Is Sam Tarry dating Angela Rayner? Why was Labour transport minister sacked and who is ex wife Julia Fozard

The MP for Ilford South said he had been standing ‘in solidarity with striking workers’
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Labour’s Transport Minister Sam Tarry has been sacked by Sir Keir Starmer for attending the train strikes.

The MP for Ilford South had attended the protest at London’s Euston station despite being told not to.

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Tarry said he had been standing “in solidarity with striking workers” but was sacked due to unauthorised media appearances.

In July, the 39-year-old also lost out on reselection for his Ilford South seat, after all 10 local labour branches voted against him.

Tarry, who has has a close relationship with Labour Deputy Leader Angela Rayner is rumoured to be her boyfriend, after images of them leaving her London flat appeared in January 2022.

So, who is Sam Tarry and is the former Transport Minister dating Angela Rayner?

Who is Sam Tarry?

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Sam Tarry has been the Labour MP for Ilford South since 2019.

Labour MP were told not to join the RMT picket lines as strikes take place across the country. (Credit: Parliament)Labour MP were told not to join the RMT picket lines as strikes take place across the country. (Credit: Parliament)
Labour MP were told not to join the RMT picket lines as strikes take place across the country. (Credit: Parliament)

The 39-year-old studied at University College London, working in Sainsburys to help him get through his studies.

He was chairman of Young Labour from 2009 to 2011 and was elected as Labour councillor for Barking and Dagenham from 2010 to 2018.

Tarry worked on Jeremy Corbyn’s successful Labour leadership campaign in 2016 and has worked as the national political officer for the TSSA trade union.

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Since 2021, he has been the Shadow Transport Minister, before his sacking on 27 July.

On 9 July, Tarry lost a reselection battle for his parliamentary seat, meaning Labour members could opt to put forward someone else to replace him in the next election.

All ten local Labour branches voted against him automatically becoming an election candidate.

In a statement, Tarry accused the party of: “rule-breaking, concrete evidence of voter fraud, voter impersonation, widespread voting by party members not on the electoral register, and the dangerous whipping up of communal tensions to undermine the democratic reselection process in an attempt to unseat me”.

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Tarry married Julia Fozard in Ibiza in 2016, the pair have two children together and seperated in 2022.

Is Sam Tarry dating Angela Rayner?

Tarry and Angela Rayner are rumoured to be dating.

Labour Party Deputy Leader Angela Rayner (Photo by Ian Forsyth/Getty Images)Labour Party Deputy Leader Angela Rayner (Photo by Ian Forsyth/Getty Images)
Labour Party Deputy Leader Angela Rayner (Photo by Ian Forsyth/Getty Images)

Whilst the pair have not publicly commented on their relationship, they have been spotted together.

In January, Tarry and Rayner were photographed coming out of Rayner’s apartment.

The pair are known for their close friendship, with the father-of-two being her campaign manager when she ran for the party’s deputy leadership position.

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Raynor split from her husband of ten years, trade unionist Mark Raynor in 2020.

Tarry has also separated from his wife, Julia Fozard.

Who is Sam Tarry’s ex wife Julia Fozard?

Tarry married his ex wife, Julia Fozard in Ibiza in 2016.

Fozard is a consultant paediatrician, based in Brighton and the pair have two sons together.

She actively supported Tarry in his campaigning efforts, with pictures of the couple showing her holding up signs for his campaign.

Why was he sacked?

Tarry was sacked by Starmer for attending the picket line of the train strikes at London’s Euston Station.

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In a statement Labour said: “This isn’t about appearing on a picket line. Members of the front bench sign up to collective responsibility. That includes media appearances being approved and speaking to agreed frontbench positions.

“As a government in waiting, any breach of collective responsibility is taken extremely seriously and for these reasons Sam Tarry has been removed from the front bench.”

However, the sacking has caused a break in the Labour Party, with MPs coming out in support of Tarry, including former Deputy Prime Minister John Prescott.

In a statement on Twitter Tarry said: “It has been a privilege to serve on Labour’s frontbench for the past two years and to have had the opportunity to speak up for hard-pressed workers who deserve so much better than the treatment they’ve received from this corrupt and out-of-touch Government.”

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