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Chris Clarkson (politician)

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Chris Clarkson
Official portrait, 2020
Member of Parliament
for Heywood and Middleton
In office
12 December 2019 – 30 May 2024
Preceded byLiz McInnes
Succeeded byElsie Blundell
Personal details
Born
Christopher Mark Clarkson[1]

(1982-11-12) 12 November 1982 (age 42)
Wegberg, North Rhine-Westphalia, West Germany[2]
Political partyConservative
Alma materUniversity of Dundee

Christopher Mark Clarkson (born 12 November 1982) is a British Conservative Party politician who was Member of Parliament (MP) for Heywood & Middleton from 2019 to 2024. Prior to entering Parliament, Clarkson was a Salford City Councillor for Worsley.

Early life and career

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Chris Clarkson was born on 12 November 1982 to Terence Clarkson and Alison Clarkson (née Parker) in Wegberg, West Germany.[2] He grew up in Blackburn, Lancashire where he attended St Wilfrid's Church of England High School, before studying law at Dundee University. He then worked for IRIS Legal as a corporate development manager, and was a consultant at Virgin from 2010 to 2019.[2]

Clarkson is a member of the Countryside Alliance and a supporter of Brexit.[3] Prior to being elected to Parliament, he was a Salford City councillor between 2011 and 2019.[4] Whilst on the council, he was chair of the Audit and Accounts Committee from 2016 to 2018.[2]

Parliamentary career

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At the 2015 general election, Clarkson stood as the Conservative candidate in Wallasey, coming second with 22.7% of the vote behind the incumbent Labour MP Angela Eagle.[5][6]

Clarkson was elected to Parliament as MP for Heywood and Middleton at the 2019 general election with 43.1% of the vote and a majority of 663.[7]

On 22 October 2020, Clarkson criticised Mayor of Greater Manchester Andy Burnham in a parliamentary debate over his disagreements with the government concerning financial support for stricter COVID-19 restrictions, accusing Burnham of "opportunism". In response, Clarkson was called "scum" by Deputy Leader of the Labour Party Angela Rayner.[8] She later apologised, stating: "I apologise for the language that I used in a heated debate in Parliament earlier".[9]

On 10 November 2020, Clarkson was appointed as Parliamentary Private Secretary to the Ministry of Justice.[10]

In November 2022, following the outcome of a coroner's court hearing into the 2020 death of Awaab Ishak, Clarkson called the company who provided the housing (Rochdale Boroughwide Housing, or RBH) "modern day slum lords".[11] He said that he has photographs from his constituents living in RBH properties showing that the poor living conditions seen in Ishak's home were "not an isolated incident".[11]

Clarkson announced in June 2023 that he would not seek re-election as an MP at the 2024 general election, explaining that his Heywood and Middleton constituency was being abolished.[12] On 3 June 2024, it was announced that Clarkson was selected as the Conservative candidate for Stratford-on-Avon at the 2024 general election.[13][14] This proved controversial, with the Conservative group leader on Stratford on Avon District Council accusing the party of overlooking women and how local members did not know who was on the shortlist until arriving at the meeting.[15] Clarkson failed to win the Stratford-on-Avon seat, losing to the Liberal Democrats' Manuela Perteghella.[16]

Personal life

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Clarkson is a member of the Carlton Club in London, and St James' Club in Manchester.[2]

References

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  1. ^ "No. 62862". The London Gazette. 20 December 2019. p. 23182.
  2. ^ a b c d e "Clarkson, Christopher Mark, (born 12 Nov. 1982), MP (C) Heywood and Middleton, since 2019". WHO'S WHO & WHO WAS WHO. 2020. doi:10.1093/ww/9780199540884.013.u293948. ISBN 978-0-19-954088-4. Retrieved 29 April 2021.
  3. ^ "Class of 2019: Meet the new MPs". PoliticsHome.com. 16 December 2019. Archived from the original on 17 December 2019. Retrieved 17 December 2019.
  4. ^ "Councillor Christopher Clarkson". Salford City Council. Archived from the original on 9 February 2018. Retrieved 16 December 2019.
  5. ^ "Election Data 2015". Electoral Calculus. Archived from the original on 17 October 2015. Retrieved 17 October 2015.
  6. ^ "Wallasey". BBC News. Retrieved 11 May 2015.
  7. ^ "Statement of persons nominated 2019" (PDF).
  8. ^ "Chris Clarkson called 'scum' by Deputy Labour leader when speaking in House of Commons". Rochdale Online. 22 October 2020. Retrieved 11 November 2020.
  9. ^ "Angela Rayner apologises for 'scum' remark in Commons". BBC News. 21 October 2020. Retrieved 11 November 2020.
  10. ^ Maguire, Patrick [@patrickkmaguire] (10 November 2020). "Flurry of new government PPS moves tonight" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  11. ^ a b "Rochdale Boroughwide Housing 'are modern day slum lords', says Heywood and Middleton MP Chris Clarkson". Manchester Evening News. 16 November 2022. Retrieved 16 November 2022.
  12. ^ "Conservative MP Chris Clarkson to stand down at general election". BBC News. 28 June 2023. Retrieved 28 June 2023.
  13. ^ "Former Greater Manchester MP Chris Clarkson chosen as Stratford's Conservative candidate". Stratford Herald. 3 June 2024. Retrieved 5 June 2024.
  14. ^ "Former Heywood & Middleton MP standing in Stratford-on-Avon". www.rochdaleonline.co.uk. Retrieved 5 June 2024.
  15. ^ "Women candidates overlooked, Tory group leader says". BBC News. 4 June 2024. Retrieved 5 June 2024.
  16. ^ "Video - reaction from Stratford's new MP Manuel Perteghella". Stratford Herald. 5 July 2024. Retrieved 5 July 2024.
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to Chris Clarkson (politician).
Parliament of the United Kingdom
Preceded by Member of Parliament
for Heywood and Middleton
2019–2024 		Constituency abolished
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