Robert Courts
Robert Courts | |
|---|---|
| Member of Parliament for Witney | |
| Assumed office 20 October 2016 | |
| Preceded by | David Cameron |
| Majority | 21,241 (34.8%) |
| Personal details | |
| Born | October 21, 1978[1] Stockport, Greater Manchester, England, UK[2] |
| Political party | Conservative |
| Alma mater | University of Sheffield |
| Website | Official website |
Robert Alexander Courts (born 21 October 1978) is a British politician and barrister. He has served as the Member of Parliament for Witney since winning the 2016 by-election. Courts retained his seat in the 2017 general election with an increased majority.
Early career
Courts was schooled at Berkhamsted School, before reading law at the University of Sheffield.[3][4] Courts was called to the Bar at Lincoln's Inn in 2003 and practises as a barrister at 3PB Chambers.[5] He was elected a Conservative member of West Oxfordshire District Council in 2014.[6]
Courts worked in Wellington, New Zealand, at the Crown Law Office (Legal Advisors) for the New Zealand Government in 2009.[5]
Political career
He was selected as the Conservative Party candidate to replace David Cameron as Member of Parliament in the Witney by-election, 2016.[6] Courts retained the seat for the Conservatives, but with a greatly reduced majority (of 5702, down from 25,155 when David Cameron last contested the seat). Though Witney in the EU referendum on 23 June 2016, voted in favour of remain,[7] Courts supported the successful 'Leave' campaign.[8]
On 20 October 2016, Courts won the by-election to fill Cameron's Parliamentary seat in Witney.[9] He was then sworn in on 24 October.[10]
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Conservative | Robert Courts | 33,839 | 55.5 | +10.5 | |
| Labour | Laetisia Carter | 12,598 | 20.7 | +5.7 | |
| Liberal Democrats | Liz Leffman | 12,457 | 20.4 | -9.8 | |
| Green | Claire Lasko | 1,053 | 1.7 | –1.8 | |
| UKIP | Alan Craig | 980 | 1.6 | –1.9 | |
| Majority | 21,241 | 34.8 | +20.0 | ||
| Turnout | 61,071 | 73.6% | |||
| Conservative hold | Swing | ||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Conservative | Robert Courts | 17,313 | 45.0 | -15.2 | |
| Liberal Democrats | Liz Leffman | 11,611 | 30.2 | +23.4 | |
| Labour | Duncan Enright | 5,765 | 15.0 | -2.2 | |
| Green | Larry Sanders | 1,363 | 3.5 | -1.6 | |
| UKIP | Dickie Bird | 1,354 | 3.5 | -5.7 | |
| NHA | Helen Salisbury | 433 | 1.1 | 0.0 | |
| Independent | Daniel Skidmore | 151 | 0.4 | N/A | |
| Monster Raving Loony | Mad Hatter | 129 | 0.3 | N/A | |
| Independent | Nicholas Ward | 93 | 0.2 | N/A | |
| Bus-Pass Elvis | David Bishop | 61 | 0.2 | N/A | |
| Eccentric Party | Lord Toby Jug | 59 | 0.2 | N/A | |
| English Democrat | Winston McKenzie | 52 | 0.1 | N/A | |
| One Love | Emilia Arno | 44 | 0.1 | N/A | |
| Independent | Adam Knight | 27 | 0.1 | N/A | |
| Majority | 5,702 | 14.8 | -28.2 | ||
| Turnout | 38,455 | 46.8 | -26.5 | ||
| Conservative hold | Swing | -19.3 | |||
External links
References
- ^ "MyParliament - Biography for Robert Courts".
- ^ "Search Results - Birth, Marriage, Death - findmypast.co.uk". search.findmypast.co.uk.
- ^ "Whither Witney? The by-election everyone's watching". www1.dehavilland.co.uk. 23 September 2016.
- ^ https://uk.linkedin.com/in/robertcourts
- ^ a b "Robert Courts – 3PB Barristers' Chambers". www.3pb.co.uk. Retrieved 11 October 2016.
- ^ a b Association, Press (22 September 2016). "Robert Courts chosen as Tory candidate for David Cameron's constituency". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 11 October 2016.
- ^ "Referendum on the United Kingdom's Membership of the European Union" (PDF). West Oxfordshire DC. Retrieved 13 October 2016.
- ^ Elgot, Jessica (11 October 2016). "Witney byelection: hard Brexit may be key issue in Cameron's former constituency". The Guardian. Retrieved 13 October 2016.
- ^ "Conservatives' Robert Courts wins Witney by-election". The Independent. 21 October 2016. Retrieved 25 November 2016.
- ^ "Tracy Brabin and Robert Courts sworn in as MPs". BBC News. 24 October 2016. Retrieved 25 November 2016.
- ^ [1]
- ^ "AS IT HAPPENED: Witney by-election count and results".