Oliver Heald

For the Canadian soccer player, see Ollie Heald.

Oliver Heald MP
Shadow Leader of the House of Commons
In office 11 November 2003 – 10 May 2005
Leader	Michael Howard
Preceded by	Eric Forth
Succeeded by	Chris Grayling
Member of Parliament for North East Hertfordshire North Hertfordshire (1992-1997)
Incumbent
Assumed office 9 April 1992
Preceded by	Ian Stewart
Majority	15,194 (30.1%)
Personal details
Born	15 December 1954 (1954-12-15) (age 56) Reading, Berkshire, England
Nationality	English
Political party	Conservative
Spouse(s)	Christine Whittle
Alma mater	Pembroke College, Cambridge
Religion	Church of England
Website	www.oliverhealdmp.com

Oliver Heald (born 15 December 1954) is a British barrister and Conservative politician, and the Member of Parliament (MP) for North East Hertfordshire.

Background

Heald was born in Reading, Berkshire, and was educated at the Reading School and Pembroke College, Cambridge where he studied law. He was called to the bar at the Middle Temple in 1977 and was a practising barrister in London and East Anglia from 1979 until he became a government minister in 1995.

Early career

He became the chairman of the North Hertfordshire Conservative Association for two years from 1984. He unsuccessfully contested the London Borough of Southwark seat of Southwark and Bermondsey at the 1987 General Election but finished in third place some 12,550 behind the sitting Liberal MP Simon Hughes. He became the vice president of the Southwark and Bermondsey Conservative Association in 1988 for five years, becoming the president for five years from 1993. He was elected to the House of Commons for North Hertfordshire at the 1992 general election following the retirement of the Conservative MP Ian Stewart. He held the seat with a majority of 16,531 and has remained an MP since. He made his maiden speech on 9 June 1992 in which he spoke of his political beginnings on a soapbox at Speaker's Corner.[1] His seat was abolished and since the 1997 General Election he has represented the new seat of North East Hertfordshire.

In Government

In parliament he served on the education select committee for two years from 1992. He was appointed as the Parliamentary Private Secretary (PPS) to the Minister of State at the Home Office Peter Lloyd in 1994. Later in the year he became the PPS to the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food William Waldegrave. He was promoted to serve in the government of John Major in 1995 when he was appointed as the Parliamentary Under Secretary of State at the Department of Social Security, where he remained until the fall of the Conservative government in 1997. In 1995 he introduced the Insurance Companies (Reserves) Act.[2]

In Opposition

Following the 1997 general election he became an Opposition Whip under the new leadership of William Hague, before moving on to become a spokesman on home affairs with responsibility for police matters. He was made a spokesman on health by Iain Duncan Smith for a year in 2001, until he joined his shadow cabinet as the Shadow Secretary of State for Work and Pensions in 2002. He was appointed Shadow Leader of the House of Commons by Michael Howard in 2003. In 2004 he was then appointed to serve as Shadow Secretary of State for Constitutional Affairs and in 2005 was appointed by David Cameron as the Shadow Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster.

In July 2007 he became a backbencher following 13 years' continuous service on the Conservative Front Bench. In November 2007 Heald was appointed as a member of the Work and Pensions Select Committee and in March 2008 he became a member of the Committee on Standards in Public Life.

Other interests

Oliver became the executive Chairman of the Society of Conservative Lawyers in July 2008.

Personal life

He takes a particular interest in healthcare. He is married to Christine (née Whittle) and they have a son and two daughters. They live in the constituency, in the market town of Royston. He cites Willie Whitelaw as a mentor.

External links

• Oliver Heald MP official site
• Oliver Heald's Blog official blog
• Guardian Unlimited Politics - Ask Aristotle: Oliver Heald MP
• TheyWorkForYou.com - Oliver Heald MP
• Open Rights Group - Oliver Heald MP

Parliament of the United Kingdom
Preceded by Ian Stewart	Member of Parliament for North Hertfordshire 1992–1997	Constituency abolished
New constituency	Member of Parliament for North East Hertfordshire 1997–present	Incumbent

Persondata
Name	Heald, Oliver
Alternative names
Short description
Date of birth	15 December 1954
Place of birth	Reading, Berkshire
Date of death
Place of death