Jacqui Lait
Encyclopedia
Jacqueline Anne "Jacqui" Lait (born Jacqueline Anne Harkness on 16 December 1947) is a British
Conservative Party
politician and former Member of Parliament
(MP) for Beckenham
.
, attending Paisley Grammar School
and the University of Strathclyde
, where she received a bachelor's degree
in business management. After graduating, Lait worked in public relations
for the jute industry
in Dundee
later working for the television news agency Visnews
. Lait worked for the Government Information Service and later the Department of Employment in 1974. In 1980, Lait joined the Chemical Industries Association as their Parliamentary Adviser. She has also run her own Parliamentary Consultancy.
for the 1984 European elections and the following year stood in the by-election
for Tyne Bridge
where she finished in third place behind David Clelland
and Rod Kenyon
. She was selected as the Conservative candidate for Hastings and Rye in April 1991.
Lait won the Hastings and Rye seat in the 1992 general election
and in 1996 became the first female Conservative Whip
. She lost her seat at the 1997 general election
, following a dispute with local fishermen, but later in the same year was elected MP for Beckenham
via a by-election
after the resignation of Piers Merchant
.
In September 2001, Lait was appointed Shadow Secretary of State for Scotland
, a position she held until 2003 when she became Shadow Home Affairs Minister. A reshuffle
after the 2005 general election
saw her appointed as Shadow Minister for London
. Two years later, she was handed the additional duties of Shadow Minister for Planning.
She over-claimed for the mortgage interest on her second home, and was told to pay back over £7,000.
On 21 September 2009, Lait announced her decision to stand down at the 2010 general election.
County Council
.
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...
Conservative Party
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 and former 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 Beckenham
Beckenham (UK Parliament constituency)
Beckenham is a parliamentary constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It elects one Member of Parliament by the first past the post system of election.-Constituency profile:...
.
Early life
Lait was born in Paisley, RenfrewshireRenfrewshire (historic)
Renfrewshire or the County of Renfrew is a registration county, the Lieutenancy area of the Lord Lieutenant of Renfrewshire, and one of the counties of Scotland used for local government until 1975. Renfrewshire is located in the West Central Lowlands of Scotland, south of the River Clyde,...
, attending Paisley Grammar School
Paisley Grammar School
Paisley Grammar School, known for a period following 1896 as the Paisley Grammar School and William B. Barbour Academy, is a non-denominational state comprehensive secondary school in Paisley, the largest town in Renfrewshire, Scotland. The school was founded in 1576 and was formerly a selective...
and the University of Strathclyde
University of Strathclyde
The University of Strathclyde , Glasgow, Scotland, is Glasgow's second university by age, founded in 1796, and receiving its Royal Charter in 1964 as the UK's first technological university...
, where she received a bachelor's degree
Bachelor's degree
A bachelor's degree is usually an academic degree awarded for an undergraduate course or major that generally lasts for three or four years, but can range anywhere from two to six years depending on the region of the world...
in business management. After graduating, Lait worked in public relations
Public relations
Public relations is the actions of a corporation, store, government, individual, etc., in promoting goodwill between itself and the public, the community, employees, customers, etc....
for the jute industry
Jute
Jute is a long, soft, shiny vegetable fibre that can be spun into coarse, strong threads. It is produced from plants in the genus Corchorus, which has been classified in the family Tiliaceae, or more recently in Malvaceae....
in Dundee
Dundee
Dundee is the fourth-largest city in Scotland and the 39th most populous settlement in the United Kingdom. It lies within the eastern central Lowlands on the north bank of the Firth of Tay, which feeds into the North Sea...
later working for the television news agency Visnews
Visnews
Visnews was a London-based international news agency. By 1992 it was owned by NBC News , BBC and Reuters, until Reuters bought out the remaining shares of the company that year...
. Lait worked for the Government Information Service and later the Department of Employment in 1974. In 1980, Lait joined the Chemical Industries Association as their Parliamentary Adviser. She has also run her own Parliamentary Consultancy.
Political career
Lait was a candidate for Strathclyde WestStrathclyde West (European Parliament constituency)
Prior to its uniform adoption of proportional representation in 1999, the United Kingdom used first-past-the-post for the European elections in England, Scotland and Wales...
for the 1984 European elections and the following year stood in the by-election
Tyne Bridge by-election, 1985
The Tyne Bridge by-election, 1985 was a parliamentary by-election held on 5 December 1985 for the British House of Commons constituency of Tyne Bridge.- Previous MP :...
for Tyne Bridge
Tyne Bridge (UK Parliament constituency)
Tyne Bridge was a parliamentary constituency in the north east of England, represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, from 1983 until 2010...
where she finished in third place behind David Clelland
David Clelland
David Gordon Clelland is a British Labour Party politician. He was the Member of Parliament for Tyne Bridge from 1985 until 2010.-Early life:...
and Rod Kenyon
Rod Kenyon
Rod Kenyon contested Houghton le Spring and Washington in the 1983 and 1987 General Elections. In 1985 he contested the Tyne Bridge by election for the SDP-Liberal Alliance finishing second to David Clelland....
. She was selected as the Conservative candidate for Hastings and Rye in April 1991.
Lait won the Hastings and Rye seat in the 1992 general election
United Kingdom general election, 1992
The United Kingdom general election of 1992 was held on 9 April 1992, and was the fourth consecutive victory for the Conservative Party. This election result was one of the biggest surprises in 20th Century politics, as polling leading up to the day of the election showed Labour under leader Neil...
and in 1996 became the first female 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...
. She lost her seat at the 1997 general election
United Kingdom general election, 1997
The United Kingdom general election, 1997 was held on 1 May 1997, more than five years after the previous election on 9 April 1992, to elect 659 members to the British House of Commons. The Labour Party ended its 18 years in opposition under the leadership of Tony Blair, and won the general...
, following a dispute with local fishermen, but later in the same year was elected MP for Beckenham
Beckenham (UK Parliament constituency)
Beckenham is a parliamentary constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It elects one Member of Parliament by the first past the post system of election.-Constituency profile:...
via a by-election
Beckenham by-election, 1997
A by-election in Beckenham, England, was called in 1997 when the sitting Member of Parliament, Piers Merchant , resigned from Parliament on 21 October 1997...
after the resignation of Piers Merchant
Piers Merchant
Piers Rolf Garfield Merchant was a British Conservative Party politician. He was the Member of Parliament for Newcastle upon Tyne Central from 1983 to 1987, and then MP for Beckenham from 1992 until he resigned in October 1997 following a scandal.- Education :He was educated at Nottingham High...
.
In September 2001, Lait was appointed Shadow Secretary of State for Scotland
Secretary of State for Scotland
The Secretary of State for Scotland is the principal minister of Her Majesty's Government in the United Kingdom with responsibilities for Scotland. He heads the Scotland Office , a government department based in London and Edinburgh. The post was created soon after the Union of the Crowns, but was...
, a position she held until 2003 when she became Shadow Home Affairs Minister. A reshuffle
Cabinet shuffle
In the parliamentary system a cabinet shuffle or reshuffle is an informal term for an event that occurs when a head of government rotates or changes the composition of ministers in their cabinet....
after the 2005 general election
United Kingdom general election, 2005
The United Kingdom general election of 2005 was held on Thursday, 5 May 2005 to elect 646 members to the British House of Commons. The Labour Party under Tony Blair won its third consecutive victory, but with a majority of 66, reduced from 160....
saw her appointed as Shadow Minister for London
Minister for London
The Minister for London was a United Kingdom ministerial post that is part of the government of London. The post was scrapped by David Cameron after he came to office in 2010...
. Two years later, she was handed the additional duties of Shadow Minister for Planning.
She over-claimed for the mortgage interest on her second home, and was told to pay back over £7,000.
On 21 September 2009, Lait announced her decision to stand down at the 2010 general election.
Personal life
Lait is married to Peter Jones, Leader of East SussexEast Sussex
East Sussex is a county in South East England. It is bordered by the counties of Kent, Surrey and West Sussex, and to the south by the English Channel.-History:...
County Council
County council
A county council is the elected administrative body governing an area known as a county. This term has slightly different meanings in different countries.-United Kingdom:...
.
External links
- Guardian Unlimited Politics - Ask Aristotle: Jacqui Lait MP
- TheyWorkForYou.com - Jacqui Lait, MP
- The Public Whip Jacqui Lait, MP's voting record