Laurence Robertson

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Laurence Anthony Robertson (born 29 March 1958, Bolton, Lancashire) is a British politician. He has been Conservative Member of Parliament for Tewkesbury, Gloucestershire since 1997. In May 2005, he was appointed Shadow Minister for Northern Ireland, a controversial choice given his opposition to the Good Friday Agreement.

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[edit] Early life

His father was a miner, then a milkman. His mother was an office worker in Manchester. He was educated at St James's C.E. Secondary School (then a secondary modern school) on Lucas Road; Farnworth Grammar School on Manchester Road in Farnworth and Bolton Institute of Higher Education (now the University of Bolton), gaining a diploma in Management Services. He working life has including him work as a charity fund-raising (where he claims to have raised over £1 million), public relations consultant, company director, factory owner from 1987-8, industrial management consultant from 1983-9, and work study engineer from 1977-83.

[edit] Personal life

He married Susan Lees in May 1989 in Bolton. They have two step daughters, including Jemma. He has been actively involved in sports, especially golf, horses and marathons, of which he has completed 6, including the 1994 New York Marathon. Between 1988-1991, he has been Chairman of Governors of a primary school, a Visitor for Victim Support Scheme, and the Area Chairman for the Campaign for Law and Order.

[edit] Political Life

He was a candidate in Makerfield in the 1987 General Election and Ashfield in 1992.

Following his 1997 Election to the House of Commons, he courted controversy in 2001 by offering support for John Townend over his controversial remarks about race; he later apologised for any offence caused by offering this support. In 2005, he advanced a Private Member's Bill to outlaw abortion altogether, making it an imprisonable offence except where the mother's life was at risk or where conception was due to rape.

In September 2001, he was appointed an Opposition Whip. In June 2003, was made Shadow Minister for Trade & Industry. In November 2003, he was appointed a Shadow Minister for Economic Affairs. Since May 2005, he has served as the Shadow Minister for Northern Ireland.

Politically, he is interested in the following areas: Law and Order, Education, European Policy, the Constitution, Small Businesses, the Economy and Rural Issues. He is also a member of the right-wing pressure group The Freedom Association.

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Parliament of the United Kingdom
Preceded by
new constituency		 Member of Parliament for Tewkesbury
1997 – present		 Incumbent