy Minister of Energy; until then, the Minister of Energy, Dipuo Peters, had served without a deputy.[6] Thomson remained in that office until the May 2014 general election, after which Zuma appointed her as Deputy Minister of Environmental Affairs.[7] She left Parliament and the executive at the May 2019 general election.[8]
References
[edit]- ^ a b "Ms B. Thompson: Deputy Minister". Department of Energy. Archived from the original on 9 March 2014. Retrieved 2 July 2024.
- ^ "Barbara Thomson, Ms". South African Government. Retrieved 2 July 2024.
- ^ "Have vouchers, will travel". The Mail & Guardian. 20 August 2004. Retrieved 7 August 2023.
- ^ "Travelgate: 14 plead guilty". The Mail & Guardian. 16 October 2006. Retrieved 7 August 2023.
- ^ "Travelgate: MPs to out ANC big fish". The Mail & Guardian. 6 October 2006. Retrieved 27 April 2023.
- ^ "Cabinet reshuffled, 7 ministers axed". Sunday Times. 1 November 2010. Retrieved 3 July 2024.
- ^ "Full List of Jacob Zuma's 2014 cabinet – all the Ministers and Deputies". BizNews. 25 May 2014.
- ^ "Barbara Thomson". People's Assembly. Retrieved 2 July 2024.
External links
[edit]- Barbara Thomson at People's Assembly
- Living people
- 1954 births
- 20th-century South African politicians
- 20th-century South African women politicians
- 21st-century South African politicians
- 21st-century South African women politicians
- Members of the National Council of Provinces
- Members of the National Assembly of South Africa
- Politicians from KwaZulu-Natal
- South African politicians convicted of fraud
- Women members of the National Assembly of South Africa
- Women members of the National Council of Provinces