Robert Key (politician)

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

For other persons named Robert Key, see Robert Key (disambiguation).

Simon Robert Key known as Robert Key (born 22 April 1945, Plymouth) is a Conservative politician in the United Kingdom. He is the current Member of Parliament for Salisbury, Wiltshire.

Contents

[edit] Early life

He went to Salisbury Cathedral School, then independent Sherborne School. He studied economics at Clare College at the University of Cambridge, receiving an MA and CertEd. He taught at the Loretto School in Edinburgh from 1967-9, then taught economics at Harrow School from 1969-83.

[edit] Political career

He contested the Holborn and St Pancras South seat in 1979. He is Member of Parliament for Salisbury, and has been an MP since 1983. He was Minister for Local Government and Inner Cities in the Department of the Environment (now DEFRA) from 1990-2, setting up the Inner Cities Religious Council in 1991, and a junior minister at the Department of National Heritage (now Culture, Media and Sport) from 1992-3. He was Minister for Roads and Traffic from 1993-4. He served as a front-bench spokesman during the leaderships of William Hague and Iain Duncan Smith but is now a backbencher and a member of the Defence Select Committee. In 2001, he was the shadow minister for Science and Energy, and in July 2002 the shadow minister for International Development. He stood down in June 2003.

In 2005, he won re-election with an increased majority. From 1994-2001, he was a Director of Hortichem (Certis UK since 2001) in Amesbury.

[edit] Personal life

He is the son of John Maurice Key[1] who was the 10th Bishop of Truro from 1960-73, and Bishop of Sherborne from 1947-60. He married Scottish Susan Irvine in 1968 in Perth. They have one son and two daughters and live in Harnham. He is a committed choral singer and member of the Church of England.

[edit] External links

[edit] News items

Parliament of the United Kingdom
Preceded by
Michael Hamilton		 Member of Parliament for Salisbury
1983 – present		 Incumbent
Political offices
Preceded by
Robert Atkins		 Minister for Sport
1992–1993		 Succeeded by
Iain Sproat