Editing Charlotte Atkins (section)

==Parliamentary career==
In 1990, Atkins unsuccessfully contested the [[1990 Eastbourne by-election|Eastbourne by-election]] caused by the assassination of the [[Conservative Party (UK)|Conservative]] MP [[Ian Gow]] by the [[Provisional IRA]]. She entered the [[House of Commons of the United Kingdom|House of Commons]] at the [[1997 United Kingdom general election|1997 general election]] in the Labour landslide as the Member of Parliament for [[Staffordshire Moorlands (UK Parliament constituency)|Staffordshire Moorlands]], a seat held previously by the retiring [[David Knox (UK politician)|David Knox]] and which had been Conservative-held for 27 years.

After the [[2001 United Kingdom general election|2001 general election]], Atkins was appointed a [[Parliamentary Private Secretary]] to the [[Foreign and Commonwealth Office]]. She was promoted to [[Parliamentary Under Secretary of State]] at the [[Department for Transport]] in 2004, but was dropped after the [[2005 United Kingdom general election|2005 general election]]. In July 2005 she became a member of the [[Health Select Committee]].

Atkins was largely loyal to the Labour government during her time in Parliament and rarely rebelled.<ref>[http://www.publicwhip.org.uk/mp.php?mpn=Charlotte_Atkins&mpc=Staffordshire_Moorlands Public Whip – Charlotte Atkins MP voting record] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081207101723/http://www.publicwhip.org.uk/mp.php?mpn=Charlotte_Atkins&mpc=Staffordshire_Moorlands |date=7 December 2008 }}</ref>

Atkins was vice-chair of the All-Party Hill Farmers Group, and took part in a series of [[adjournment debate]]s on government funding for [[British Waterways|inland waterways]].<ref>{{cite web|title=Adjournment debate on future of canals |work=Boating Business |url=http://www.boatingbusiness.com/archive101/2008/november/news/the_future_of_the_canals |accessdate=28 October 2008 }}{{dead link|date=June 2016|bot=medic}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}}</ref> She is a volunteer for the Manchester-based British Fluoridisation Society.

Atkins lost her seat at the [[2010 United Kingdom general election|2010 general election]] to [[Karen Bradley]] of the Conservative Party.