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Nadine Dorries

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Nadine Dorries
MP
Member of Parliament
for Mid Bedfordshire
Incumbent
Assumed office
5 May 2005
Preceded byJonathan Sayeed
Majority15,152 (27.6%)
Personal details
Born (1957-05-21) 21 May 1957 (age 67)
Liverpool, Merseyside, England
Political partyConservative
SpousePaul Dorries
Websitewww.dorries.org.uk

Nadine Vanessa Dorries (née Bargery, born 21 May 1957) is a British Conservative Party politician who has been the Member of Parliament (MP) for Mid Bedfordshire since 2005.

Personal life and family

Dorries was born Nadine Bargery in Liverpool, England, the daughter of a bus driver who died at 42.[1] She was raised in Anfield, Liverpool, and educated at Rose Heath Primary School,[2] and Halewood Grange Comprehensive School (while Alan Bleasdale taught there)[3][4] before her family moved to Runcorn.[2] Dorries grew up on a council estate, and her parents took advantage of the "Right to Buy" scheme.[5][6] She left the Merseyside area after she married mining engineer Paul Dorries.

After she claimed her husband gave her an ultimatum, she separated from him at Christmas 2006 saying she and her 53-year-old husband Paul, who has multiple sclerosis, were at 'entirely different stages in our life'. They have three daughters.[7]

Dorries has claimed that her great-grandfather, George Bargery, was one of the founders of Everton Football Club,[1] and either the club's first ever goalkeeper [2] or that he played in goal for the club in its first ever Football League game, a home game against Accrington Stanley.[8] However, published histories of the early years of the club make no reference to a George Bargery being involved in its formation [9] and the name does not appear on the teamsheets for the club's first game as Everton FC [9] or its first league game.[10] The name of the goalkeeper in the club's first game, which took place in December 1879 is given as W Jones, while RH Swinney played in goal during its first league game in 1888.

She is a keen supporter of Liverpool Football Club.[11]

In January 2011, Dorries revealed that, since December 2010, she has been in a relationship with John Butler, a married man who had been a family friend for 13 years previously and had separated from his wife shortly before.[12]

Career before Parliament

Dorries entered nursing in 1975 as a trainee at Warrington General Hospital.[13] From 1978 to 1981, she practiced as a nurse in both Warrington and Liverpool.[14]

In 1982, she became a medical representative to Ethicla Ltd for a year, before spending a year in Zambia as the head of a community school, where her husband ran a copper mine.[1]

In 1987, Dorries founded Company Kids Ltd providing child day-care services. The company was sold in 1998 to BUPA, at which she served as a director for a year and resigned when she became the PPC for Hazel Grove.[15]

Parliamentary career

Election and committee member

Dorries unsuccessfully contested the constituency of Hazel Grove as Nadine Bargery at the 2001 general election, and was defeated by the sitting Liberal Democrat MP Andrew Stunell by 8,435 votes.[16]

Dorries was elected to the House of Commons at the 2005 general election for the safe seat of Mid-Bedfordshire on the retirement through ill health after a series of scandals of Jonathan Sayeed, with a majority of 11,355, and made her maiden speech on 25 May 2005.[17] She was re-elected in 2010, with an increased majority and a swing of 2.3% from the Lib Dems.[18]

Dorries, described as "a right-wing, working-class Conservative",[19] is a member of the socially conservative Cornerstone Group.[20] In May 2007, Dorries criticised David Cameron for ignoring the recommendations of the Conservative public policy working group in favour of grammar schools.[21] She did though defend the selection of Elizabeth Truss in 2009, whose Conservative candidature was called into question after an extra-marital affair was revealed.[22]

Dorries served as a member of the Innovation, Universities, Science and Skills Committee. In the year to November 2008, she attended only 2% of sessions.[23] The committee then reformed as the Science and Technology Select Committee; she did not attend a single session.[24] In 2010, she was elected to the Health Select Committee.[25]

Abortion limit

Dorries has said she witnessed two "botched" abortions, an experience that influenced her campaign to lower the point during a pregnancy at which an abortion can be performed.[6]

On 31 October 2006, Dorries introduced a Private Member's Bill, which would have reduced the time limit for abortion from 24 to 21 weeks; introduced a ten day 'cooling-off' period for women wishing to have an abortion, during which time the woman would be required to undergo counselling; and accelerate access to abortion at the end of the cooling-off period.[26][27] She received death threats from pro-choice activists and was given police protection.[27] Parliament voted by 187 to 108 to reject the bill.[28]

In May 2008, she tabled an amendment to the proposed Human Fertilisation and Embryology Bill seeking to reduce the upper limit for abortions to 20 weeks from the current 24 weeks of pregnancy. Her amendment was defeated by 332 votes to 190, with a separate 22 week limit opposed by 304 votes to 233 - with MPs continuing to support the 24 week limit.[29]

Damian McBride email affair

In April 2009, Dorries claimed to have commenced legal action following the publication of emails sent by Damien McBride, Gordon Brown's head of strategy and planning, which suggested spreading a rumour that Dorries had a one-night stand with a fellow MP, in an email to Derek Draper, a Labour-supporting blogger.[14][30][31] The email was leaked and McBride resigned. Dorries denounced the accusation as libellous, "[t]he allegations regarding myself are 100 per cent untrue",[32] and demanded an apology.[14] Brown subsequently said he was 'sorry' and that he took 'full responsibility for what happened'.[33] Dorries threatened libel proceedings against McBride, Draper and Downing Street but failed to carry out that threat. McBride paid Dorries an undisclosed sum, estimated at £1,000 plus £2,500 towards her costs.[34]

High heels at work

In late 2009 Nadine Dorries campaigned against what she called "a proposal to ban the wearing of high heels in the office"[35] which was to be debated at the 2009 Trades Union Congress (TUC). The motion, submitted to the TUC by the Society of Chiropodists and Podiatrists pointed out that "around two million days a year are lost through sickness as a result of lower limb disorders" and that "many employers in the retail sector force women workers to wear high heels as part of their dress code". It did not call for a ban on high-heels at work, but rather called on employers to consider the health-impact of their dress codes and encourage the wearing of healthy, comfortable shoes.[36]

All-women shortlists

Dorries was highly critical of David Cameron's proposal to consider using all-women shortlists, contrasting her own selection on merit in a Conservative Home article and arguing against a move which would create "two classes of MPs".

She wrote that "Sometimes I feel sorry for some of the Labour women who were selected via all-women shortlists. Everyone knows who they are. They are constantly derided" and gave this account of her 2005 selection:

"Three weeks before the 2005 general election I, a council estate Scouser, was selected as the Conservative candidate to represent a southern rural constituency. Because the vacancy occurred so quickly and so close to D-day, the party provided my association with a shortlist of seventeen candidates, of which about five were women. Following a long day of interviews in hot sunny rooms, the list was whittled down to a shortlist of three ... I was informed that I had been selected outright on the first ballot ... That pride, that sense of achievement, the knowledge that I was selected on the basis of my performance and merit above all other candidates on that day is what enables me to hold my head up high in this place."[37]

Dorries's account of her own selection appears to contradict a news report which The Times ran at the time, reporting that party headquarters placed a majority of women on the shortlist and pressed for the selection of a female candidate:

"Mrs Dorries, who has three teenage children, easily beat her 11 rivals and won the plum safe seat on the first ballot at the selection this weekend. Party officials were thrilled that the seat has gone to a woman. Previously, only two women had been selected in the 17 safe seats where sitting MPs have retired. Senior party figures had made clear to local dignitaries that they would like the seat to go to a woman and presented the constituency with a shortlist of seven women and five men to underline the point."[38]

Criticism of Speaker Bercow

Dorries is one of the most outspoken opponents of the Speaker of the House of Commons John Bercow and is reputedly part of a plot to oust him from the Speaker's chair.[39] Prior to his election in June 2009, she accused him of opportunism and disloyalty to the Conservative Party and questioned his mental stability.[40] She described his election as "a two-fingered salute to the British people from Labour MPs, and to the Conservative Party".[41] After Bercow's wife, Sally, was approved as a Labour parliamentary candidate and gave an interview about her personal life, Dorries argued that the Bercows were damaging the historic respect accorded to the office of Speaker.[42]

Abstinence for girls sex education bill

On 4 May 2011, Dorries proposed a bill to require that sex education in schools should include content promoting abstinence to girls aged 13 to 16. While sex education already mentions the option of abstinence, the bill would require active promotion of abstinence to girls, with no such requirement of the education provided to boys. She was granted leave to introduce the bill on a vote of 67 to 61.[43] The bill is set for second reading on 20 January 2012 (Bill 185).[44]

The bill drew various criticisms from users of social networking sites including many health care and sex education professionals, questioning and discrediting many of the claims made during the bill's reading,[45] and the bill was opposed in the House by Labour MP Chris Bryant who described it as "the daftest piece of legislation I have seen".[46]

Visit to Equatorial Guinea with a nine other MP

In Agust 2011 Nadine Dorries led the first delegation of british members of Parliament in Equatorial Guinea [47] . Equatorial Guinea is a small african country, but the thrid biggest oil producer of the continent, ruled sinced 1979 by the President Teodoro Obiang Nguema. Although she met the Prime minister of Equatorial Guinea, Ignacio Milam Tang, she didn't mention this high level meeting in her blog. According to the official website of Equatorial Guinea, she was accompanied by nine other british MP, whose names remain secret.[48]

Controversies

Abstinence and child sex abuse

On 16 May 2011, Dorries appeared to suggest that a lack of awareness around abstinence among young girls is linked to rates of child sexual abuse. Dorries stated;

‘If a stronger ‘just say no’ message was given to children in school, there might be an impact on sex abuse, because a lot of girls, when sex abuse takes place don’t realise until later that was a wrong thing to do... I don’t think people realise that if we did empower this message into girls, imbued this message in school, we would probably have less sex abuse’ [49]

Expenses claims

In May 2009 the Daily Telegraph, as part of its exposure of MPs' expenses claims, questioned whether the property in Dorries's constituency, on which she claimed £24,222 Additional Costs Allowance (for 'secondary' housing costs), had been in fact her main or only home from 2007 onwards.[50] The newspaper also queried hotel bills including one for 'Mr N Dorries': these had been disallowed by the Fees Office and Dorries said they were submitted by mistake. On 22 May she went on BBC Radio 4 to draw parallels between the McCarthy 'Witch-Hunts' and the press's 'drip-drip' revelation of MP's expenses, eliciting David Cameron's public criticism.[51] She claimed everyone was fearing a 'suicide', and colleagues were constantly checking up on each other.[52] Later in the day her blog was taken down. It transpired that Withers, lawyers acting for the Barclay Brothers, the owners of the Daily Telegraph, had required the removal of the blog, on threat of libel action against the service provider.[53]

In January 2010, it was revealed that Dorries was being investigated by John Lyon, the parliamentary commissioner for standards, regarding her claim for second home expenses[54] and that it was expected that a number of neighbours from her constituency were preparing to give evidence against her.[55] It was also revealed that Dorries had claimed £20,000 in office expenses for work undertaken by a media relations and public affairs company.[54][56]

On May 9, 2010, two days after regaining her Mid Bedfordshire constituency, the The Sunday Times revealed that Dorries was facing the first expenses claims complaint of the new parliament. It was reported that she had claimed around £10,000 for an annual report in 2007 on her performance as an MP, but that her former Commons researcher had never seen the report or worked on it.[57] Dorries insisted that she had indeed published the report, placing a photograph of it on her blog.[58] She subsequently told the Biggleswade Advertiser that the report was never printed and a credit note issued with refund on September 13, 2008.[59]

On January 13, 2011, it was announced by the Mirror that police were investigating Dorries in regards to her expenses.[60] Three days later, the Sunday Times reported that police had since handed a file to the CPS for consideration.[61]

Benefit claimants

In February 2010 Dorries took part in the Channel 4 documentary series Tower Block of Commons, in which MPs stay with welfare claimants.[62] Two single mothers with whom Dorries stayed accused Dorries of hiding £50 in her bra[63] and offering them temazepam tablets.[64] Dorries rejected these claims.

In October 2010, Dorries suggested that benefit claimants who made more than 35,000 postings on Twitter should be reported to the Department for Work and Pensions. On being told by the Bedfordshire on Sunday newspaper that one of her constituents was out of work due to ill health and had posted more than 37,000 tweets, Dorries told the newspaper that her constituent's tweeting gave housebound disabled people a bad name.[65]

Blog fiction

A complaint from the Liberal Conspiracy website, regarding Dorries' use of the House of Commons' Portcullis emblem on her blog was upheld in March 2008, on the basis that Dorries "gave the impression it had some kind of parliamentary endorsement or authority."[66]

On 21 October 2010, the MPs' standards watchdog criticised Dorries for maintaining a blog which would "mislead" constituents" as to how much actual time she was spending in her constituency. Dorries admitted "My blog is 70% fiction and 30% fact. It is written as a tool to enable my constituents to know me better and to reassure them of my commitment to Mid Bedfordshire. I rely heavily on poetic licence and frequently replace one place name/event/fact with another."[67] Referring to her main home being in Gloucestershire[68] she said "I have always been aware that should my personal domestic arrangements become the knowledge of my political opponents, they would be able to exaggerate that to good effect."[67] Another example given was that Dorries falsely claimed in her blog that her daughter was going to school in the constituency.

On 27 October 2010 Dorries partially retracted her 70% fiction claim, posting a blog entry which stated that "It also only takes any individual with a smattering of intelligence to see that everything on the blog is accurate, because it is largely a record of real time events. It was only ever the perception of where I was on any particular day which was disguised."[69]

References

  1. ^ a b c Roya Nikkhah "The Tories' Nadine Dorries: Bridget Jones, MP", Daily Telegraph, 5 November 2007
  2. ^ a b c "Great grandfather George was Everton's first goalkeeper". Liverpool Daily Post. Liverpool: Trinity Mirror. 19 April 2008. p. 7. Retrieved 30 January 2010. [dead link]
  3. ^ http://www.halewoodcollege.co.uk The school is now known as Halewood College.
  4. ^ Meg Carter, 'From PR to Parliament', The Independent (London, 8 January 2007), p. 8.
  5. ^ Rosemary Bennett and Helen Rumbelow, 'Tory joy as ex-nurse is picked for safe seat', The Times (4 April 2005), p. 26.
  6. ^ a b Nadine Dorries reveals her Bridget Jones moment, Metro.co.uk (29 October 2008).
  7. ^ Rebecca Camber, "'Cameron babe' chooses career over husband", Daily Mail 21 January 2007
  8. ^ The War Cry (2 June 2007) p. 4.
  9. ^ a b The History of Everton FC: 1878 to 1880 – The early days of the club
  10. ^ The History of Everton Football Club: Anfield Road - The League Years (1888-1889)
  11. ^ 'Tory MP Demands Apology', Liverpool Echo (14 April 2009), p. 3.
  12. ^ Steven Swinford and Andrew Hough (7 January 2011). "Nadine Dorries: outspoken Conservative MP reveals romance with married man". London: The Telegraph.
  13. ^ http://www.northcheshirehospitals.nhs.uk
  14. ^ a b c Tory MP Demands Apology, Liverpool Echo, 14 April 2009
  15. ^ Carter, 'From PR to Parliament', p. 8.
  16. ^ "General Election results, 7 June 2001" (PDF). Retrieved 2010-05-18.
  17. ^ Hansard at parliament.uk
  18. ^ "BBC Election 2010 results website". BBC News. Retrieved 2010-05-18.
  19. ^ Ian Hernon "MPs face tough vote on lowering abortion limit", Liverpool Echo 22 March 2008, p. 16.
  20. ^ Dorries (2007-02-09). Blog entry dated 9 February 2007. Retrieved from http://www.dorries.org.uk/Blog.aspx.
  21. ^ "Cameron set for clash over grammars". Ananova.com. Retrieved 2010-05-18.
  22. ^ Nadine Dorries "Liz Truss case not typical of Tories". The Guardian (Comment is Free), 17 November 2009
  23. ^ "Revealed: The MPs who skip select committee", Politics.co.uk, 8 April 2009
  24. ^ http://www.parliament.uk/documents/commons-committees/science-technology/science-and-technology-committee-formal-minutes-09-10.pdf
  25. ^ Robbins, Martin (26 June 2010). "Conservatives put Dumb and Dumber on the health select committee". The Guardian. London.
  26. ^ "Hansard, House of Commons, 31 October 2006". Retrieved 2010-10-11.
  27. ^ a b 'Nadine Dorries, the anti life MP who Campaigned for Tighter Abortion Limits, Receives Death Threats', Bedfordshire on Sunday (12 November 2006).
  28. ^ Retrieved from http://conservativehome.blogs.com/torydiary/files/guide_to_nadine_dorries_tmrb.pdf.
  29. ^ "Politics | MPs back 24-week limit". BBC News. 2008-05-20. Retrieved 2010-05-18.
  30. ^ Gaby Hinsliff, Observer political editor, and Mark Tran (12 April 2009). "McBride and Draper emails: 'Gents, a few ideas'". London: Guardian. Retrieved 2010-05-18. {{cite news}}: |author= has generic name (help)CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  31. ^ Hennessy, Patrick (25 April 2009). "Tory MP Nadine Dorries to sue over No10 emails". The Daily Telegraph. London. Retrieved 7 May 2009.
  32. ^ Nadine Dorries "I have become accustomed to the grubby world of British politics. But nothing could prepare me for this", The Independent, 13 April 2009
  33. ^ Andrew Sparrow, Gordon Brown says sorry for Damian McBride email smears, guardian.co.uk (16 April 2009).
  34. ^ Hélène Mulholland,et al "Tory MP Nadine Dorries 'has won damages from Damian McBride'", The Guardian, 30 October 2009
  35. ^ Nadine Dorries (6 August 2009). "High Heels". Archived from the original on 15 September 2009. Retrieved 15 September 2009.
  36. ^ Trades Union Congress. "Nominations and motions for the 141st annual Trades Union Congress 14–17 September, Liverpool". Trades Union Congress. Archived from the original (PDF) on 15 September 2009. Retrieved 15 September 2009.
  37. ^ Nadine Dorries, all-women shortlists will create two classes of Conservative MP, ConservativeHome (21 October 2009).
  38. ^ Rosemary Bennett and Helen Rumbelow, Tory joy as ex-nurse is picked for safe seat, The Times (4 April 2005).
  39. ^ New Statesman (7 January 2010). "Speaker cornered". Retrieved 1 February 2010.
  40. ^ Daily Mail (21 June 2009). "NADINE DORRIES: Bercow is an oily opportunist lacking loyalty and courage... and I speak as a Tory". London. Retrieved 1 February 2010.
  41. ^ BBC (24 June 2009). "The John Bercow story". BBC News. Retrieved 1 February 2010.
  42. ^ The Times (3 December 2009). "Sally Bercow reveals past full of binge-drinking and one-night stands". London. Retrieved 1 February 2010.
  43. ^ http://www.publicwhip.org.uk/division.php?date=2011-05-04&number=266&display=allvotes&sort=vote
  44. ^ http://www.theyworkforyou.com/debates/?id=2011-05-04a.679.0
  45. ^ Martinson, Jane (4 May 2011). "Nadine Dorries and sex education lessons for girls". The Guardian. London.
  46. ^ Morris, Nigel (5 May 2011). "MP: Teach girls virtues of virginity". The Independent. London.
  47. ^ http://www.guineaecuatorialpress.com/noticia.php?id=1841
  48. ^ http://www.france-guineeequatoriale.org/News/414.html
  49. ^ Presenter: Vanessa Feltz (16 May 2011). "The Vanessa Show". Channel 5. Retrieved 17 May 2011. {{cite episode}}: Missing or empty |series= (help) "Nadine Dorries sparks outrage by claiming that teaching teen girls to say no to sex will cut abuse". 18 May 2011. Retrieved 20 May 2011.
  50. ^ Beckford, Martin (2009-05-15). "Tory MP Nadine Dorries admits she only spends weekends and holidays in her main home". London: The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 2009-05-19.
  51. ^ Mulholland, Hélène (22 May 2009). "Cameron rebukes Tory MP over 'McCarthyite witch-hunt' comment". The Guardian. London. Retrieved 19 May 2010.
  52. ^ "MP's fears of expenses 'suicide'", BBC News, 22 May 2009.
  53. ^ Gaby Hinsliff, Telegraph lawyers shut down Tory MP's blog, guardian.co.uk (23 May 2009).
  54. ^ a b Swaine, Jon (2010-01-15). "MPs' expenses: Nadine Dorries under investigation by sleaze watchdog". London: Telegraph. Retrieved 2010-05-18.
  55. ^ Swaine, Jon (2010-01-23). "MPs' expenses: Nadine Dorries's neighbours to give evidence over second home claims". London: Telegraph. Retrieved 2010-05-18.
  56. ^ [1][dead link]
  57. ^ £10,000 claim makes Tory the first MP in an expenses row
  58. ^ The Blog of Nadine Dorries. Post entitled 2007, posted Saturday, 24 April 2010 at 16:39.[2]
  59. ^ Biggleswade Advertiser, 12 May 2010
  60. ^ Police investigate expenses of Tory MP Nadine Dorries; The Mirror [3]
  61. ^ Claire Newell and Jonathan Calvert (16 January 2011). "Six MPs face new fraud allegations". Sunday Times.
  62. ^ "Tower Block Of Commons, Series 1". Channel 4. Retrieved 2010-10-18.
  63. ^ Nick Owens and Vincent Moss "Tory Nadine Dorries is TV benefits cheat", Sunday Mirror, 7 February 2010
  64. ^ Nick Owens (2010-02-14). "Tv Show Sisters: Tory Nad Offered Us Pills". mirror.co.uk. Retrieved 2010-05-18.
  65. ^ Keeley Knowles "Blogger’s upset at MP’s Twitter claims", Bedfordshire on Sunday, 10 October 2010
  66. ^ Cath Elliott "Nadine Dorries's trouble with the truth", The Guardian (Comment is Free website), 22 October 2010
  67. ^ a b Press Association "Nadine Dorries says her MP's blog was '70% fiction'", The Guardian (website), 21 October 2010
  68. ^ Jon Swaine "MPs’ expenses: Nadine Dorries says 'main home' is tiny Cotswold cottage", Daily Telegraph, 19 March 2010
  69. ^ The BBC were fair and balanced...gulp."Nadine Dorries says her MP's blog was '70% fiction'" The blog of Nadine Dorries (blog), 27 October 2010
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Parliament of the United Kingdom
Preceded by Member of Parliament for Mid Bedfordshire
2005 – present 		Incumbent

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