Difference between revisions of "Amber Rudd"

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(Extra Jobs: Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, Parliamentary Undersecretary of State for Climate Change, Parliamentary Private Secretary to the Chancellor of the Exchequer. Added: spouses, website, birth_place.)
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{{person
 
{{person
|constitutes=Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change
+
|constitutes=politician
 
|wikipedia=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amber_Rudd
 
|wikipedia=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amber_Rudd
|twitter=amberruddhr
+
|twitter=https://twitter.com/amberruddhr
 
|facebook=https://www.facebook.com/amberruddhr
 
|facebook=https://www.facebook.com/amberruddhr
 
|birth_date=1 August 1963
 
|birth_date=1 August 1963
 
|image=Amber_Rudd.jpg
 
|image=Amber_Rudd.jpg
 
|image_width=200px
 
|image_width=200px
|description=
 
 
|spouses=A. A. Gill
 
|spouses=A. A. Gill
 
|website=http://amberrudd.co.uk
 
|website=http://amberrudd.co.uk
|birth_name=
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|description=British Conservative Party politician. Opponent of [[Brexit]].
 +
|birth_name=Amber Augusta Rudd
 
|birth_place=London, United Kingdom
 
|birth_place=London, United Kingdom
 
|nationality=British
 
|nationality=British
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|children=2
 
|children=2
 
|relatives=Roland Rudd (lobbyist)
 
|relatives=Roland Rudd (lobbyist)
|alma_mater=Cheltenham Ladies College, University of Edinburgh
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|alma_mater=Queen's College London, Cheltenham Ladies' College, University of Edinburgh
|religion=
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|religion=Christian
 +
|powerbase=http://www.powerbase.info/index.php/Amber_Rudd
 +
|parents=Tony Rudd, Ethne Fitzgerald
 
|employment={{job
 
|employment={{job
|title=Member of Parliament for Hastings and Rye
+
|title=Secretary of State for Work and Pensions
|start=6 May 2010
+
|start=16 November 2018
|end=
+
|end=7 September 2019
 +
}}{{job
 +
|title=Minister for Women and Equalities
 +
|start=24 July 2019
 +
|end=7 September 2019
 +
}}{{job
 +
|title=Home Secretary
 +
|start=13 July 2016
 +
|end=29 April 2018
 
}}{{job
 
}}{{job
|title=Minister of State, Department of Energy and Climate Change
+
|title=Minister for Women and Equalities
|start=15 July 2014
+
|start=9 January 2018
|end=7 May 2015
+
|end=30 April 2018
 
}}{{job
 
}}{{job
 
|title=Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change
 
|title=Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change
 
|start=11 May 2015
 
|start=11 May 2015
|end=
+
|end=13 July 2016
 
}}{{job
 
}}{{job
 
|title=Parliamentary Undersecretary of State for Climate Change
 
|title=Parliamentary Undersecretary of State for Climate Change
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|start=10 September 2012
 
|start=10 September 2012
 
|end=7 October 2013
 
|end=7 October 2013
 +
}}{{job
 +
|title=Member of Parliament for Hastings and Rye
 +
|start=6 May 2010
 +
|end=6 November 2019
 
}}
 
}}
 
}}
 
}}
'''Amber Rudd''' (born London, 1 August 1963)<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.theargus.co.uk/news/elections/general_election_2010/constituencies/33.hastings___rye/candidates/2676._amber_rudd |title=Amber Rudd |publisher=The Argus |accessdate=9 May 2010}}</ref> is a British Conservative Party politician who was elected as Member of Parliament (MP) for the East Sussex constituency of Hastings and Rye at the May 2010 general election, defeating the incumbent Labour MP Michael Foster.
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'''Amber Rudd''' (born London, 1 August 1963) is a British [[Conservative Party]] politician.
 +
 
 +
She was [[Secretary of State for Work and Pensions]] from 2018 to 2019. She was [[Home Secretary]] succeeding [[Theresa May]] on 13 July 2016 and was given the additional role of [[Minister for Women and Equalities]] in January 2018.<ref>''[https://twitter.com/MatthewScottPCC/status/755830622405419008 "Meeting with new Home Sec @AmberRudd_MP and Policing Minister @BrandonLewis"]''</ref> In April 2018, Amber Rudd was replaced as [[Home Secretary]] by [[Sajid Javid]] and as [[Minister for Women and Equalities]] by [[Penny Mordaunt]].
 +
 
 +
On 16 November 2018, Rudd was appointed [[Secretary of State for Work and Pensions]] by Prime Minister [[Theresa May]], following the resignation of [[Esther McVey]]. She was re-appointed by [[Boris Johnson]] on 24 July 2019 and succeeded [[Penny Mordaunt]] in her previous portfolio as [[Minister for Women and Equalities]].<ref>''[https://www.hastingsobserver.co.uk/news/politics/amber-rudd-to-serve-in-boris-johnson-s-government-1-9010685 "Amber Rudd to serve in Boris Johnson’s Government"]''</ref>
  
Following the 7 May 2015 general election, Amber Rudd was appointed Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change and became a member of the Privy Council.<ref>{{cite web | title= Cabinet reshuffle: Amber Rudd and Sajid Javid promoted| url= http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/election-2015-32683868| author=<!--Staff writer(s); no by-line.-->|date= 11 May 2015| website= BBC News Online | accessdate= 9 July 2015}}</ref><ref>[http://privycouncil.independent.gov.uk/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/Privy-Council-business-and-order-14-may-2015.pdf "Privy Council 14 May 2015"]</ref>
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Amber Rudd was first elected [[Member of Parliament]] (MP) for Hastings and Rye constituency in the 2010 UK General Election.<ref>''[http://www.theargus.co.uk/news/elections/general_election_2010/constituencies/33.hastings___rye/candidates/2676._amber_rudd "Amber Rudd -profile"]''</ref>
 +
 
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She left Parliament in 2019.
  
 
==Education==
 
==Education==
From 1974-1979, Amber Rudd was educated at Cheltenham Ladies' College,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.clcguild.org/news/the_slab.html|title=CLC Guild - Guild Members in the News - Amber Rudd|work=Cheltenham Ladies' College|accessdate=8 June 2015}}</ref> a boarding independent school in Cheltenham in Gloucestershire, and from 1979-1981 at Queen's College, London,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.qcl.org.uk/mobile/former-pupils.php|title=Former pupils - Amber Rudd|work=Queen's College, London|accessdate=8 June 2015}}</ref> an independent day school for girls in London, followed by the University of Edinburgh.
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From 1974-1979, Amber Rudd was educated at Cheltenham Ladies' College,<ref>http://www.clcguild.org/news/the_slab.html</ref> a boarding independent school in Cheltenham in Gloucestershire, and from 1979-1981 at Queen's College, London,<ref>http://www.qcl.org.uk/mobile/former-pupils.php</ref> an independent day school for girls in London, followed by the University of Edinburgh.
  
==Business career==
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==Career==
After graduating from Edinburgh University with a degree in history, Amber Rudd joined [[JPMorgan Chase|J.P. Morgan & Co.]], working in both London and New York. She then worked in venture capital in London, raising funds for small businesses. After working as a financial journalist, she founded specialist executive search and human resources consultancy Lawnstone Ltd,<ref>{{cite web|author= |url=http://www.eurograduate.com/article.asp?id=2864&pid=6 |title=Banking & Finance Graduate Careers Jobs & Opportunities - News Information & Advice |publisher=Eurograduate.com |date= |accessdate=2015-05-18}}</ref> with clients in financial services and in business media.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.conservatives.com/People/Members_of_Parliament/Rudd_Amber.aspx |title=Amber Rudd, Member of Parliament for Hastings and Rye|publisher=Conservative Party |accessdate=9 May 2010| archiveurl= http://web.archive.org/web/20100511073241/http://www.conservatives.com/People/Members_of_Parliament/Rudd_Amber.aspx| archivedate= 11 May 2010 <!--DASHBot-->| deadurl= no}}</ref> She helped to find extras for the film ''Four Weddings and a Funeral'' for which she was credited as the "aristocracy co-ordinator", and appeared briefly in one of the church scenes in the film.
 
  
==Political career==
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===Business===
At the 2005 general election, Amber Rudd was the Conservative candidate for the Labour-held seat of Liverpool, Garston.
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After graduating from Edinburgh University with a degree in history, Amber Rudd joined [[JPMorgan Chase|J.P. Morgan & Co.]], working in both London and New York. She then worked in venture capital in London, raising funds for small businesses. After working as a financial journalist, she founded specialist executive search and human resources consultancy Lawnstone Ltd,<ref>http://www.eurograduate.com/article.asp?id=2864&pid=6 </ref> with clients in financial services and in business media.<ref>http://web.archive.org/web/20100511073241/http://www.conservatives.com/People/Members_of_Parliament/Rudd_Amber.aspx</ref> She helped to find extras for the film ''Four Weddings and a Funeral'' for which she was credited as the "aristocracy co-ordinator", and appeared briefly in one of the church scenes in the film.
  
Her name was subsequently added to the Conservative A-List and selected to contest the Hastings and Rye constituency in 2006, moving to the old town in 2007. In the 2010 General Election, Rudd was elected as the MP for Hastings & Rye with a majority of 1,993 votes. Shortly afterwards, Rudd was elected to serve as a Conservative member on the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Select Committee.
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===Politics===
  
Amber Rudd is vice-chair of the Parliamentary committee on Female Genital Mutilation, which has campaigned against FGM and called for tougher legal penalties in the area. She has championed the cause of sex equality as chairperson of the APPG for Sex Equality,<ref>{{cite web|title=All-Party Parliamentary Group for Sex Equality|url=http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm/cmallparty/register/sex-equality.htm|website=Parliament UK|accessdate=30 March 2015}}</ref> which published a report on women in work. Rudd chaired a cross-party enquiry into unplanned pregnancies which called for statutory sex and relationships education in all secondary schools.<ref>{{cite news|last1=Stratton|first1=Allegra|title=MPs call for compulsory relationship education|url=http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-20785049|accessdate=30 March 2015|work=BBC News|date=19 December 2012}}</ref> She has also called for a higher proportion of women in Cabinet.<ref>{{cite news | url=http://www.theguardian.com/society/2012/nov/25/women-equality-gender-gap-bishops | title=Has the drive towards sexual equality gone into reverse? | work=The Guardian | date=25 November 2012 | accessdate=11 May 2015 | author=Roberts, Yvonne}}</ref>
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At the 2005 general election, Amber Rudd was the [[Conservative party]] candidate for the Labour-held seat of Liverpool, Garston. Her name was subsequently added to the Conservative A-List and selected to contest the Hastings and Rye constituency in 2006, moving to the old town in 2007. In the [[2010 General Election]], Rudd was elected as the MP for Hastings & Rye with a majority of 1,993 votes. Shortly afterwards, Rudd was elected to serve as a Conservative member on the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Select Committee.
  
In September 2012, she was made Parliamentary Private Secretary to the Chancellor of the Exchequer, [[George Osborne]].<ref>{{cite news|url= http://www.hastingsobserver.co.uk/news/local-news/amber-rudd-mp-in-new-role-with-chancellor-1-4255204 |title=Amber Rudd MP in new role with Chancellor| work=Hastings Observer |date=13 September 2012 |accessdate=12 December 2012}}</ref> In October 2013, she became an assistant government whip. In July 2014, Rudd was appointed Minister of State at the Department for Energy and Climate Change (DECC).<ref>{{cite news |last= Gosden |first= Emily |title= Cabinet reshuffle: Chancellor's allies Matt Hancock and Amber Rudd join energy department|url= http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/newsbysector/energy/10969165/Cabinet-reshuffle-Chancellors-allies-Matt-Hancock-and-Amber-Rudd-join-energy-department.html| date=15 July 2014|newspaper= The Daily Telegraph |location=London|accessdate=17 July 2015 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url= http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-28303854|title= Reshuffle at-a-glance: In, out and moved about|author=<!--Staff writer(s); no by-line.--> |date=15 July 2014 |website=BBC News Online | accessdate=17 July 2015}}</ref>
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Amber Rudd is vice-chair of the Parliamentary committee on Female Genital Mutilation, which has campaigned against FGM and called for tougher legal penalties in the area. She has championed the cause of sex equality as chairperson of the APPG for Sex Equality,<ref>http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm/cmallparty/register/sex-equality.htm</ref> which published a report on women in work. Rudd chaired a cross-party enquiry into unplanned pregnancies which called for statutory sex and relationships education in all secondary schools.<ref>http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-20785049</ref> She has also called for a higher proportion of women in Cabinet.<ref>http://www.theguardian.com/society/2012/nov/25/women-equality-gender-gap-bishops</ref>
  
==Lobbyist brother Roland Rudd==
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In September 2012, she was made Parliamentary [[Private Secretary to the Chancellor of the Exchequer]], [[George Osborne]].<ref>http://www.hastingsobserver.co.uk/news/local-news/amber-rudd-mp-in-new-role-with-chancellor-1-4255204 </ref> In October 2013, she became an assistant government whip. In July 2014, Rudd was appointed Minister of State at the Department for Energy and Climate Change (DECC).<ref>http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/newsbysector/energy/10969165/Cabinet-reshuffle-Chancellors-allies-Matt-Hancock-and-Amber-Rudd-join-energy-department.html</ref><ref>http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-28303854</ref>
In July 2015, ''Private Eye'' reported that Amber Rudd faces a potential conflict of interest because she is to decide on the proposed Hinkley Point C nuclear power station whilst her brother [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roland_Rudd Roland Rudd] is chairman (and founder) of Finsbury, which represents a construction company with a £100m contract to help build the nuclear plant. The ''Private Eye'' report noted that despite the MPs’ register of interests including a new category of 'family members engaged in lobbying' Rudd "makes no mention of her brother or his interests", and added, "The ''Eye'' asked the Department of Energy & Climate Change if Rudd had told its permanent secretary about Roland and Finsbury (another conflict of interest procedure) but it did not reply".<ref>{{cite news | title= Amber Warning| author=<!--Staff writer(s); no by-line.-->|date= 10 July 2015 | work= Private Eye |issue= 1396| page= 12}}</ref>
 
  
The links between decisions to be taken by the Department for Energy and Climate Change and Rudd’s brother’s lobbying interests had previously been reported in ''The Daily Mail''. In May 2015, the newspaper’s chief political correspondent, Daniel Martin, reported that Rudd would not be making a decision on plans by Halite Energy Group to store natural gas in underground caves in Lancashire. Halite is represented by the lobbying firm Rudd’s brother chairs. Martin reported: "It is one of the first big decisions in Energy Secretary Amber Rudd’s in-tray – but she won’t be making it. Last night Miss Rudd conceded that she would play no part in the decision. But the Department for Energy and Climate Change insisted that this was not because of any conflict of interest. A spokesman said the decision was never due to have been made by her, and that it would be down to a junior minister. But last night officials were unable to say which minister would make the decision."<ref>{{cite news |last= Martin |first= Daniel |title= The Energy Secretary, her brother and an explosive decision she WON'T be making|url= http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3101626/Energy-minister-brother-explosive-decision-WON-T-making.html| date=29 May 2015|work= [[Mail Online]] | accessdate=17 July 2015 }}</ref>
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Following the 7 May 2015 general election, Amber Rudd was appointed [[Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change]] and became a member of the [[Privy Council]].<ref>http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/election-2015-32683868</ref><ref>[http://privycouncil.independent.gov.uk/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/Privy-Council-business-and-order-14-may-2015.pdf "Privy Council 14 May 2015"]</ref>
  
==Comments about Hastings==
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==Nuclear power advocacy==
In April 2013, a profile of Amber Rudd appeared in the ''Financial Times''<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.ft.com/cms/s/2/97b6f7e6-ad46-11e2-b27f-00144feabdc0.html#axzz2bH8rFtkx |title=The Battle for Hastings|work=Financial Times |date=26 April 2013 |accessdate=6 August 2013}}</ref> which caused upset to some in her constituency as it reported her referring to "people who are on benefits, who prefer to be on benefits by the seaside...moving down here to have easier access to friends and drugs and drink". She responded by stating that "I am incredibly optimistic about Hastings. I described the well-known problems that Hastings has to the ''Financial Times'' but I also talked about the incredible investment in the town, the fact that unemployment is going down and that there are many positive things to say about it."<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.theargus.co.uk/news/10391147.Sussex_MP_blasted_for_drugs_comment/ |title=Sussex MP blasted for drugs comment |publisher=www.theargus.co.uk |date=2013-05-01 |accessdate=2013-08-06}}</ref>
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In July 2015, ''[[Private Eye]]'' reported that Amber Rudd faces a potential conflict of interest because she is to decide on the proposed [[Hinkley Point]] C nuclear power station whilst her brother [[Roland Rudd]] is chairman (and founder) of [[Finsbury]], which represents a construction company with a £100m contract to help build the nuclear plant. The ''[[Private Eye]]'' report noted that despite the MPs’ register of interests including a new category of 'family members engaged in lobbying' Rudd "makes no mention of her brother or his interests", and added, "The ''Eye'' asked the [[Department of Energy & Climate Change]] if Rudd had told its permanent secretary about Roland and Finsbury (another conflict of interest procedure) but it did not reply".
 +
 
 +
The links between decisions to be taken by the [[Department for Energy and Climate Change]] and Rudd’s brother’s lobbying interests had previously been reported in ''[[The Daily Mail]]''. In May 2015, the newspaper’s chief political correspondent, [[Daniel Martin]], reported that Rudd would not be making a decision on plans by [[Halite Energy Group]] to store natural gas in underground caves in Lancashire. Halite is represented by the lobbying firm Rudd’s brother chairs. Martin reported: "It is one of the first big decisions in Energy Secretary Amber Rudd’s in-tray – but she won’t be making it. Last night Miss Rudd conceded that she would play no part in the decision. But the Department for Energy and Climate Change insisted that this was not because of any conflict of interest. A spokesman said the decision was never due to have been made by her, and that it would be down to a junior minister. But last night officials were unable to say which minister would make the decision."<ref>http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3101626/Energy-minister-brother-explosive-decision-WON-T-making.html</ref>
  
==Local issues==
+
===Subsidy for nuclear, not for solar===
Amber Rudd has been actively involved in the campaign for the local fishing fleet in Hastings. Her maiden speech advocated wholesale reform of the Common Fisheries Policy (CFP)<ref>{{cite web|title=Fairer deal for fishermen in maiden speech|url=http://amberrudd.co.uk/news/better-transport-a-fairer-deal-for-fishermen-in-maiden-speech/|website=Amanda Rudd|accessdate=30 March 2015}}</ref>
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In November 2015, Amber Rudd announced the UK government would drop the subsidy for [[solar energy]]. However, the government agreed to pay the nuclear industry a subsidy that dwarfs all the subsidies ever given to the coal and renewable industries combined, and what is more will be paid to the [[Chinese]] and the [[French]]. [[Craig Murray]] blogged about this: "I am lost for words."<ref>https://www.craigmurray.org.uk/archives/2015/11/a-change-of-political-climate/</ref>
  
Rudd has also campaigned successfully for the construction of the Hastings to Bexhill link road. In early 2013 the Government gave the road the go ahead for construction after ten years of campaigning,<ref>{{cite web|author= |url=http://www.planningresource.co.uk/news/1176975 |title=Final funding approval for Bexhill-Hastings link road |publisher=Planningresource.co.uk |date=2013-04-03 |accessdate=2015-05-18}}</ref> and Rudd is now spearheading a campaign called "Complete The Link" to see the final stage of the road get funding for construction.<ref>{{cite web|title=Complete the Link|url=http://amberrudd.co.uk/news/complete-the-link/|website=Amber Rudd|accessdate=30 March 2015}}</ref>
+
==Comments about Hastings==
 +
In April 2013, a profile of Amber Rudd appeared in the ''Financial Times''<ref>http://www.ft.com/cms/s/2/97b6f7e6-ad46-11e2-b27f-00144feabdc0.html#axzz2bH8rFtkx </ref> which caused upset to some in her constituency as it reported her referring to "people who are on benefits, who prefer to be on benefits by the seaside...moving down here to have easier access to friends and drugs and drink". She responded by stating that "I am incredibly optimistic about Hastings. I described the well-known problems that Hastings has to the ''Financial Times'' but I also talked about the incredible investment in the town, the fact that unemployment is going down and that there are many positive things to say about it."<ref>http://www.theargus.co.uk/news/10391147.Sussex_MP_blasted_for_drugs_comment/ </ref>
  
 
==Personal life==
 
==Personal life==
Amber Rudd married the writer A.A. Gill in 1990.<ref>{{cite news| url=http://www.guardian.co.uk/theobserver/2000/mar/19/features.magazine7?INTCMP=ILCNETTXT3487 | location=London | work=[[The Guardian]] | first=Lynn | last=Barber | title=The secret diary of Adrian Gill, aged 45 | date=6 January 2004}}</ref> Rudd and Gill have two children, Flora and Alasdair.<ref>{{cite news| url=http://www.dailymail.co.uk/pages/live/articles/columnists/columnists.html?in_article_id=409328&in_page_id=1772&in_author_id=230 | location=London | work=Daily Mail | title=A novel way to find your long-lost son | date=8 October 2006 | first=Richard | last=Kay}}</ref> The couple separated in 1995 and later divorced.<ref>{{cite news| url=http://women.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,18030-1730930,00.html | work=The Times | location=London | title=Tugga | date=21 August 2005 | accessdate=23 April 2010 | first=AA | last=Gill}}</ref>
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Amber Rudd married the writer A.A. Gill in 1990.<refhttp://www.guardian.co.uk/theobserver/2000/mar/19/features.magazine7?INTCMP=ILCNETTXT3487 </ref> Rudd and Gill have two children, Flora and Alasdair.<ref>http://www.dailymail.co.uk/pages/live/articles/columnists/columnists.html?in_article_id=409328&in_page_id=1772&in_author_id=230 </ref> The couple separated in 1995 and later divorced.<ref>http://women.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,18030-1730930,00.html</ref>
  
Amber Rudd is a trustee of the Snowdon Trust, an organisation that helps young disabled people access education.<ref>{{cite web|title=The Snowdon Trust|url=http://www.snowdontrust.org/|accessdate=11 May 2015}}</ref> Rudd has been director of the Susan Smith Blackburn Prize since 2003, an annual award for a first-time female playwright in the English language. She also serves as a governor of The St Leonards Academy in Hastings.<ref>{{cite web|title=St Leonards Academy|url=http://www.thestleonardsacademy.org/governors.php|accessdate=11 May 2015}}</ref>
+
Amber Rudd is a trustee of the Snowdon Trust, an organisation that helps young disabled people access education.<ref>http://www.snowdontrust.org/</ref> Rudd has been director of the Susan Smith Blackburn Prize since 2003, an annual award for a first-time female playwright in the English language. She also serves as a governor of The St Leonards Academy in Hastings.<ref>http://www.thestleonardsacademy.org/governors.php</ref>
  
 
Her mother was briefly styled Marchioness Conyngham while married to Frederick Conyngham, 7th Marquess Conyngham.<ref>[http://www.burkespeerage.com/ www.burkespeerage.com]</ref>
 
Her mother was briefly styled Marchioness Conyngham while married to Frederick Conyngham, 7th Marquess Conyngham.<ref>[http://www.burkespeerage.com/ www.burkespeerage.com]</ref>

Latest revision as of 03:52, 16 September 2022

Person.png Amber Rudd   Facebook Powerbase Twitter WebsiteRdf-entity.pngRdf-icon.png
(politician)
Amber Rudd.jpg
BornAmber Augusta Rudd
1 August 1963
London, United Kingdom
NationalityBritish
Alma materQueen's College London, Cheltenham Ladies' College, University of Edinburgh
ReligionChristian
Parents • Tony Rudd
• Ethne Fitzgerald
Children2
SpouseA. A. Gill
Member ofFranco-British Colloque
PartyConservative
RelativesRoland Rudd (lobbyist)
British Conservative Party politician. Opponent of Brexit.

Employment.png Secretary of State for Work and Pensions Wikipedia-icon.png

In office
16 November 2018 - 7 September 2019
Preceded byEsther McVey
Succeeded byThérèse Coffey

Employment.png Minister for Women and Equalities Wikipedia-icon.png

In office
24 July 2019 - 7 September 2019
Preceded byPenny Mordaunt

Employment.png Home Secretary Wikipedia-icon.png

In office
13 July 2016 - 29 April 2018
Preceded byTheresa May
Succeeded bySajid Javid

Employment.png Minister for Women and Equalities Wikipedia-icon.png

In office
9 January 2018 - 30 April 2018
Succeeded byPenny Mordaunt

Employment.png Member of Parliament for Hastings and Rye

In office
6 May 2010 - 6 November 2019

Amber Rudd (born London, 1 August 1963) is a British Conservative Party politician.

She was Secretary of State for Work and Pensions from 2018 to 2019. She was Home Secretary succeeding Theresa May on 13 July 2016 and was given the additional role of Minister for Women and Equalities in January 2018.[1] In April 2018, Amber Rudd was replaced as Home Secretary by Sajid Javid and as Minister for Women and Equalities by Penny Mordaunt.

On 16 November 2018, Rudd was appointed Secretary of State for Work and Pensions by Prime Minister Theresa May, following the resignation of Esther McVey. She was re-appointed by Boris Johnson on 24 July 2019 and succeeded Penny Mordaunt in her previous portfolio as Minister for Women and Equalities.[2]

Amber Rudd was first elected Member of Parliament (MP) for Hastings and Rye constituency in the 2010 UK General Election.[3]

She left Parliament in 2019.

Education

From 1974-1979, Amber Rudd was educated at Cheltenham Ladies' College,[4] a boarding independent school in Cheltenham in Gloucestershire, and from 1979-1981 at Queen's College, London,[5] an independent day school for girls in London, followed by the University of Edinburgh.

Career

Business

After graduating from Edinburgh University with a degree in history, Amber Rudd joined J.P. Morgan & Co., working in both London and New York. She then worked in venture capital in London, raising funds for small businesses. After working as a financial journalist, she founded specialist executive search and human resources consultancy Lawnstone Ltd,[6] with clients in financial services and in business media.[7] She helped to find extras for the film Four Weddings and a Funeral for which she was credited as the "aristocracy co-ordinator", and appeared briefly in one of the church scenes in the film.

Politics

At the 2005 general election, Amber Rudd was the Conservative party candidate for the Labour-held seat of Liverpool, Garston. Her name was subsequently added to the Conservative A-List and selected to contest the Hastings and Rye constituency in 2006, moving to the old town in 2007. In the 2010 General Election, Rudd was elected as the MP for Hastings & Rye with a majority of 1,993 votes. Shortly afterwards, Rudd was elected to serve as a Conservative member on the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Select Committee.

Amber Rudd is vice-chair of the Parliamentary committee on Female Genital Mutilation, which has campaigned against FGM and called for tougher legal penalties in the area. She has championed the cause of sex equality as chairperson of the APPG for Sex Equality,[8] which published a report on women in work. Rudd chaired a cross-party enquiry into unplanned pregnancies which called for statutory sex and relationships education in all secondary schools.[9] She has also called for a higher proportion of women in Cabinet.[10]

In September 2012, she was made Parliamentary Private Secretary to the Chancellor of the Exchequer, George Osborne.[11] In October 2013, she became an assistant government whip. In July 2014, Rudd was appointed Minister of State at the Department for Energy and Climate Change (DECC).[12][13]

Following the 7 May 2015 general election, Amber Rudd was appointed Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change and became a member of the Privy Council.[14][15]

Nuclear power advocacy

In July 2015, Private Eye reported that Amber Rudd faces a potential conflict of interest because she is to decide on the proposed Hinkley Point C nuclear power station whilst her brother Roland Rudd is chairman (and founder) of Finsbury, which represents a construction company with a £100m contract to help build the nuclear plant. The Private Eye report noted that despite the MPs’ register of interests including a new category of 'family members engaged in lobbying' Rudd "makes no mention of her brother or his interests", and added, "The Eye asked the Department of Energy & Climate Change if Rudd had told its permanent secretary about Roland and Finsbury (another conflict of interest procedure) but it did not reply".

The links between decisions to be taken by the Department for Energy and Climate Change and Rudd’s brother’s lobbying interests had previously been reported in The Daily Mail. In May 2015, the newspaper’s chief political correspondent, Daniel Martin, reported that Rudd would not be making a decision on plans by Halite Energy Group to store natural gas in underground caves in Lancashire. Halite is represented by the lobbying firm Rudd’s brother chairs. Martin reported: "It is one of the first big decisions in Energy Secretary Amber Rudd’s in-tray – but she won’t be making it. Last night Miss Rudd conceded that she would play no part in the decision. But the Department for Energy and Climate Change insisted that this was not because of any conflict of interest. A spokesman said the decision was never due to have been made by her, and that it would be down to a junior minister. But last night officials were unable to say which minister would make the decision."[16]

Subsidy for nuclear, not for solar

In November 2015, Amber Rudd announced the UK government would drop the subsidy for solar energy. However, the government agreed to pay the nuclear industry a subsidy that dwarfs all the subsidies ever given to the coal and renewable industries combined, and what is more will be paid to the Chinese and the French. Craig Murray blogged about this: "I am lost for words."[17]

Comments about Hastings

In April 2013, a profile of Amber Rudd appeared in the Financial Times[18] which caused upset to some in her constituency as it reported her referring to "people who are on benefits, who prefer to be on benefits by the seaside...moving down here to have easier access to friends and drugs and drink". She responded by stating that "I am incredibly optimistic about Hastings. I described the well-known problems that Hastings has to the Financial Times but I also talked about the incredible investment in the town, the fact that unemployment is going down and that there are many positive things to say about it."[19]

Personal life

Amber Rudd married the writer A.A. Gill in 1990.<refhttp://www.guardian.co.uk/theobserver/2000/mar/19/features.magazine7?INTCMP=ILCNETTXT3487 </ref> Rudd and Gill have two children, Flora and Alasdair.[20] The couple separated in 1995 and later divorced.[21]

Amber Rudd is a trustee of the Snowdon Trust, an organisation that helps young disabled people access education.[22] Rudd has been director of the Susan Smith Blackburn Prize since 2003, an annual award for a first-time female playwright in the English language. She also serves as a governor of The St Leonards Academy in Hastings.[23]

Her mother was briefly styled Marchioness Conyngham while married to Frederick Conyngham, 7th Marquess Conyngham.[24]

References

  1. "Meeting with new Home Sec @AmberRudd_MP and Policing Minister @BrandonLewis"
  2. "Amber Rudd to serve in Boris Johnson’s Government"
  3. "Amber Rudd -profile"
  4. http://www.clcguild.org/news/the_slab.html
  5. http://www.qcl.org.uk/mobile/former-pupils.php
  6. http://www.eurograduate.com/article.asp?id=2864&pid=6
  7. http://web.archive.org/web/20100511073241/http://www.conservatives.com/People/Members_of_Parliament/Rudd_Amber.aspx
  8. http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm/cmallparty/register/sex-equality.htm
  9. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-20785049
  10. http://www.theguardian.com/society/2012/nov/25/women-equality-gender-gap-bishops
  11. http://www.hastingsobserver.co.uk/news/local-news/amber-rudd-mp-in-new-role-with-chancellor-1-4255204
  12. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/newsbysector/energy/10969165/Cabinet-reshuffle-Chancellors-allies-Matt-Hancock-and-Amber-Rudd-join-energy-department.html
  13. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-28303854
  14. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/election-2015-32683868
  15. "Privy Council 14 May 2015"
  16. http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3101626/Energy-minister-brother-explosive-decision-WON-T-making.html
  17. https://www.craigmurray.org.uk/archives/2015/11/a-change-of-political-climate/
  18. http://www.ft.com/cms/s/2/97b6f7e6-ad46-11e2-b27f-00144feabdc0.html#axzz2bH8rFtkx
  19. http://www.theargus.co.uk/news/10391147.Sussex_MP_blasted_for_drugs_comment/
  20. http://www.dailymail.co.uk/pages/live/articles/columnists/columnists.html?in_article_id=409328&in_page_id=1772&in_author_id=230
  21. http://women.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,18030-1730930,00.html
  22. http://www.snowdontrust.org/
  23. http://www.thestleonardsacademy.org/governors.php
  24. www.burkespeerage.com
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