David Davis

The Right Honourable David Michael Davis (born December 23, 1948) is a British politician, Conservative MP for Haltemprice and Howden and Shadow Home Secretary.

Political Career

Davis was first elected to Parliament in the 1987 general election as the MP for Boothferry which later became the constituency of Haltemprice and Howden. He was a government whip when parliament voted on the Maastricht Treaty in 1992, angering many of the Maastricht rebels on his own right-wing of the party. Davis' progression through the Conservative ranks eventually led to him becoming a Minister of State at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (1994-1997).

Related Topics:
1987 general election - Boothferry - Haltemprice and Howden - Whip - Maastricht Treaty - 1992 - Maastricht rebels - Right-wing - Foreign and Commonwealth Office - 1994 - 1997

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In the following parliament, Davis held the position of Chairman of the House of Commons Public Accounts Committee. In this role he began to build a reputation, and some Conservatives started to mention him as being a potential future leader of the Conservative Party.

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Following the resignation of William Hague he contested the 2001 election for the leadership of the Conservative Party, finishing fourth and being appointed Chairman of the Conservative Party by the eventual winner, Iain Duncan Smith. His most notable action in this post was the suspension of the Monday Club's affiliation with the Conservative Party because of its perceived inflammatory views on race.

Related Topics:
William Hague - 2001 election for the leadership of the Conservative Party - Iain Duncan Smith - Monday Club

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In 2002 Duncan Smith replaced Davis with Theresa May. Davis was on a family holiday in Florida at the time and the manner of his sacking ensured a significant amount of sympathy among Conservative Party members. His new position was to shadow the Deputy Prime Minister John Prescott as Shadow Secretary of State for the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister. This was largely viewed as a demotion. When Duncan Smith was removed as Conservative leader by a vote of no confidence, Davis surprised commentators by quickly announcing that he would not stand for the leadership. He lent his support to Michael Howard who was not challenged allowing an uncontested election to take place. He was rewarded for this with a new role as Shadow Home Secretary.

Related Topics:
2002 - Theresa May - Florida - Deputy Prime Minister - John Prescott - Vote of no confidence - Michael Howard - Home Secretary

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In the role he successfully gained the 'scalp' of the then Immigration Minister Beverley Hughes who was forced to resign in the wake of allegations that checks on Eastern European migrants had been waived, and for misleading the House of Commons. Davis was praised for his role in holding her to account at that time, and is widely tipped as one of the main candidates for the Conservative leadership election due soon.

Related Topics:
Beverley Hughes - House of Commons - Conservative leadership election due soon

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Davis is perceived to be socially conservative, and has opposed many on the modernising wing of the party on issues such as the repeal of Section 28. However, when the gay Conservative MP Michael Brown was pictured on holiday with a 20-year-old man in 1994 (when the age of consent was still 21), Davis drove to Brown's home to offer his help. Brown was quoted in the Sunday Telegraph as saying of Davis, "He took care of me and got me through it when Michael Portillo and others ran 10,000 miles in the opposite direction."

Related Topics:
Socially conservative - Section 28 - 1994

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At the UK 2005 General Election, he was targeted by the Liberal Democrats as part of their so called "decapitation plan", an attempt to undermine the Conservatives in Parliament by defeating their leading members. The targeting failed and Davis actually trebled his majority to over 5,000 votes (5,116, up from 1,913) his share of the votes increasing by 4.3%.

Related Topics:
UK 2005 General Election - Liberal Democrats

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His seat Haltemprice and Howden is in part the seat that was occupied by the fictional Conservative MP Alan B'Stard in the 1980s ITV sitcom The New Statesman.

Related Topics:
Haltemprice and Howden - 1980s - ITV - Sitcom - The New Statesman

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