She was previously Member of Parliament (MP) for Lincoln from 1997 till 2010 and held several ministerial offices in the Blair and Brown governments.

Merron was made a prospective parliamentary candidate (PPC) through an all-women shortlist,[2] and was elected to the House of Commons in May 1997 with a majority of 11,130.

Merron was appointed to the Department for Transport in May 2006, where she worked until the reshuffle on 29 June 2007, when she became Parliamentary Secretary for the Cabinet Office and the first ever minister of the East Midlands.

Following Peter Hain's resignation on 24 January 2008, Merron was reshuffled again, becoming a Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State in the Department for International Development, leaving both of her previous roles.

[7] She wrote on her website: "The majority of claims I make directly pay for professional staff, office costs, communication with constituents, and travel.

"[8] In the aftermath of the United Kingdom Parliamentary expenses scandal, Sir Thomas Legg recommended that Gillian Merron repay £6,305.17.

[16] In December 2020, it was announced Merron would be conferred a life peerage after a nomination by Labour Party leader Keir Starmer.

[18] As part of the coronation of King Charles III, Baroness Merron presented the imperial mantle as a representative of the Jewish community.