Members of Parliament for Middlewich - Middlewich Guardian

Member of Parliament for Congleton

Party

Committees

Aviation Group, Dentistry Group, Uk Aluminium Industry Group, Fire Safety And Rescue Group, Pro-life Group, Solvent Abuse Group, Involuntary Tranquilliser Addiction Group, Dying Well Group, Group Against Fluoridation, Group Against Financial Exploitation, West Coast Main Line Group, Clean Coal Group, State Boarding Schools Group, Thalidomide Group, Dairy Farmers Group, St George's Day Group, Weight Watchers Group, Pharmaceutical Industry Group, British-austrian Group, Botswana Group, Channel Islands Group, British-danish Group, United Kingdom-falkland Islands Group, British-finnish Group, Gibraltar Group, British-icelandic Group, British-montserrat Group, British-namibian Group, Northern Ireland Group, British-norwegian Group, Island Of St Helena Group, British-swedish Group, British-taiwan Group, Turkish Northern Cyprus Group, British Virgin Islands Group

Biography

MP Since - 1983 Majority - 8,246 Born - 06/03/1941. Married, 2 sons & 1 daughter.

Education - Erdington Grammar School for Girls.

Previous Occupation - Joint Master of the South Staffordshire Hunt (1959-64).

Personal Overview - Likely to tend to the traditional right in the Conservative Party, she like her husband is unlikely to be concerned about putting forward her own opinions on issues of importance, rebelling for instance over the Maastricht Treaty. She remained on the Back Benches until 1999, when she was promoted to the Shadow Cabinet Office team. Politically she shares with her husband a social and economic conservativism on abortion, euthanasia, embryo research, Sunday Trading, and Post Office privatisation which has often placed them at odds with the Party leadership. She was sacked, after passing on the opportunity to resign, from her post shadowing Agriculture after telling a racist joke during a speech to her local rugby club (May 2002). She subsequently compounded her previous error in February 2004 by making another after dinner 'joke', this time referring to the deaths of 20 Chinese cocklers. The response from the party leadership was to deprive her of the party Whip, putting her future parliamentary career in serious doubt. The Whip was restored after she made an unreserved apology at the end of March 2004. Was judged to have broken MPs expense rules in 2008 when claiming for rent on a second home owned by a trust, although this was accepted by Parliamentary Standards Commissioner John Lyon as accidental. Announced that she would stand down along with her husband Nicholas Winterton at the next General Election as they could not maintain the 'hectic pace' of politics.

Political History - MP Congleton (1983-). Member of the Agriculture Select Committee (1987-97), member of the Commons Chairmen's Panel (1992-98, 2005-). Member of the Private Bills (Unopposed Bills) Panel (1997-). Member of the Social Security Select Committee (2000-01). Opposition Spokesperson for National Drug Strategy (1998-2001). Shadow Minister for Agriculture & Fisheries (2001-02).

Characteristics - Likely to be a strongly independent member, who appears to have involved herself in parliamentary committees that she finds of interest.

Other Information - Alternative email address is awinterton@riverside14.fsnet.co.uk

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