# Nicky Gavron > Mediated Wiki article. Canonical URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Nicky_Gavron > Markdown URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Nicky_Gavron.md > Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nicky_Gavron > Source revision: 1347265216 > License: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/) {{Short description|British politician (1941–2024)}} {{Use dmy dates|date=September 2021}} {{Infobox officeholder | name = Nicky Gavron | honorific_suffix = | image = Nicky_gavron_portrait.jpg | image_size = 250px | caption = Gavron in 2008 | order = | office = 1st and 3rd [Deputy Mayor of London](/source/Deputy_Mayor_of_London) | term_start = 14 June 2004 | term_end = 4 May 2008 | 1blankname = [Mayor](/source/Mayor_of_London) | 1namedata = [Ken Livingstone](/source/Ken_Livingstone) | predecessor = [Jenny Jones](/source/Jenny_Jones_(Green_politician)) | successor = [Richard Barnes](/source/Richard_Barnes_(British_politician)) | order2 = | office2 = | term_start2 = 16 May 2000 | term_end2 = 16 May 2003 | 1blankname2 = [Mayor](/source/Mayor_of_London) | 1namedata2 = [Ken Livingstone](/source/Ken_Livingstone) | predecessor2 = [''Office established''](/source/Greater_London_Authority_Act_1999) | successor2 = [Jenny Jones](/source/Jenny_Jones%2C_Baroness_Jones_of_Moulsecoomb) | office3 = [Member of the London Assembly](/source/London_Assembly) | constituency3 = [Additional Member](/source/List_of_London_Assembly_constituencies) | term_start3 = 10 June 2004 | term_end3 = 8 May 2021 | constituency4 = [Enfield and Haringey](/source/Enfield_and_Haringey_(London_Assembly_constituency)) | assembly4 = London | term_start4 = 4 May 2000 | term_end4 = 10 June 2004 | majority4 = | predecessor4 = [''Constituency created''](/source/Greater_London_Authority_Act_1999) | successor4 = [Joanne McCartney](/source/Joanne_McCartney) | birth_name = Felicia Nicolette Coates | birth_date = {{birth date|1941|11|24|df=yes}} | birth_place = [Worcester](/source/Worcester%2C_England), [Worcestershire](/source/Worcestershire), England | death_date = {{death date and age|2024|8|30|1941|11||df=yes}} | death_place = London, England | party = [Labour Co-operative](/source/Labour_Co-operative) | spouse = [Bob Gavron](/source/Bob_Gavron) (divorced) | children = 4 | alma_mater = [Courtauld Institute](/source/Courtauld_Institute) | occupation = Politician | profession = Lecturer }} '''Felicia Nicolette Gavron''' (''née'' '''Coates''', 24 November 1941 – 30 August 2024) was a British politician who was [deputy mayor of London](/source/Deputy_Mayor_of_London) under [Ken Livingstone](/source/Ken_Livingstone) from 2000 to 2003 and 2004 to 2008. She was a member of the [London Assembly](/source/London_Assembly) from 2000 to 2021 and was the former [Labour](/source/Labour_Party_(UK)) candidate for the [2004 London mayoral election](/source/2004_London_mayoral_election).{{cite web|url=http://ukpollingreport.co.uk/guide/london-list-members/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080509073718/http://ukpollingreport.co.uk/guide/london-list-members |url-status=dead |archive-date=9 May 2008 |title=Election Guide 2010 » London List Members |publisher=UK Polling Report |accessdate=2014-01-23}} == Early life and education == Gavron was born in [Worcester](/source/Worcester%2C_England) on 24 November 1941,{{cite web |title=Felicia Nicolette Gavron |url=https://find-and-update.company-information.service.gov.uk/officers/XiJWmImlBv9OsKQXiiJtV5ZGl6A/appointments |publisher=[Companies House](/source/Companies_House) |access-date=10 November 2022}}{{cite news |title=Nicky Gavron, moderate-Left deputy London mayor to Ken Livingstone and keen environmentalist – obituary |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/obituaries/2024/09/02/nicky-gavron-deputy-london-mayor-haringey-obituary/ |access-date=2 September 2024 |publisher=The Telegraph |date=2 September 2024}} the daughter of a [German Jew](/source/German_Jews) who had fled from [Nazi Germany](/source/Nazi_Germany) in 1936. In March 2008, she claimed that her mother had been chosen to dance before Hitler in the opening ceremony of the [1936 Summer Olympics](/source/1936_Summer_Olympics) in Berlin, until the authorities discovered that she was Jewish.''London Evening Standard'', 5 March 2008 She studied at [Worcester Girls' Grammar School](/source/Worcester_Sixth_Form_College), then went on to study art history at the [Courtauld Institute](/source/Courtauld_Institute_of_Art) in London. She then gained a job as a lecturer at the [Camberwell School of Art](/source/Camberwell_College_of_Arts) in South London. == Political career == Gavron became involved in politics in the 1970s when she campaigned against the widening of the [Archway Road](/source/Archway_Road) in London. In an interview with ''[The Guardian](/source/The_Guardian)'' she said, "It was in the days when everyone thought road widening was the answer, but the penny dropped for me that it was part of the problem."{{cite news |url=https://www.theguardian.com/society/2006/jan/04/guardiansocietysupplement2 |title=Capital calling |first=Terry |last=Slavin |date=4 January 2006 |work=The Guardian}} In 1986, following the abolition of the [Greater London Council](/source/Greater_London_Council), she was elected as a Labour councillor for [Archway](/source/Archway_(ward)) ward in the [London Borough of Haringey](/source/London_Borough_of_Haringey). She was the leader of the [London Planning Advisory Committee](/source/London_Planning_Advisory_Committee) from 1994 until it was absorbed into the [Greater London Authority](/source/Greater_London_Authority). She was elected London Assembly member for [Enfield and Haringey](/source/Enfield_and_Haringey_(London_Assembly_constituency)) in the [2000 London Assembly election](/source/2000_London_Assembly_election) and was deputy mayor of London from May 2000 until June 2003,{{cite web |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20031222080101/http://www.london.gov.uk/mayor/index.jsp |archivedate=22 December 2003 |url=http://www.london.gov.uk/mayor/index.jsp |title=The Mayor of London |publisher=Greater London Authority |date=2003}} when the mayor, [Ken Livingstone](/source/Ken_Livingstone), appointed [Jenny Jones](/source/Jenny_Jones_(Green_politician)) of the [Green Party](/source/Green_Party_of_England_and_Wales) to succeed her. Although she was selected as Labour's mayoral candidate for the 2004 elections, she stepped aside when Livingstone was readmitted to the party. In the [2004 London Assembly election](/source/2004_London_Assembly_election) she was re-elected as a London-wide Labour Assembly member on the party list. Shortly after the election, Livingstone once again appointed her to the position of deputy mayor.{{cite web |url=http://www.nickygavron.co.uk/news.asp#news56 |title=Ken appoints Nicky Gavron as Deputy Mayor |publisher=Nicky Gavron |date=14 June 2004 |archivedate=23 July 2004 |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20040723044151/http://www.nickygavron.co.uk/news.asp#news56 |access-date=23 January 2014 |url-status=dead }} She was supposed to take up a position as acting mayor during Livingstone's suspension for four weeks from 1 March 2006, but a High Court order froze the suspension, allowing him to remain in office. Gavron stood for the [Barnet and Camden](/source/Barnet_and_Camden) London Assembly seat in the 2008 GLA elections against the Conservative incumbent, [Brian Coleman](/source/Brian_Coleman). Although she was unsuccessful in this contest she increased the Labour share of the vote in the constituency and was also re-elected to the Assembly on the London-wide list vote. Gavron ceased to be deputy mayor on 4 May 2008 following [Boris Johnson](/source/Boris_Johnson)'s victory in the 2008 London mayoral election. She was subsequently the chair of the London Assembly's housing and planning committee and a deputy chair of the planning committee.{{cite web |url=https://www.london.gov.uk/sites/default/files/membership_grid_2019-20.pdf |title=London Assembly – Membership of Committees/Bodies and Terms of Reference 2019/20 |publisher=London Assembly |accessdate=2019-08-14|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190814185249/https://www.london.gov.uk/sites/default/files/membership_grid_2019-20.pdf|archive-date=14 August 2019|url-status=dead}} She was also the London Assembly Labour Group's lead spokesperson on planning matters. Gavron was a onetime member of the [Safer London Committee](/source/Safer_London_Committee) and the [Metropolitan Police Authority](/source/Metropolitan_Police_Authority). She was a member of the Mayor's Advisory Cabinet, holding the portfolio for spatial development and strategic planning.{{cite web |url=http://www.london.gov.uk/mayor/cabmtgs/cabmmbrs.jsp#nicky |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20040811201848/http://www.london.gov.uk/mayor/cabmtgs/cabmmbrs.jsp#nicky |archivedate=11 August 2004 |title=Mayor's Advisory Cabinet: Members |publisher=Greater London Authority |date=2004}} In this capacity, she was the driving force behind much of the mayor's environment and planning policy, overseeing the London Plan.''Estates Gazette'', 28 February 2008, p. 68 In January 2019, Gavron announced her intention to stand down at the [2020 London Assembly election](/source/2020_London_Assembly_election).{{cite news |url=https://insidecroydon.com/2019/02/12/twycross-is-fourth-labour-assembly-member-to-stand-down/ |title=Twycross is fourth Labour Assembly Member to stand down |website=Inside Croydon|date=12 February 2019 |accessdate=2019-08-18}} == Environmental policy == Gavron was internationally recognised for her environmental expertise. She was a key figure in the establishment of the [London Climate Change Agency](/source/London_Climate_Change_Agency) and the [C40](/source/Large_Cities_Climate_Leadership_Group) – a worldwide climate change action group made up of the world's largest cities.{{cite web |url=http://www.cleanenergyawards.com/the-jury/nicky-gavron/ |website=World Clean Energy Awards |title=Nicky Gavron |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20080908074349/http://www.cleanenergyawards.com/the-jury/nicky-gavron/ |archivedate=8 September 2008 }} In 2006, ''[Business Week Magazine](/source/Business_Week_Magazine)'' cited her, along with Ken Livingstone, as one of the 20 most important people in the world in the battle against [greenhouse gas emissions](/source/greenhouse_gas_emissions). The magazine said, "[She aims] to turn London into a model of a sustainable future for all the world's great cities." In the same year she called for a new Clean Air Act – a Low Carbon Act to fight climate change.{{cite news |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/voices/commentators/nicky-gavron-we-need-a-new-version-of-the-clean-air-act-6094890.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220620/https://www.independent.co.uk/voices/commentators/nicky-gavron-we-need-a-new-version-of-the-clean-air-act-6094890.html |archive-date=20 June 2022 |url-status=live |title=Nicky Gavron: We need a new version of the Clean Air Act |work=The Independent |location=London |date=19 July 2006}} She envisioned [low carbon](/source/low_carbon) zones being rolled out across the country in the same way that smokeless zones had been in the 1950s. Gavron criticised [patio heaters](/source/patio_heaters), calling them "an indulgence too far". In an article for the ''Guardian'''s ''Comment is Free'' section she asked, "Why not wear a jumper and enjoy fresh air, not a cocktail of [carbon dioxide](/source/carbon_dioxide), [carbon monoxide](/source/carbon_monoxide) and goodness knows what else."{{cite news |url=http://commentisfree.guardian.co.uk/nicky_gavron/2007/07/not_in_my_back_yard.html |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20081011234541/http://commentisfree.guardian.co.uk/nicky_gavron/2007/07/not_in_my_back_yard.html |archivedate=11 October 2008 |title=Not in my back yard |date=26 July 2007 |work=The Guardian |first=Nicky |last=Gavron}} == Personal life and death == [[File:Gavron, Nicky 2024.jpg|thumb|150px|Grave of Nicky Gavron in [Highgate Cemetery](/source/Highgate_Cemetery)]] In 1967, she married the publishing tycoon [Robert Gavron](/source/Robert_Gavron%2C_Baron_Gavron) (later Lord Gavron), a widower with two children. They had two daughters together, Jessica, now a lawyer, and [Sarah](/source/Sarah_Gavron), a film director. They divorced in 1987 and he died in 2015.{{cite news | url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/people/news/lord-gavron-of-highgate-printing-tycoon-with-keen-sense-of-social-justice-whose-support-for-labour-10037035.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220620/https://www.independent.co.uk/news/people/news/lord-gavron-of-highgate-printing-tycoon-with-keen-sense-of-social-justice-whose-support-for-labour-10037035.html |archive-date=20 June 2022 |url-status=live | title=Lord Gavron of Highgate: Printing tycoon with keen sense of social justice whose support for Labour was rewarded with a peerage | work=The Independent|location=London |first=Nicolas |last=Barker|author-link=Nicolas Barker | date=10 February 2015 | accessdate=27 September 2017}} Gavron died at her home on 30 August 2024, at the age of 82.{{cite news|url = https://www.jewishnews.co.uk/ex-london-deputy-mayor-and-jewish-labour-stalwart-nicky-gavron-dies-aged-82/|title = Ex-London deputy mayor and Jewish Labour stalwart Nicky Gavron dies, aged 82|last = Harpin|first = Lee|date = 31 August 2024|accessdate = 31 August 2024|newspaper = [Jewish News](/source/Jewish_News)}} She was buried on the eastern side of [Highgate Cemetery](/source/Highgate_Cemetery).{{cite web |last1=Gavron |first1=Felicia Nicolette |title=Highgate Cemetery |url=https://highgate.burialgrounds.co.uk/mapmanagement/#/gravemanagement/24af897f-f559-4181-9514-e798ea4a5219/plot/o/burials/05a1d0d9-e641-4b1e-bf9f-a618c17b967f/6e0ad13e-2d80-4056-ae45-c694103634f5?tab=0 |website=Burial Grounds |access-date=25 September 2025}} == References == {{reflist}} == External links == *{{official website|http://www.nickygavron.co.uk}} * {{cite web |url=http://www.london.gov.uk/assembly/members/gavronn.jsp |title=Nicky Gavron |publisher=London Assembly |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20040207083047/http://www.london.gov.uk/assembly/members/gavronn.jsp |archivedate=7 February 2004 |access-date=14 February 2004 |url-status=dead }} * {{cite web |url=http://www.mpa.gov.uk/about/members/03gavron.htm |title=Nicky Gavron (Labour, Londonwide) |publisher=Metropolitan Police Authority |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20071012100937/http://www.mpa.gov.uk/about/members/03gavron.htm |archivedate=12 October 2007}} * {{cite news |url=https://www.theguardian.com/mayor/Story/0,2763,218972,00.html |title=Passnotes No: 1631 Nicky Gavron |work=The Guardian |date=9 May 2000}} {{S-start}} {{s-off}} {{s-new|office}} {{s-ttl|title=[Deputy Mayor of London](/source/Deputy_Mayor_of_London)|years=2000–2003}} {{s-aft|after=[Jenny Jones](/source/Jenny_Jones_(Green_politician))}} {{s-bef|before=[Jenny Jones](/source/Jenny_Jones_(Green_politician))}} {{s-ttl|title=[Deputy Mayor of London](/source/Deputy_Mayor_of_London)|years=2004–2008}} {{s-aft|after=[Richard Barnes](/source/Richard_Barnes_(British_politician))}} {{S-end}} {{Deputy mayors of London}} {{DEFAULTSORT:Gavron, Nicky}} Category:1941 births Category:2024 deaths Category:Burials at Highgate Cemetery Category:20th-century English women politicians Category:21st-century English women politicians Category:Alumni of the Courtauld Institute of Art Category:British Ashkenazi Jews Category:Councillors in the London Borough of Haringey Category:Jewish English politicians Category:English people of German-Jewish descent Nicky Gavron Category:Labour Co-operative Members of the London Assembly Category:London AMs 2000–2004 Category:London AMs 2004–2008 Category:London AMs 2008–2012 Category:London AMs 2012–2016 Category:London AMs 2016–2021 Category:Politicians from Worcester, England Category:Women councillors in England Category:Labour Co-operative mayors and deputy mayors of London --- Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Nicky Gavron](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nicky_Gavron) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nicky_Gavron?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.