| Natascha Engel MP | |
|---|---|
| Member of Parliament for North East Derbyshire |
|
| Incumbent | |
| Assumed office 5 May 2005 |
|
| Preceded by | Harry Barnes |
| Majority | 2,445 (5.2%) |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 9 April 1967 Berlin, Germany |
| Nationality | United Kingdom |
| Political party | Labour |
| Spouse(s) | David Salisbury-Jones |
| Children | three |
| Residence | United Kingdom |
| Alma mater | King's College London, University of Westminster |
| Profession | Translator; trade union official |
| Website | www.nataschaengelmp.org.uk |
Natascha Engel (born 9 April 1967) is a German-British Labour Party politician who has been the Member of Parliament (MP) for North East Derbyshire since 2005. She has extensive involvement in the trade union movement, and has close connections to Gordon Brown.
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Natascha Engel was born in Berlin, Germany to a German father and an English mother. She was educated at the independent Kent College in Canterbury, and at The King's School, Canterbury, she trained as a linguist in German and Portuguese at King's College London and at the University of Westminster where she obtained a Masters degree in Technical and Specialised Translation. In addition to her political career, Engel has done postgraduate work in translation: she speaks German, Spanish, and Portuguese.
While living in Madrid, Spain, Engel worked as a volunteer for two years in the local office of Amnesty International while earning a living as a teacher of English. After returning to Britain to work as a Teletext subtitler, Engel joined the Broadcasting, Entertainment, Cinematograph and Theatre Union. She was among the first join the Organising Academy of the Trade Union Congress, serving with the Graphical, Paper and Media Union; she worked on political fund ballots in persuading trade union members to retain their financial backing for the Labour Party.
Engel joined the Labour Party staff as a Trade Union Liaison Officer organising marginal seats campaigning at the 2001 general election. She later became policy co-ordinator for the Trade Union Liaison Office, before leaving to work as programme director of the Smith Institute. Her work there included researching on skills and the needs of working women. In October 2002 through the Smith Institute she co-authored the book Age of Regions: Meeting the Productivity Challenge.[1]
She was an assistant to John Healey in February 2003, and the two have co-written a pamphlet,[2] published by the TUC, and an article,[3] published by the New Statesman, arguing that unions should offer learning opportunities in order to recruit more members.
Despite the lack of local connections, she was selected as the Labour candidate for North East Derbyshire following the decision of the sitting Labour MP Harry Barnes not to stand in the 2005 general election. Her connections with allies of Gordon Brown were remarked upon.[4] Engel took the seat, easily, with a majority of 10,065. She bought a house at Barrow Hill in her constituency in July 2006.
In the May 2010 elections, Engel experienced one of the largest constituency swings against her from Labour and other parties to Tory (8.6%) effectively reducing the constituency from, historically, a safe Labour seat to a marginal.
When Select Committees were established in the new Parliament, Engel was named to the Work and Pensions Select Committee. She made her maiden speech on 20 October 2005, the last of the incoming Labour MPs to do so, paying tribute to her predecessor Harry Barnes for his work. In the speech Engel concentrated on constituency affairs, supporting devolution of power and resources to local communities and highlighting examples in Staveley and Grassmoor. She referred to socialism as "the simple idea that if someone helps their neighbour, their neighbour will help them".[5]
In 2006, Engel's name was included on a list of 15 up and coming Labour MPs compiled for News Corporation.[6] Engel became Secretary of the All-Party Media Literacy Group in 2006.[7] She backed Peter Hain for the Labour Party deputy leadership in the 2007 election,[8] and served as Parliamentary Private Secretary to Hain from July 2007 until Hain resigned from the Government in January 2008. Engel left the Work and Pensions Committee in November 2007.[9] She performed the same role for Liam Byrne from October 2008, transferring to work for John Denham from January 2009. Engel was appointed to the Select Committee on Reform of the House of Commons when it was set up in July 2009.[10] She did not agree with the committee's report, which contained proposals for the creation of a committee to schedule backbench business, the establishment of a committee to set the Commons' agenda and the election of select committee chairs by secret ballot. She felt those three changes would transfer power 'from one elite—in this case, the Executive—and handing it to another—a group of senior Back Benchers'. She also said they would be 'a step in the wrong direction' because they were small changes that would risk standing in the way of more sweeping reforms as MPs would essentially be telling themselves and the public 'we've done [reform], we will move on'.[11] Engel drafted a minority report that proposed restarting the committee's work after the 2010 election, when it would have more time to investigate and deliberate.[12]
On 15 June 2010, the House of Commons voted to create a Backbench Business Committee, and one week later, Engel defeated Sir Alan Haselhurst 202 to 173 in a secret ballot of MPs to become its first chair.[13] On 6 July 2011 she was named "Backbencher of the Year" for her work with the committee. [14]
In February 2007 Engel introduced a 'ten minute rule' Bill which proposed to require doctors to supply free condoms at their surgeries, noting that the Bill had the support of the Family Planning Association, Terrence Higgins Trust, Royal College of General Practitioners, and the Royal College of Nursing.[15] She took a period of maternity leave from December 2007.[16] In December 2008 she signed the joint letter organised by Richard Burden which condemned the escalated conflict in the Gaza Strip and calling for an immediate ceasefire on all sides.[17] Engel was one of the fifteen MPs to formally nominate John Bercow as the new Speaker of the House of Commons in the election in June 2009.[18] She became chair of the All Party Insolvency Group in 2009.[19]
Engel has not broken the Labour whip in her time in Parliament.[20] Asked in an interview in 2005 "If you were an MP at the time, how did you vote on military action in Iraq?", Engel answered, "Against".[21] After entering Parliament Engel opposed motions proposed by opposition parties calling for an independent inquiry on the Iraq war,[22] supporting the Government's proposal for an inquiry after British troops left.[23] Engel collaborated on a chapter in the Institute for Public Policy Research book "Politics for a New Generation" in 2007 which was titled "Moving on up: Progression in the Labour Market".[24]In October 2008 Engel called for Labour MPs to be given a free vote on the issue of banning smacking of children, complaining that she was put in an "impossible position of choosing between party loyalty and a reform that we believe in passionately".[25]
Engel represents the Labour Party on the Board of Trustees of the UK Youth Parliament and has worked to encourage young people to participate in democracy. With her local council she set up a 'Question Time' event for local pupils to question a panel including then-cabinet member Geoff Hoon and the leader of the council.[26] In December 2007 she was a sponsor of a Private member's bill introduced by Julie Morgan which would have reduced the voting age to 16.[27] Engel became chair of the All Party Parliamentary Group on Youth Affairs in 2008,[28][29] In a Fabian Society survey of some Labour MPs in Autumn 2007, her suggestion for the Labour manifesto for the next general election was that sex and relationship education should be compulsory in all schools and taught by a professional.[30]
At the ePolitix Charity Champion awards in November 2007, Engel was named "Children and Youth Champion" for her work.[31][32] At the 2007-08 annual general meeting of the British Youth Council, she was chosen as an Honorary President of the council.[33]
Engel was a leading member of a campaign to build what would have been the world's largest sundial in her constituency, putting forward an 'early day motion' in its support.[34] In February 2009 Engel asked Prime Minister Gordon Brown about "unscrupulous bus companies" who she claimed issued pensioners with tickets for far longer journeys than requested, in order to overcharge the local authorities which paid for their travel.[35] Stagecoach Yorkshire, which operated buses in her constituency, pointed out that the company had agreed a fixed charge with Derbyshire County Council, so that such a practice would not benefit them.[36]
In May 2009, during the expenses scandal the Derby Telegraph contacted all local MPs[37] and Engel responded by providing the paper with all her claim forms.[38] The paper subsequently invited other MPs to do the same but only Judy Mallaber accepted.[38] The Sunday Telegraph, published ten days later, showed that after her election in 2005 Engel claimed £158.45 incidental expenses for "political history" items some of which she told the paper she would repay.[39] Also in 2005 she advised the Fees office of above limits second home claims for a £1,800 television, £2,900 sofa and £1,950 bed, paying the £3150 excess though £1666 worth of kitchen goods were paid in full.[40] Following the publication Engel set up meetings to answer questions though these were not well attended.[41]
She admitted that with hindsight she would not have claimed for some kitchen items which were "the letter, ..not the spirit, of the law. However she had to set up a second home, she'd paid out the money and hadn’t acted corruptly so she wouldn't be repaying it.[38]
The Sunday Telegraph's claim that Engel came low on the list of 'value for money' MPs[39] was itself criticised by the Guardian for failing to mention that Engel had two periods of maternity leave[42] whilst Engel herself wrote an article linking the expenses and hours of Parliament to the difficulties of raising a young family.[43] "The expenses debate ..has forced MPs to talk to the people they represent ..Only when people realise that we split our time between constituency and Westminster can they begin to understand why we even have a second-home allowance." [43]
The Legg Report[44] showed that 343 MPs had been asked to repay money, including several from Derbyshire.[45] Engel repaid £1,934 of which she said £1,339 was a mortgage claim the Fees office paid twice which she repaid immediately whilst £595 was a refund of a house rental deposit.[45]
| Parliament of the United Kingdom | ||
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| Preceded by Harry Barnes |
Member of Parliament for North East Derbyshire 2005–present |
Incumbent |
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