Greg Hands
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Gregory William "Greg" Hands (born November 14 1965) British politician. He is the Conservative Member of Parliament for Hammersmith and Fulham.
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[edit] Early life and career
Greg Hands was born in New York City, United States, and was educated widely before leaving Dr Challoner's Grammar School, Amersham in 1984 to attend Robinson College, Cambridge where he was awarded a first in modern history in 1989, he also served as the chairman of the Cambridge University Conservative Association. During his gap year he worked in a swimming pool in Berlin.
He worked in banking in the City of London until 1997.
[edit] Early political career
He joined the Conservative Party while a student in Cambridge and was elected as a councillor in the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham in 1998, he became the leader of the Conservative group in 1999 and remained in that capacity until 2004. He stood down as councillor for the Town Ward in Fulham at the council election in 2006.
[edit] Parliamentary career
Hands was elected to the House of Commons at the 2005 General Election when he gained Hammersmith and Fulham from the Labour Party with a majority of 5,029 votes. The sitting Labour MP Iain Coleman retired due to ill health, and was replaced as Labour’s candidate by Melanie Smallman.
The Labour Party accused Hands of scaremongering during the 2005 General Election when he put out election leaflets with the words "Save Charing Cross Hospital" emblazed across them, presenting himself as the only candidate that would save hospital services if elected. The then Health Minister Jane Kennedy said at the time "Charing Cross will not close and the Government are looking at ways to improve the local NHS for our community". The debate continues.
Hands made his maiden speech on May 26, 2005, in which he referred to the fact that the BBC was the largest employer in his constituency, and that Hammersmith Broadway was the busiest road interchange in Europe [1]. He is the Treasurer of the All-Party Russia group. He is a member of the Conservative Way Forward Executive.
Hands was one of only four MPs, out of a total of six-hundred and forty-six in the House of Commons, who voted against the Conservative Climate Change and Sustainable Energy Bill. Hands has also held a Westminster Hall debate on the Government’s Home Improvement Packs, which he opposed.
Hands is an Executive Member of the Thatcherite Conservative Way Forward (CWF) campaign group. At the 2006 Conservative Party Conference, on the same day as Shadow Chancellor George Osborne rejected the recommendations of the Forsyth Commission on tax (set up by Michael Howard after the 2005 General Election), Hands presided over a media event arranged by CWF where he drove a steamroller over cartoon taxmen, a symbol of his and their support for a Flat Tax press release. The Conservative has yet to announce it taxation policies for the next General Election.
In 2007, Hands was selected to be the Conservative candidate for the new Chelsea and Fulham parliamentary constituency. His current seat of Hammersmith and Fulham is being abolished for the next General Election, with Hammersmith having its own seat (being fought by Shaun Bailey for the Conservatives), and Fulham joining Chelsea in a new seat.
[edit] Personal life
He speaks German, French, Czech and Slovak. He and his wife Irina live in Fulham and he supports Fulham F.C.. He married half-German, half-Russian Irina Hundt in July 2005 in his constituency. His daughter, Helena, was born in 2006, and his son, Martin, was born in 2007. His wife has written books on Mallorca's business laws and international business communications.
