The British government has named Carol Ann Duffy, who is a lesbian, as its new poet laureate. The first woman to be appointed in the 341-year history of the post, she is also the first openly gay person and the first Scot to hold the title.

Duffy, 53, will succeed Andrew Motion and serve 10 years in the position, receiving a payment of £5,750 (approximately $8,600 U.S.) annually that she has pledged to donate to the Poetry Society.

The author of the collection The World’s Wife, Duffy was seriously considered for the poet laureate role in 1999. Tony Blair, who was then prime minister, allegedly passed over her selection because he was "unsure how the middle classes would react to a lesbian national poet," reports London's Daily Telegraph.

At the time, Duffy was in a relationship with fellow Scottish poet Jackie Kay; the relationship has since ended.

Known for her accessible work, Duffy said that she thought deeply about whether to accept the appointment. "I look on it as a recognition of the great woman poets we have writing now,” Duffy told BBC Radio 4’s Woman’s Hour. “I've decided to accept it for that reason."

Asked by the program how her appointment would affect her personal life, Duffy said, "I am a very private person and will continue to protect my privacy and my daughter. When giving public readings I will be, as I always have been, accessible."

Born in Glasgow, Duffy attended the University of Liverpool. A former poetry critic for London's Guardian newspaper, she has been recognized with the Somerset Maugham award, the Dylan Thomas prize, and a CBE -- or Commander of the British Empire.

She lives with her daughter at the writing school at Manchester Metropolitan University, where she works.