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Local MSP Paul O’Kane has paid tribute to Kilbarchan icon Mary Barbour with a motion that recognises the 150th anniversary of her birth.
O’Kane’s motion highlights that Barbour became one of the Glasgow’s first woman councillors and some of the social causes she championed during her time as one.
The motion also highlights the part Barbour famously played in the Glasgow Rent Strikes of 2015.
Commenting Local MSP Paul O’Kane said:
“Mary Barbour was a remarkable person who championed what are now very now obvious social causes but back then faced so much societal resistance and opposition.
“She’s an icon for women, a great historical figure for the Labour Party and of course one of the most well-known people to have come from Kilbarchan.
“As time passes there’s a risk that the memory of people like Mary Barbour is lost to history or that they are only thought of in a distant historical context instead of being remembered as a real person who lived… thankfully some people have dedicated time and effort to maintaining resources that educate people about who she was.
“I hope this motion can play a part in spreading awareness of who Mary Barbour was and what she did for the people she lived amongst and served”.
ENDS
Notes:
Pictures – Paul O’Kane standing beside the Mary Barbour Memorial Cairn in Kilbarchan holding a copy of the motion.
S6M-17176 | Scottish Parliament Website
Motion Number: S6M-17176
Lodged By: Paul O’Kane
Date Lodged: 10/04/2025
Title: Marking the 150th Anniversary of the Birth of Mary Barbour
Motion Text:
That the Parliament understands that 2025 marks the 150th anniversary of the birth of Mary Barbour; further understands that Mary Barbour was born in Kilbarchan, Renfrewshire, on 20 February 1875; considers that Mary Barbour is widely recognised as a great champion of social reform for the part that it understands she personally played in the Glasgow rent strikes of 1915, specifically, organising tenant committees and resistance to evictions, as well becoming one of Glasgow’s first woman councillors when she was elected as the Labour candidate for Fairfield ward in Govan in 1920; believes that, during her time as a councillor, Mary Barbour fought for numerous social causes, including the provision of children’s playgrounds, free school milk, municipal wash-houses and Glasgow’s first family planning clinic; further believes that, from 1924 to 1927, she served as Glasgow Corporation’s first woman Baillie; celebrates that Mary Barbour has been commemorated by a statue at Govan Cross in Glasgow and by a cairn on Main Street in her home village of Kilbarchan, and hopes that the legacy of Mary Barbour will always be preserved and that all of her achievements for social reform and social justice will continue to be celebrated and remembered.
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