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Andrew Selous

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Andrew Selous
MP
Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Justice
Incumbent
Assumed office
16 July 2014
Preceded byJeremy Wright
Member of Parliament
for South West Bedfordshire
Incumbent
Assumed office
7 June 2001
Preceded byDavid Madel
Majority17,813 (34.7%)[1]
Personal details
Born (1962-04-27) 27 April 1962 (age 62)
London, United Kingdom
Political partyConservative
SpouseHarriet Marston
Children3
Alma materEton College
London School of Economics
OccupationMP
ProfessionBusiness, Industry, Trade
Military service
AllegianceUnited Kingdom
Branch/serviceRoyal Regiment of Fusiliers (TA)
Honourable Artillery Company
Years of service1981-1994
RankMajor

Andrew Edmund Armstrong Selous /səˈluː/ (born 27 April 1962)[2] Conservative Party politician in the United Kingdom who has been the Member of Parliament for South West Bedfordshire since 2001 general election.

Early life

Chapel of Eton College

London-born, Selous was educated at West Downs School in the city of Winchester, Hampshire, followed by Eton, and the London School of Economics, receiving a BSc in Industry and Trade in 1984. He was a member of the Territorial Army, a soldier in the Honourable Artillery Company and then an officer in the Royal Regiment of Fusiliers, between 1981 and 1994. From 1988–94, he was a director of his family firm CNS Electronics (now CNS Farnell). From 1991–2001, he was an underwriter at Great Lakes insurance company.

Parliamentary career

Selous was first elected to the House of Commons in 2001, and had previously contested Sunderland North seat in 1997. He is a director and prominent member of the Conservative Christian Fellowship.[3]

In 2006, Selous was promoted to Shadow Minister for Work and Pensions.[4]

In the Coalition government, he was the Parliamentary Private Secretary to Iain Duncan Smith, Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, from 28 May 2010 to 16 July 2014.[5] On 16 July 2014, he was appointed as Parliamentary Under Secretary of State in the Ministry of Justice with responsibility for Prisons and Probation and retained this role following the 2015 general election.[6]

He provoked ridicule by making a tweet (subsequently deleted) supporting the removal of benefit entitlement from non-English speakers: "Strongly support the loss of benefits unless claimants lean [sic] English." [7]

He also attracted criticism in 2014 for reportedly telling a meeting that "disabled people work harder because they're grateful to have a job", following a furore over Lord Freud's claim that some disabled people were not worth the minimum wage. Selous subsequently argued that he had simply been trying to convey the message that disabled people were valued by employers, and his observation that disabled people often work harder was supported by a spokesperson for Disability Rights UK.[8]

Selous chairs the All Party Parliamentary Group on Strengthening Couple Relationships, and argues that cross-party efforts to prevent family breakdown can relieve pressure on the care system.[9] He was opposed to the Marriage (Same Sex Couples) Act 2013, arguing that it was directly contrary to what Jesus said.[10]

References

  1. ^ "Election 2010 - Bedfordshire South West". BBC News. 7 May 2010. Archived from the original on 1 May 2010. Retrieved 13 May 2010. {{cite news}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  2. ^ "Andrew Selous compared to 'Homosexuality - Equal rights'". Publicwhip.org.uk. Retrieved 26 June 2013.
  3. ^ "Andrew Selous". BBC News. 23 October 2002. Retrieved 26 June 2013.
  4. ^ "UK Political Database: Andrew Selous". The Daily Telegraph. London. Archived from the original on 30 April 2010.
  5. ^ Published on 28/05/2010 17:41 (28 May 2010). "Parliamentary post for SW Beds MP". Bedfordtoday.co.uk. Retrieved 26 June 2013.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  6. ^ "UK Prime Minister on Twitter". Twitter.
  7. ^ "Benefit claimants must 'lean English', says Tory MP Andrew Selous". Digital Spy.
  8. ^ "Andrew Selous: 'Disabled are grateful so work harder,' says Tory minister". Independent. 19 October 2014. Retrieved 7 April 2015.
  9. ^ Selous, Andrew (11 March 2014). "Comment: Silver splitters are putting significant pressure on care system, MP warns". Retrieved 7 April 2015.
  10. ^ "Voices of dissent: Gay marriage opponents attack". Independent. 11 December 2012. Retrieved 7 April 2015.

News items

Parliament of the United Kingdom
Preceded by Member of Parliament for South West Bedfordshire
2001–present 		Incumbent
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