Jacqui Lait

Jacqui Lait
Jacqui Lait MP
Member of Parliament; for Beckenham
	In office; 20 November 1997 – 6 May 2010
Preceded by	Piers Merchant
Succeeded by	Bob Stewart
Member of Parliament; for Hastings and Rye
	In office; 9 April 1992 – 1 May 1997
Preceded by	Kenneth Warren
Succeeded by	Michael Foster
Personal details
Born	16 December 1947 (age 64); Paisley, Renfrewshire, Scotland
Nationality	British
Political party	Conservative
Spouse(s)	Peter Jones
Alma mater	University of Strathclyde
Website	http://www.jacquilaitmp.co.uk/

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Jump to: navigation, search

Jacqueline Anne "Jacqui" Lait (born Jacqueline Anne Harkness on 16 December 1947) is a British Conservative Party politician and former Member of Parliament (MP) for Beckenham.

[edit] Early life

Lait was born in Paisley, Renfrewshire, attending Paisley Grammar School and the University of Strathclyde, where she received a bachelor's degree in business management. After graduating, Lait worked in public relations for the jute industry in Dundee later working for the television news agency Visnews. Lait worked for the Government Information Service and later the Department of Employment in 1974. In 1980, Lait joined the Chemical Industries Association as their Parliamentary Adviser. She has also run her own Parliamentary Consultancy.

Lait was a candidate for Strathclyde West for the 1984 European elections and the following year stood in the by-election for Tyne Bridge where she finished in third place behind David Clelland and Rod Kenyon. She was selected as the Conservative candidate for Hastings and Rye in April 1991.

Lait won the Hastings and Rye seat in the 1992 general election and in 1996 became the first female Conservative Whip. She lost her seat at the 1997 general election, following a dispute with local fishermen, but later in the same year was elected MP for Beckenham via a by-election after the resignation of Piers Merchant.

In September 2001, Lait was appointed Shadow Secretary of State for Scotland, a position she held until 2003 when she became Shadow Home Affairs Minister. A reshuffle after the 2005 general election saw her appointed as Shadow Minister for London. Two years later, she was handed the additional duties of Shadow Minister for Planning.

She over-claimed for the mortgage interest on her second home, and was told to pay back over £7,000.^[1]

On 21 September 2009, Lait announced her decision to stand down at the 2010 general election.^[2]

Parliament of the United Kingdom
Preceded by Kenneth Warren	Member of Parliament for Hastings and Rye 1992–1997	Succeeded by Michael Jabez Foster
Preceded by Piers Merchant	Member of Parliament for Beckenham 1997 – 2010	Succeeded by Bob Stewart
Preceded by Vacant from 1997-2001 George Robertson (1993-97)	Shadow Secretary of State for Scotland 2001–2003	Succeeded by Peter Duncan

Persondata
Name	Lait, Jacqueline Anne
Alternative names	Jacqui Lait (known as); Jacqueline Anne Harkness
Short description	Conservative Party MP for Hastings and Rye 1992–1997, for Beckenham since 1997
Date of birth	16 December 1947
Place of birth	Paisley, Scotland
Date of death
Place of death

Jacqui Lait MP
Member of Parliament for Beckenham
In office 20 November 1997 – 6 May 2010
Preceded by	Piers Merchant
Succeeded by	Bob Stewart
Member of Parliament for Hastings and Rye
In office 9 April 1992 – 1 May 1997
Preceded by	Kenneth Warren
Succeeded by	Michael Foster
Personal details
Born	16 December 1947 (1947-12-16) (age 64) Paisley, Renfrewshire, Scotland
Nationality	British
Political party	Conservative
Spouse(s)	Peter Jones
Alma mater	University of Strathclyde
Website	http://www.jacquilaitmp.co.uk/