David Wilshire
Encyclopedia
David Wilshire is a Conservative Party
politician in the United Kingdom
. He was the Member of Parliament
(MP) for Spelthorne
in Surrey
from 1987
to 2010.
Wilshire was responsible for introducing Section 28
legislation in 1988 and in 2009 was implicated in the United Kingdom Parliamentary expenses scandal
.
On October 14, 2009, Wilshire admitted using parliamentary expenses to pay £105,000 over three years to Moorlands Research Services, a company he set up and owned with his partner Anne Palmer to run his office, but insisted it was approved by the authorities. On 15 October 2009 after a meeting with the Conservative Chief Whip, he announced that he would not be standing as a candidate at the next general election.
On November 3rd, 2011, Parliament's Standards and Privileges Committee revealed the decision via its website to end the probe into Mr Wilshire's use of more than £100,000 of public money to pay his own company.No reason was offered, but many felt the probe was halted to save the Conservative government any further embarrassment.
, Bath and Fitzwilliam College, Cambridge
where he received an MA in Geography in 1965. He was a councillor on Wansdyke District Council
from 1976 to 1987 and served as leader from 1981 to 1987. He was elected as councillor on Avon County Council
from 1977 to 1981. He also worked for Conservative MEPs from 1979 to 1985.
As well as building up his own group of small businesses and working as a personnel officer and a schoolteacher, he was a partner with Western Political Research Services (1979–2000); the co-director of Political Management Programme, Brunel University
(1985–90) and became a partner of Moorlands Research Service in 2000.
David Wilshire is separated with one son. In 1982 his daughter died, aged 12, after choking at school. His main home is in Somerset
, where he lives with his partner Ann Palmer.
, about two gay men and their daughter, a copy of which was stocked in an Inner London Education Authority
(ILEA) teachers' resource centre. Wilshire said of it: "the book portrays a child living with two men ... [and] clearly shows that as an acceptable family relationship". As a result, with the support of Dame Jill Knight, Wilshire introduced Section 28
as an amendment to the Local Government Bill at the committee stage. The amendment made it illegal for local authorities to "promote homosexuality or ... promote the teaching in any maintained school of the acceptability of homosexuality".
Section 28 became a major political issue. In April 1988, a national demonstration of more than 30,000 was held in London. 'Stop the Clause' groups sprang up in most cities, which organised local protests to complement national action. One evening, the BBC's Six O'Clock News headlines were disrupted by shouts of "Stop Clause 28!" and when the clause was debated in the Lords, protesting lesbians abseiled from the public gallery down to the floor of the House. The actor Ian McKellen
described Wilshire and Knight as the "ugly sisters" of a political pantomime. In 2003, in a rare public speech about his role on Section 28, Mr Wilshire stated: "Little did I realise what I was unleashing ... I got a fair amount of hate mail and a fair amount of publicity, most of it unflattering." He added that the bill had always been about misuse of taxpayers' money, and not bigotry.
The ban was eventually reversed by Parliament in 2003. Mr Wilshire was one of 76 MPs to vote against the repeal.
In 2000 Wilshire voted to prohibit teachers from introducing steps to prevent bullying on the grounds of homosexuality in a later Local Government Bill
. Mr Wilshire voted against homosexual couples being allowed to adopt children in 2002, against the Civil Partnership Bill of 2004, which granted a legal relationship for same-sex couples and against Equality Act (Sexual Orientation) in 2007, which outlawed discrimination in the provision of goods, facilities, services, education and public functions on the grounds of sexual orientation. In each case Wilshire's vote was in the minority.
He opposed the Good Friday Agreement in Northern Ireland and was one of the first Conservative MPs to declare that he would never support UK entry into a single European currency.
In 1995 David Wilshire protested to the then prime minister, John Major
, about the government's proposals to allow people from Hong Kong
to live in the UK. He received criticism by stating: "It's not acceptable to the British people to let in one more … this country is full up."
David Wilshire voted against the introduction of the National Minimum Wage in 1999 by opposing the National Minimum Wage Act 1998
. In 2009 he became one of 11 MPs
to back the Employment Opportunities Bill, which aimed to abolish the minimum wage, but was defeated in Parliament.
He opposed the idea that MPs should not have second jobs and stated that "state employed parliamentarians" would be something that "Stalin would applaud". He combined being an MP with being the partner of Moorlands Research Service for eight years and from 1987 to 1990 combined being an MP with two other jobs. He was one of 21 Conservative MPs to vote in favour of keeping the additional costs allowance for MPs' second homes, despite David Cameron's calls for it to be reformed.
He went against the official Conservative Party line and supported the construction of a third runway at Heathrow Airport, which, although it lies just outside the Spelthorne constituency, nevertheless provides employment for a considerable number of people locally. Wilshire described those that opposed the expansion as the "anti-brigade", which included the Conservative Party leader David Cameron
, whom he accused of peddling a "lie" that transit passengers at Heathrow spent almost nothing.
, and faced considerable hostility from his constituents.
Originally questioned by his local newspaper, the Staines News, about why he had claimed the maximum allowance for a second home in London when his constituency home was in a commuter belt. During the interview he stated: "In 22 years of living in London, I have always furnished the flat out of my own pocket." However, four days later The Daily Telegraph
revealed that Wilshire had an unusual arrangement whereby he claimed thousands of pounds of taxpayers' money for monthly payments towards the cost of interior decoration for his London flat, even though he didn't have to provide any receipts for the work. Wilshire was questioned about this by his local newspaper again, in which he said he was "embarrassed, sad and sorry", but he revealed that he had not spent the money allocated to him for decoration on this yet, but would do in the future, and therefore he refused to pay the money back or resign.
It later emerged that Wilshire had spent over £1,000 of taxpayers' money on furniture in 2004, which contradicted his previous claims. When challenged on this, he refused to give an interview but sent an email to the local press in which he stated that: "I obtained the cheapest self-assembly replacement available from MFI". However, even this email caused him more problems, as in it he stated that he had bought the flat in 1983 — four years before he had become an MP and four years before when he previously revealed he had bought it. He later wrote a letter to the paper stating that he did buy the flat in 1987 and that the paper's journalists had been forgetful about facts he had told them, and had confused "furnishing a property with repairing it". The newspaper replied that it stood by what it had reported. When local demands grew for Wilshire to meet his constituents over the claims, Mr Wilshire expressed that he would only meet them one-to-one, and would not hold a public meeting.
As a result, the 'Conservative Anti-Corruption Group' was formed, which aimed to oust Wilshire at the 2010 General Election. One of its members included a former Conservative councillor and canvassing partner of Mr Wilshire. Shortly afterwards, at a Spelthorne Conservative Association Meeting, six members of the Conservative Party announced they were prepared to stand against him at the 2010 General Election.
Following further investigation by The Daily Telegraph, on 14 October 2009, Wilshire asked the Parliamentary Standards Commissioner
to investigate his office expenses. Wilshire admitted using parliamentary expenses to pay £105,000 over three years to Moorlands Research Services, a company he set up and owned with his partner Anne Palmer to run his office, but insisted it was approved by the authorities. Parliamentary expenses rules forbid MPs from entering into arrangements which “may give rise to an accusation” of profiting from public funds. Wilshire told the BBC that he had referred himself to the Parliamentary Standards Commissioner as the only way to answer the questions about his expenses, and that the company had never made a profit and had been wound up. Moorlands Research Services was never registered with Companies House
, and never filed public accounts. The following day, Wilshire announced that he would stand down as an MP, saying that he was reluctant to do this, but accepted it was the 'sensible' thing to do.
On 2 November 2009, Wilshire apologised for equating his treatment over expenses to the Holocaust. He also faced a public and media backlash at the same time for stating that his salary of £64,000 per year was "close to the minimum wage."
newspaper, which had previously been compared to the Third Reich by Wilshire, described him as "Britain's stupidest MP" as a result.
David Wilshire vocally opposed Princess Diana speaking in the House of Commons about landmines in 1997, following an invitation from the newly-elected Labour government. She ultimately decided not to speak, following the criticism.
In 2008 he was the subject of a parliamentary enquiry after it was claimed that he raised thousands of pounds for his local party by hosting constituents on visits to the House of Commons. The enquiry cleared him of any wrongdoing.
He called for the former Chilean dictator, General Pinochet
, to be released, when he was under house arrest in London in 1998.
On 20 April 2010, as Co-rapporteur of the Monitoring Committee of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe
(PACE
) he held a meeting with member of the government of separatist South Ossetia
(Georgia
) in the so called "Embassy of the Republic of South Ossetia" in Moscow
. The Georgian Ministry of Foreign Affairs said that they “express its strong protest over this deplorable fact. Georgia fully respects the liberty of a parliamentarian, however Mr. Wilshire, the member of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe was acting in his capacity of the Assembly's Co-rapporteur, hence representing the whole organization. This is the first instance of an official representative of an international organization holding a meeting in the premises of the "Embassy" of the proxy regime. http://www.mfa.gov.ge/index.php?lang_id=ENG&sec_id=30&info_id=11965
officials look into the UK to assess whether it is necessary to officially monitor the UK's voting procedures. He said the then government had failed to put its "house in order" to prevent fraudulent voting and accused the government of "systematically ignoring" pleas from the Electoral Commission
. "If the British government won't put its own house in order, you mustn't be surprised if there are some of us who will try to find someone else who will make them put their house in order," he told BBC Radio 4
's World at One
programme. He also opposed the introduction of identity cards and called for the removal of innocent children from the United Kingdom National DNA Database.
He was parliamentary private secretary to Alan Clark
in 1991, the PPS to Peter Lloyd
from 1992 to 1994, and was a Conservative whip
in the House of Commons from 2001 to 2005. He was a member of the Northern Ireland Select Committee (1994–97), a member of the Foreign Affairs Select Committee (1997–2000) and became a member of the Transport Select Committee and of the Chairman's Panel in 2005. He was also elected on to the executive of the Conservatives' 1922 Committee
in 2005.
Conservative Party (UK)
The Conservative Party, formally the Conservative and Unionist Party, is a centre-right political party in the United Kingdom that adheres to the philosophies of conservatism and British unionism. It is the largest political party in the UK, and is currently the largest single party in the House...
politician in the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
. He was the Member of Parliament
Member of Parliament
A Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...
(MP) for Spelthorne
Spelthorne (UK Parliament constituency)
-Elections in the 2000s:-Elections in the 1990s:-Elections in the 1980s:-Elections in the 1970s:-Elections in the 1960s:...
in Surrey
Surrey
Surrey is a county in the South East of England and is one of the Home Counties. The county borders Greater London, Kent, East Sussex, West Sussex, Hampshire and Berkshire. The historic county town is Guildford. Surrey County Council sits at Kingston upon Thames, although this has been part of...
from 1987
United Kingdom general election, 1987
The United Kingdom general election of 1987 was held on 11 June 1987, to elect 650 members to the British House of Commons. The election was the third consecutive election victory for the Conservative Party under the leadership of Margaret Thatcher, who became the first Prime Minister since the 2nd...
to 2010.
Wilshire was responsible for introducing Section 28
Section 28
Section 28 of the Local Government Act 1988 caused the controversial addition of Section 2A to the Local Government Act 1986 , enacted on 24 May 1988 and repealed on 21 June 2000 in Scotland, and on 18 November 2003 in the rest of Great Britain by section 122 of the Local Government Act 2003...
legislation in 1988 and in 2009 was implicated in the United Kingdom Parliamentary expenses scandal
United Kingdom Parliamentary expenses scandal
The United Kingdom parliamentary expenses scandal was a major political scandal triggered by the leak and subsequent publication by the Telegraph Group in 2009 of expense claims made by members of the United Kingdom Parliament over several years...
.
On October 14, 2009, Wilshire admitted using parliamentary expenses to pay £105,000 over three years to Moorlands Research Services, a company he set up and owned with his partner Anne Palmer to run his office, but insisted it was approved by the authorities. On 15 October 2009 after a meeting with the Conservative Chief Whip, he announced that he would not be standing as a candidate at the next general election.
On November 3rd, 2011, Parliament's Standards and Privileges Committee revealed the decision via its website to end the probe into Mr Wilshire's use of more than £100,000 of public money to pay his own company.No reason was offered, but many felt the probe was halted to save the Conservative government any further embarrassment.
Outside of Parliament
He was educated at Kingswood SchoolKingswood School
Kingswood School, referred to as 'Kingswood', is an independent day and boarding school located in Bath, Somerset, England. The school is coeducational and educates some 950 children aged 3 to 18. It is notable for being founded by John Wesley, the founder of Methodism, in 1748...
, Bath and Fitzwilliam College, Cambridge
Fitzwilliam College, Cambridge
Fitzwilliam College is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Cambridge in England.The college traces its origins back to 1869 and the foundation of the Non-Collegiate Students Board, a venture intended to offer students from less financially privileged backgrounds a chance to study...
where he received an MA in Geography in 1965. He was a councillor on Wansdyke District Council
Wansdyke (district)
Wansdyke was a non-metropolitan district within the County of Avon, in the west of England from 1974 to 1996.The district was formed by the Local Government Act 1972 on 1 April 1974 as part of a reform of local authorities throughout England and Wales...
from 1976 to 1987 and served as leader from 1981 to 1987. He was elected as councillor on Avon County Council
Avon (county)
Avon was, from 1974 to 1996, a non-metropolitan and ceremonial county in the west of England.The county was named after the River Avon, which runs through the area. It was formed from parts of the historic counties of Gloucestershire and Somerset, together with the City of Bristol...
from 1977 to 1981. He also worked for Conservative MEPs from 1979 to 1985.
As well as building up his own group of small businesses and working as a personnel officer and a schoolteacher, he was a partner with Western Political Research Services (1979–2000); the co-director of Political Management Programme, Brunel University
Brunel University
Brunel University is a public research university located in Uxbridge, London, United Kingdom. The university is named after the Victorian engineer Isambard Kingdom Brunel....
(1985–90) and became a partner of Moorlands Research Service in 2000.
David Wilshire is separated with one son. In 1982 his daughter died, aged 12, after choking at school. His main home is in Somerset
Somerset
The ceremonial and non-metropolitan county of Somerset in South West England borders Bristol and Gloucestershire to the north, Wiltshire to the east, Dorset to the south-east, and Devon to the south-west. It is partly bounded to the north and west by the Bristol Channel and the estuary of the...
, where he lives with his partner Ann Palmer.
Section 28 and sexual orientation issues
Shortly after being elected as an MP in 1987, Wilshire saw a copy of the book Jenny Lives with Eric and MartinJenny lives with Eric and Martin
Jenny lives with Eric and Martin , originally Mette bor hos Morten og Erik, is a black-and-white picture book by the Danish author Susanne Bösche, published in 1981 in Danish and in 1983 in English...
, about two gay men and their daughter, a copy of which was stocked in an Inner London Education Authority
Inner London Education Authority
The Inner London Education Authority was the education authority for the 12 inner London boroughs from 1965 until its abolition in 1990.-History:...
(ILEA) teachers' resource centre. Wilshire said of it: "the book portrays a child living with two men ... [and] clearly shows that as an acceptable family relationship". As a result, with the support of Dame Jill Knight, Wilshire introduced Section 28
Section 28
Section 28 of the Local Government Act 1988 caused the controversial addition of Section 2A to the Local Government Act 1986 , enacted on 24 May 1988 and repealed on 21 June 2000 in Scotland, and on 18 November 2003 in the rest of Great Britain by section 122 of the Local Government Act 2003...
as an amendment to the Local Government Bill at the committee stage. The amendment made it illegal for local authorities to "promote homosexuality or ... promote the teaching in any maintained school of the acceptability of homosexuality".
Section 28 became a major political issue. In April 1988, a national demonstration of more than 30,000 was held in London. 'Stop the Clause' groups sprang up in most cities, which organised local protests to complement national action. One evening, the BBC's Six O'Clock News headlines were disrupted by shouts of "Stop Clause 28!" and when the clause was debated in the Lords, protesting lesbians abseiled from the public gallery down to the floor of the House. The actor Ian McKellen
Ian McKellen
Sir Ian Murray McKellen, CH, CBE is an English actor. He has received a Tony Award, two Academy Award nominations, and five Emmy Award nominations. His work has spanned genres from Shakespearean and modern theatre to popular fantasy and science fiction...
described Wilshire and Knight as the "ugly sisters" of a political pantomime. In 2003, in a rare public speech about his role on Section 28, Mr Wilshire stated: "Little did I realise what I was unleashing ... I got a fair amount of hate mail and a fair amount of publicity, most of it unflattering." He added that the bill had always been about misuse of taxpayers' money, and not bigotry.
The ban was eventually reversed by Parliament in 2003. Mr Wilshire was one of 76 MPs to vote against the repeal.
In 2000 Wilshire voted to prohibit teachers from introducing steps to prevent bullying on the grounds of homosexuality in a later Local Government Bill
Local Government Act 2000
The Local Government Act 2000 is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that reformed local government in England and Wales. Its principal purposes are:...
. Mr Wilshire voted against homosexual couples being allowed to adopt children in 2002, against the Civil Partnership Bill of 2004, which granted a legal relationship for same-sex couples and against Equality Act (Sexual Orientation) in 2007, which outlawed discrimination in the provision of goods, facilities, services, education and public functions on the grounds of sexual orientation. In each case Wilshire's vote was in the minority.
Political views
Wilshire voted against bans on hunting and smoking, and voted both for and against the Iraq War.He opposed the Good Friday Agreement in Northern Ireland and was one of the first Conservative MPs to declare that he would never support UK entry into a single European currency.
In 1995 David Wilshire protested to the then prime minister, John Major
John Major
Sir John Major, is a British Conservative politician, who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Conservative Party from 1990–1997...
, about the government's proposals to allow people from Hong Kong
Hong Kong
Hong Kong is one of two Special Administrative Regions of the People's Republic of China , the other being Macau. A city-state situated on China's south coast and enclosed by the Pearl River Delta and South China Sea, it is renowned for its expansive skyline and deep natural harbour...
to live in the UK. He received criticism by stating: "It's not acceptable to the British people to let in one more … this country is full up."
David Wilshire voted against the introduction of the National Minimum Wage in 1999 by opposing the National Minimum Wage Act 1998
National Minimum Wage Act 1998
The National Minimum Wage Act 1998 creates a minimum wage across the United Kingdom, currently £6.08 per hour for workers aged 21 years and older, £4.98 per hour for workers aged 18–20...
. In 2009 he became one of 11 MPs
to back the Employment Opportunities Bill, which aimed to abolish the minimum wage, but was defeated in Parliament.
He opposed the idea that MPs should not have second jobs and stated that "state employed parliamentarians" would be something that "Stalin would applaud". He combined being an MP with being the partner of Moorlands Research Service for eight years and from 1987 to 1990 combined being an MP with two other jobs. He was one of 21 Conservative MPs to vote in favour of keeping the additional costs allowance for MPs' second homes, despite David Cameron's calls for it to be reformed.
He went against the official Conservative Party line and supported the construction of a third runway at Heathrow Airport, which, although it lies just outside the Spelthorne constituency, nevertheless provides employment for a considerable number of people locally. Wilshire described those that opposed the expansion as the "anti-brigade", which included the Conservative Party leader David Cameron
David Cameron
David William Donald Cameron is the current Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, First Lord of the Treasury, Minister for the Civil Service and Leader of the Conservative Party. Cameron represents Witney as its Member of Parliament ....
, whom he accused of peddling a "lie" that transit passengers at Heathrow spent almost nothing.
Expenses scandal
In 2009, Wilshire was among the majority of MPs exposed in the expenses scandalUnited Kingdom Parliamentary expenses scandal
The United Kingdom parliamentary expenses scandal was a major political scandal triggered by the leak and subsequent publication by the Telegraph Group in 2009 of expense claims made by members of the United Kingdom Parliament over several years...
, and faced considerable hostility from his constituents.
Originally questioned by his local newspaper, the Staines News, about why he had claimed the maximum allowance for a second home in London when his constituency home was in a commuter belt. During the interview he stated: "In 22 years of living in London, I have always furnished the flat out of my own pocket." However, four days later The Daily Telegraph
The Daily Telegraph
The Daily Telegraph is a daily morning broadsheet newspaper distributed throughout the United Kingdom and internationally. The newspaper was founded by Arthur B...
revealed that Wilshire had an unusual arrangement whereby he claimed thousands of pounds of taxpayers' money for monthly payments towards the cost of interior decoration for his London flat, even though he didn't have to provide any receipts for the work. Wilshire was questioned about this by his local newspaper again, in which he said he was "embarrassed, sad and sorry", but he revealed that he had not spent the money allocated to him for decoration on this yet, but would do in the future, and therefore he refused to pay the money back or resign.
It later emerged that Wilshire had spent over £1,000 of taxpayers' money on furniture in 2004, which contradicted his previous claims. When challenged on this, he refused to give an interview but sent an email to the local press in which he stated that: "I obtained the cheapest self-assembly replacement available from MFI". However, even this email caused him more problems, as in it he stated that he had bought the flat in 1983 — four years before he had become an MP and four years before when he previously revealed he had bought it. He later wrote a letter to the paper stating that he did buy the flat in 1987 and that the paper's journalists had been forgetful about facts he had told them, and had confused "furnishing a property with repairing it". The newspaper replied that it stood by what it had reported. When local demands grew for Wilshire to meet his constituents over the claims, Mr Wilshire expressed that he would only meet them one-to-one, and would not hold a public meeting.
As a result, the 'Conservative Anti-Corruption Group' was formed, which aimed to oust Wilshire at the 2010 General Election. One of its members included a former Conservative councillor and canvassing partner of Mr Wilshire. Shortly afterwards, at a Spelthorne Conservative Association Meeting, six members of the Conservative Party announced they were prepared to stand against him at the 2010 General Election.
Following further investigation by The Daily Telegraph, on 14 October 2009, Wilshire asked the Parliamentary Standards Commissioner
Parliamentary Standards Commissioner
Parliamentary Standards Commissioner can refer to:*Parliamentary Commissioner for Standards, in the United Kingdom Parliament*Scottish Parliamentary Standards Commissioner, in the Scottish Parliament...
to investigate his office expenses. Wilshire admitted using parliamentary expenses to pay £105,000 over three years to Moorlands Research Services, a company he set up and owned with his partner Anne Palmer to run his office, but insisted it was approved by the authorities. Parliamentary expenses rules forbid MPs from entering into arrangements which “may give rise to an accusation” of profiting from public funds. Wilshire told the BBC that he had referred himself to the Parliamentary Standards Commissioner as the only way to answer the questions about his expenses, and that the company had never made a profit and had been wound up. Moorlands Research Services was never registered with Companies House
Companies House
Companies House is the United Kingdom Registrar of Companies and is an Executive Agency of the United Kingdom Government Department for Business, Innovation and Skills . All forms of companies are incorporated and registered with Companies House and file specific details as required by the...
, and never filed public accounts. The following day, Wilshire announced that he would stand down as an MP, saying that he was reluctant to do this, but accepted it was the 'sensible' thing to do.
On 2 November 2009, Wilshire apologised for equating his treatment over expenses to the Holocaust. He also faced a public and media backlash at the same time for stating that his salary of £64,000 per year was "close to the minimum wage."
Other controversies
In 2000 Wilshire threatened legal action against a Labour Party member who wrote in the Heathrow Villager that the MP was scaremongering about a local hospital. Wilshire received criticism as the author of the piece was a cancer-suffering pensioner who was being treated at the hospital. The GuardianThe Guardian
The Guardian, formerly known as The Manchester Guardian , is a British national daily newspaper in the Berliner format...
newspaper, which had previously been compared to the Third Reich by Wilshire, described him as "Britain's stupidest MP" as a result.
David Wilshire vocally opposed Princess Diana speaking in the House of Commons about landmines in 1997, following an invitation from the newly-elected Labour government. She ultimately decided not to speak, following the criticism.
In 2008 he was the subject of a parliamentary enquiry after it was claimed that he raised thousands of pounds for his local party by hosting constituents on visits to the House of Commons. The enquiry cleared him of any wrongdoing.
He called for the former Chilean dictator, General Pinochet
Augusto Pinochet
Augusto José Ramón Pinochet Ugarte, more commonly known as Augusto Pinochet , was a Chilean army general and dictator who assumed power in a coup d'état on 11 September 1973...
, to be released, when he was under house arrest in London in 1998.
On 20 April 2010, as Co-rapporteur of the Monitoring Committee of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe
Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe
The Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe , which held its first session in Strasbourg on 10 August 1949, can be considered the oldest international parliamentary assembly with a pluralistic composition of democratically elected members of parliament established on the basis of an...
(PACE
PACE
-Associations:* Paper, Allied-Industrial, Chemical & Energy Workers International Union* National PACE Association* Partnership for Academic Competition Excellence-Educational programs:...
) he held a meeting with member of the government of separatist South Ossetia
South Ossetia
South Ossetia or Tskhinvali Region is a disputed region and partly recognized state in the South Caucasus, located in the territory of the South Ossetian Autonomous Oblast within the former Georgian Soviet Socialist Republic....
(Georgia
Georgia (country)
Georgia is a sovereign state in the Caucasus region of Eurasia. Located at the crossroads of Western Asia and Eastern Europe, it is bounded to the west by the Black Sea, to the north by Russia, to the southwest by Turkey, to the south by Armenia, and to the southeast by Azerbaijan. The capital of...
) in the so called "Embassy of the Republic of South Ossetia" in Moscow
Moscow
Moscow is the capital, the most populous city, and the most populous federal subject of Russia. The city is a major political, economic, cultural, scientific, religious, financial, educational, and transportation centre of Russia and the continent...
. The Georgian Ministry of Foreign Affairs said that they “express its strong protest over this deplorable fact. Georgia fully respects the liberty of a parliamentarian, however Mr. Wilshire, the member of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe was acting in his capacity of the Assembly's Co-rapporteur, hence representing the whole organization. This is the first instance of an official representative of an international organization holding a meeting in the premises of the "Embassy" of the proxy regime. http://www.mfa.gov.ge/index.php?lang_id=ENG&sec_id=30&info_id=11965
Other information
In 2003 he pushed successfully to have Council of EuropeCouncil of Europe
The Council of Europe is an international organisation promoting co-operation between all countries of Europe in the areas of legal standards, human rights, democratic development, the rule of law and cultural co-operation...
officials look into the UK to assess whether it is necessary to officially monitor the UK's voting procedures. He said the then government had failed to put its "house in order" to prevent fraudulent voting and accused the government of "systematically ignoring" pleas from the Electoral Commission
Electoral Commission (United Kingdom)
The Electoral Commission is an independent body set up by the UK Parliament. It regulates party and election finance and sets standards for well-run elections...
. "If the British government won't put its own house in order, you mustn't be surprised if there are some of us who will try to find someone else who will make them put their house in order," he told BBC Radio 4
BBC Radio 4
BBC Radio 4 is a British domestic radio station, operated and owned by the BBC, that broadcasts a wide variety of spoken-word programmes, including news, drama, comedy, science and history. It replaced the BBC Home Service in 1967. The station controller is currently Gwyneth Williams, and the...
's World at One
The World At One
The World at One, or WATO for short, is BBC Radio 4's long-running lunchtime news and current affairs programme, which is broadcast from 1pm to 1:30pm from Monday to Friday. The programme describes itself as "Britain's leading political programme. With a reputation for rigorous and original...
programme. He also opposed the introduction of identity cards and called for the removal of innocent children from the United Kingdom National DNA Database.
He was parliamentary private secretary to Alan Clark
Alan Clark
Alan Kenneth Mackenzie Clark was a British Conservative MP and diarist. He served as a junior minister in Margaret Thatcher's governments at the Departments of Employment, Trade, and Defence, and became a privy counsellor in 1991...
in 1991, the PPS to Peter Lloyd
Peter Lloyd (politician)
Sir Peter Robert Cable Lloyd, is a retired English Conservative Party politician.Sir Peter was Member of Parliament for Fareham in the south of England from 1979 to 2001, when he retired and was succeeded by Mark Hoban....
from 1992 to 1994, and was a Conservative whip
Whip (politics)
A whip is an official in a political party whose primary purpose is to ensure party discipline in a legislature. Whips are a party's "enforcers", who typically offer inducements and threaten punishments for party members to ensure that they vote according to the official party policy...
in the House of Commons from 2001 to 2005. He was a member of the Northern Ireland Select Committee (1994–97), a member of the Foreign Affairs Select Committee (1997–2000) and became a member of the Transport Select Committee and of the Chairman's Panel in 2005. He was also elected on to the executive of the Conservatives' 1922 Committee
1922 Committee
In British politics, the 1922 Committee is a committee of Conservative Members of Parliament. Voting membership is limited to backbench MPs although frontbench Conservative MPs have an open invitation to attend meetings. While the party was in opposition, frontbench MPs other than the party leader...
in 2005.