Sir David Anthony Evennett (born 3 June 1949, Romford) is a former Conservative politician. He was elected as Member of Parliament (MP) for Bexleyheath and Crayford at the 2005 general election. Previously he was the MP for Erith and Crayford between the 1983 and 1997 general elections. He served as Lord Commissioner of the Treasury from September to October 2022.[2][3] He retired as an MP at the July 2024 general election.[4][5]
Sir David Evennett | |
|---|---|
 Official portrait, 2019 | |
| Lord Commissioner of the Treasury | |
| In office 8 September 2022 – 27 October 2022 | |
| Prime Minister | Liz Truss |
| In office 4 September 2012 – 9 January 2018 | |
| Prime Minister | |
| Preceded by | Brooks Newmark |
| Succeeded by | Andrew Stephenson |
| Assistant Government Whip | |
| In office 8 July 2022 – 7 September 2022 | |
| Prime Minister | Boris Johnson |
| Vice Chairman of the Conservative Party for Business Engagement | |
| In office 5 August 2019 – 7 September 2022 | |
| Leader | Boris Johnson |
| Preceded by | Paul Scully |
| Succeeded by | Saqib Bhatti |
| Member of Parliament for Bexleyheath and Crayford | |
| In office 5 May 2005 – 30 May 2024 | |
| Preceded by | Nigel Beard |
| Succeeded by | Daniel Francis |
| Member of Parliament for Erith and Crayford | |
| In office 9 June 1983 – 8 April 1997 | |
| Preceded by | James Wellbeloved |
| Succeeded by | Constituency abolished |
| Personal details | |
| Born | David Anthony Evennett[1] 3 June 1949 Romford, Essex, England |
| Political party | Conservative |
| Spouse | Marilyn Smith |
| Alma mater | London School of Economics |
| Occupation | Politician |
Early life
editEvennett was educated at Buckhurst Hill County High School and the London School of Economics, where he was awarded an MSc in Economics. He began his career as a teacher at Ilford County High School between 1972 and 1974, from which post he resigned when he was elected to Redbridge London Borough Council (1974–78). From 1974 to 1981 he was also a marine insurance broker at Lloyd's, and he worked as a lecturer in management between 1997 and 2005.[6]
At the 1979 general election he contested the Labour seat of Hackney South and Shoreditch where he came second to Ronald Brown.
Parliamentary career
editThis section of a biography of a living person needs additional citations for verification. (January 2023) |
Erith and Crayford
editEvennett was elected as the Conservative MP for Erith and Crayford at the 1983 general election, when he defeated James Wellbeloved who had defected from the Labour Party to the newly formed Social Democrats in 1981. Evennett gained the seat with a majority of 920 votes over Wellbeloved. He remained the MP until the seat was redrawn in boundary changes at the 1997 general election.
In Parliament he joined the Education and Science Select committee in 1986. Following the 1992 general election he was appointed the Parliamentary Private Secretary (PPS) to the Minister of State at the Department for Education, Emily Blatch.
In 1993, he became the PPS to John Redwood, the Secretary of State for Wales, until 1995 when he was made PPS to the Home Office minister David Maclean, and then PPS to Gillian Shephard at the Department for Education in 1996, where he remained until he was defeated at the 1997 general election.
Bexleyheath and Crayford
editHe contested the newly drawn Bexleyheath and Crayford seat in 1997, but lost to Labour's Nigel Beard by 3,415 votes. He narrowly lost to Beard again at the 2001 general election but reduced his majority to 1,475. He was re-elected to Parliament for Bexleyheath and Crayford at the 2005 general election, ousting Beard by 4,551 votes. By winning back a seat which, albeit after boundary changes, he had lost in 1997, he became the only MP to have lost his seat in the Labour landslide of 1997, fought the same seat unsuccessfully in 2001 and then to have fought and won it back at the second attempt.
Following his re-election in 2005, he was made a member of the Education & Skills Select Committee and was appointed as an Opposition Whip by Michael Howard, and remained a whip under the new leadership of David Cameron. In January 2009, he was appointed Shadow Minister for Skills in the Conservative Innovation, Universities and Skills team.[7]
At the 2010 general election he was returned with a majority of 10,344, and was appointed PPS to Michael Gove, Secretary of State for Education. In 2012, he was appointed Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury (Government Whip) and remained in the role until January 2018.
In March 2015, he was appointed to the Privy Council of the United Kingdom and therefore granted the title The Right Honourable.[8]
From January 2016 to July 2016, he was the Acting Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Sport, Tourism and Heritage, to cover the maternity leave of Tracey Crouch.[9]
On 18 May 2018, it was announced that David Evennett would be knighted.[10]
In July 2019, the Prime Minister Boris Johnson appointed Evennett as a Vice Chairman of the Conservative Party.[citation needed]
On 6 June 2022, after a vote of no confidence in the leadership of Boris Johnson was called, Evennett announced that he would be supporting the Prime Minister.[11]
On 24 May 2024, Evennett announced that he did not plan to stand for re-election in the 2024 general election.[4]
Personal life
editHe married Marilyn Smith in 1975 in Redbridge; the couple have two sons and two grandchildren.[6]
References
edit- ^ "No. 61961". The London Gazette. 19 June 2017. p. 11776.
- ^ Prime Minister's Office, 10 Downing Street (6 September 2022). "Ministerial Appointments: September - October 2022". GOV.UK (Press release). Archived from the original on 27 May 2024. Retrieved 9 September 2022.
{{cite press release}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link) - ^ "The Rt Hon David Evennett MP". GOV.UK. Retrieved 9 September 2022.
- ^ a b Sir David Evennett MP [@DavidEvennettMP] (25 May 2024). "Statement from Rt Hon Sir David Evennett MP" (Tweet). House of Commons, London. Archived from the original on 27 May 2024. Retrieved 24 May 2024 – via Twitter.
With the unexpected calling of a General Election on Thursday 4 July, I have been considering my position and have decided to step down from active politics.
- ^ "The MPs who have announced they are standing down at the next general election". Sky News. 24 May 2024. Retrieved 27 May 2024.
- ^ a b "Biography of David Evennett". 21 June 2011. Archived from the original on 3 October 2016. Retrieved 18 April 2016.
- ^ "Parliamentary Career for Sir David Evennett". UK Parliament. Retrieved 11 July 2022.
- ^ "Privy Council appointments: March 2015". Press release. Prime Minister's Office. 12 March 2015. Archived from the original on 2 April 2015. Retrieved 13 March 2015.
- ^ "David Evennett MP appointed acting Sport, Tourism and Heritage Minister". Press release. Department for Culture, Media and Sport. Archived from the original on 9 April 2016. Retrieved 18 April 2016.
- ^ "Queen confers Peerages: 18 May 2018". GOV.UK. Archived from the original on 22 May 2018. Retrieved 21 May 2018.
- ^ Sir David Evennett MP [@DavidEvennettMP] (6 June 2022). "I will be supporting the PM in the vote this evening. I do not believe this is the right moment for a leadership contest, which would be extremely harmful to the country" (Tweet). Archived from the original on 27 May 2024 – via Twitter.
External links
edit
- David Evennett -- personal website Archived 7 August 2007 at the Wayback Machine, davidevennett.org.uk
- Profile at Parliament of the United Kingdom
- Contributions in Parliament at Hansard
- Voting record at Public Whip
- Record in Parliament at TheyWorkForYou
- "Tourism Minister visits North Tyneside" Archived 25 August 2017 at the Wayback Machine, newsguardian.co.uk
- Politics Archived 13 February 2009 at the Wayback Machine, bbc.co.uk