Neil Carmichael (Conservative politician)

Neil Carmichael
Member of Parliament for Stroud
Incumbent
Assumed office 6 May 2010
Preceded by	David Drew
Majority	1,299 (2.3%)
Personal details
Born	(1961-04-15) 15 April 1961[1] Hexham, Northumberland, England
Nationality	English
Political party	Conservative
Alma mater	University of Nottingham
Website	neilcarmichael.co.uk

William Neil Carmichael^[2] (born 15 April 1961^[3] in Hexham) is an English Conservative Party politician. He has been the Member of Parliament (MP) for the Stroud constituency in Gloucestershire since the 2010 general election.

Politics

Carmichael began his political career after being elected to Northumberland County Council in 1989 on which he served four years,^[4] during this time he was an unsuccessful parliamentary candidate in the 1992 General Election in the seat of Leeds East.^[5]

In 1999 he moved to Gloucestershire where he was selected to stand for the Conservatives in the parliamentary seat of Stroud, losing to Labour in 2001 and in 2005.^[6]

Parliamentary career

Neil Carmichael managed to win the seat of Stroud in the 2010 General Election, with a 2% swing to the Conservatives from Labour with a majority of 1,299.^[7]

On entering Parliament he made his maiden speech on 2 June 2010^[8] and became a member of the Environmental Audit Committee,^[9] the task of whom is to monitor the worthiness of all government department activity from the perspective of cutting carbon emissions. He also sits on the Education Committee at the House of Commons^[10] with the duty to scrutinise the Department for Education and provide oversight on behalf of Parliament.

In 2011 he founded the All Party Group on Education, Governance and Leadership^[11] as a consequence of publishing a report seeking to influence the government to enact a policy on the reform of school governance. The report, Who Governs the Governors: School Governance in the Twenty First Century, was co-authored by Neil Carmichael and Edward Wild. Key recommendations include ensuring that school governing boards have a suitable mix of skills and a diverse representation, that a national campaign and database be set up to encourage more people to become governors, that boards ideally consist of around 12 members, that it is important to have a strong chair, succession planning and fixed terms and that parents are able to dismiss chairs or entire boards if they are seriously dissatisfied with their performance.^[12] He is also the Secretary of the Associate Parliamentary Health Group.^[13]

In 2012, he founded the All Party Parliamentary Group on Vascular Disease . A cross party group of MPs and Peers which raises awareness and encourages further research into vascular disease. As Chair of the group he is the Co-author of two reports; "Putting Vascular Disease at the Centre of Government Thinking” which found there to be over 5,000 needless leg amputations a year and “ Tackling peripheral arterial disease more effectively: Saving limbs, Saving Lives” which highlighted the regional differences in amputation rates throughout England. ^[14]

Neil Carmichael is recognised to be one of the most active debaters in the House of Commons; the BBC reported in July 2011 that he ranks fourth amongst more than 200 MPs who were first elected in 2010 in the number of debates that they have attended.^[15] As of 14 September 2011 he has voted in over 88% of divisions since becoming an MP, far above the average.^[16] Though being an active debater, he has always voted exactly in line with the Conservative whip,^[17] and on just one occasion he has voted in a the opposite direction to the majority of voting Conservatives in a motion to bring a bill.^[18]

Controversy

In 2010 Neil Carmichael was accused of hypocrisy over Wind farms^[19][20] by locals in Northumberland were unhappy over his support on for a wind farm development on land that he owns at Bavington Hill Head Farm in Northumberland while as a Conservative candidate describing a single turbine proposed at Nympsfield as a “monstrosity”, and pledging to work to protect Gloucestershire’s rural landscapes from “excessive” developments. Carmichael's argument is that many proposed schemes in Gloucestershire border on, or are in, the Cotswolds Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty whereas the proposed scheme in Northumberland has no such concerns.

He recently reiterated his position on hypocrisy by voting with the Government against an amendment to allow licensees to choose a non-tied pub license after having promised members of CAMRA that he would vote for the amendment. ^[21]

References

External links

• Official website of Neil Carmichael MP
• Houses of Parliament Biography
• The "They work for you" site for him