Norman Lamb

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Norman Lamb MP
Lamb at a Health Hotel session during the 2009 Liberal Democrat Party Conference
Chief Parliamentary and Political Adviser to the Deputy Prime Minister
Incumbent
Assumed office
12 May 2010
Prime Minister David Cameron
Preceded by New position
Lib Dem Health spokesperson
Incumbent
Assumed office
18 December 2006
Leader Menzies Campbell

Nick Clegg

Preceded by Steve Webb
Liberal Democrats Trade and Industry Secretary
In office
16 May 2005 – 3 March 2006
Leader Charles Kennedy

Menzies Campbell

Preceded by Malcolm Bruce
Succeeded by Edward Davey
Member of Parliament
for North Norfolk
Incumbent
Assumed office
7 June 2001
Preceded by David Prior
Majority 11,626 (23.4%)
Personal details
Born 16 September 1957 (1957-09-16) (age 54)
Watford, Hertfordshire, England
Nationality British
Political party Liberal Democrat
Spouse(s) Mary Lamb
Children 2 sons
Alma mater University of Leicester
Occupation Politician
Profession Solicitor, Author
Website Official website

Norman Peter Lamb (born 16 September 1957) is a British Liberal Democrat politician, and Chief Parliamentary and Political Adviser and Parliamentary Private Secretary to the Deputy Prime Minister, Nick Clegg.

He is the Member of Parliament for North Norfolk.

Contents

[edit] Early life

Lamb was born in Watford, Hertfordshire, the son of climatologist Professor Hubert Lamb. He went to Wymondham College, then the University of Leicester, getting an LLB, then studied for the NNEB childcare qualification at the City of London Polytechnic.

[edit] Employment lawyer

After graduating from the University of Leicester, Lamb worked as a solicitor. He began to specialise in employment law whilst working for Steele and Co Solicitors (now called Steeles Law). In 1998 he wrote a book, Remedies in the Employment Tribunal: Damages for Discrimination and Unfair Dismissal, but any chances of a follow up or update to this book were put aside when Lamb was elected to Parliament in June 2001.

[edit] Political career

Lamb worked for a year for Labour MP Greville Janner in the early 1980s, working as a researcher. His politics were always in the centre ground, but a meeting with Shirley Williams in Parliament at this time, shortly after the formation in 1981 of the SDP-Liberal Alliance, spurred Lamb in to front line active politics and he was elected to Norwich City Council where he led the Lib Dem group until he stood down in 1991 in order to pursue his Westminster ambitions.

[edit] Parliamentary career

Lamb at a Liberal Democrat conference in 2008

Having first stood for election in North Norfolk in 1992, when he dented the Conservative majority, he came close to a major shock in the 1997 general election when he reduced a Conservative majority of more than 10,000 to only 1,293 votes. He was finally elected in 2001, at the third attempt, narrowly defeating the incumbent Conservative MP David Prior by 483 votes. He was re-elected in 2005 with a massively increased majority of 10,606, despite an effort by the Conservatives and their candidate Iain Dale to unseat him in what had been one of their top target seats. He was re-elected for a second time in 2010 with a majority of 11,626.

Norman Lamb's first appointment after being elected was as a Lib Dem spokesman on International Development. Soon after this, he was picked out by then Liberal Democrat leader Charles Kennedy to act as his Parliamentary Private Secretary. After the 2005 general election, he was promoted and appointed Liberal Democrat Trade spokesman (2005–2006), securing the endorsement of the Liberal Democrat Spring 2006 Conference for a policy to part-privatise the Royal Mail, and to use the proceeds to invest in a publicly owned Post Office network. In March 2006, he moved to the post of Chief of Staff to the newly elected leader, Sir Menzies Campbell. In December 2006, he became the party's Health spokesman and was succeeded by Ed Davey as Campbell's Chief of Staff. In 2009 he took up the case of an LBC broadcast by Jeni Barnett in which she cast doubt on the safety of the MMR vaccine, tabling an Early Day Motion criticising those involved.[1]

Following the formation of the Cameron Ministry in May 2010, Lamb was appointed a parliamentary private secretary to Deputy Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, Nick Clegg.[2]

[edit] Personal life

He married Mary in 1978, and they have two sons. They live in Norwich. Their son Archie Lamb is co-founder of the independent record label Takeover Entertainment which promotes Tinchy Stryder.[3]

[edit] See also

[edit] References

[edit] External links

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Parliament of the United Kingdom
Preceded by
David Prior
Member of Parliament for Norfolk North
2001–present
Incumbent
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