Michael Fallon

Michael Fallon
Born	Michael Cathel Fallon (1952-05-14) 14 May 1952 Perth, Scotland
Alma mater	University of St Andrews
Religion	Church of England
Children	2
Spouse	Wendy Elisabeth Payne
Party	Conservative
Secretary of State for Defence In office 15 July 2014 - Present Preceded by Philip Hammond  Minister of State for Portsmouth In office 16 January 2014 - 15 July 2014 Succeeded by Matt Hancock  Minister of State for Energy In office 28 March 2013 - 15 July 2014 Succeeded by Matt Hancock  Minister of State for Business and Enterprise In office 4 September 2012 - 15 July 2014 Preceded by Mark Prisk Succeeded by Matt Hancock  Vice Chairman of the Conservative Party In office 4 September 2010 - 4 September 2012  Member of Parliament for Sevenoaks In office 1 May 1997 - Present  Member of Parliament for Darlington In office 9 June 1983 - 9 April 1992 Succeeded by Alan Milburn

Michael Fallon (born 14 May 1952) is a British Conservative politician and Member of Parliament for Sevenoaks.

Succeeding Philip Hammond, Fallon was appointed Secretary of State for Defence in July 2014, and is a member of the National Security Council. He was previously Vice Chairman of the Conservative Party.

Background

Fallon, the son of surgeon Martin Fallon OBE, was educated at Craigflower Preparatory School near Dunfermline and at Epsom College, an independent boys' school in Surrey. He then went to the University of St Andrews, where he read Classics and Ancient History, graduating in 1974 with a Master of Arts (MA) degree.

Political career

As a student, Fallon was active in the European Movement and the "Yes" youth campaign in the 1975 referendum. After university he joined the Conservative Research Department, working first for Lord Carrington in the House of Lords until 1977 and then as European Desk Officer until 1979. In 1979 he became Research Assistant to former MEP, Baroness Elles.

In July 1982 he was selected as the Conservative prospective parliamentary candidate to fight the Darlington by-election on 24 March 1983, following the death of Labour MP Ted Fletcher. Although he lost to Labour's Ossie O'Brien by some 2,412 votes, just 77 days later he defeated O'Brien by 3,438 votes in the June 1983 general election. He remained MP for Darlington until the 1992 General Election when he was defeated by Labour's Alan Milburn by a margin of 2,798 votes.

He re-entered Parliament at the 1997 General Election representing the safe Conservative constituency of Sevenoaks following the retirement of the sitting Tory MP, Mark Wolfson, and has served as the MP there since.

Parliamentary career

In parliament Michael Fallon was appointed Parliamentary Private Secretary to the Secretary of State for Energy Cecil Parkinson following the 1987 General Election, and in 1988 joined the government of Margaret Thatcher as an Assistant Whip, becoming a Lord Commissioner to the Treasury in 1990.

Mrs Thatcher appointed him Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for the Department for Education and Skills in July 1990, a position he continued to hold under the new premiership of John Major. He remained in that office until his 1992-General Election defeat.

Between 1992–97, Fallon set up a chain of children’s nurseries called Just Learning with funding from Dragons' Den star Duncan Bannatyne, where he became chief executive.

Following his return to Parliament at the 1997 General Election he was appointed Opposition Spokesman for Trade and Industry and then Shadow Financial Secretary to the Treasury, but he resigned from the front-bench owing to ill-health in October 1998, and remained on the backbenches until his promotion as Deputy Chairman of the Party.

From 1999 he was a member of the Treasury Select Committee, and chairman of its Sub-Committee (2001–10). He also served as a 1922 Committee executive between 2005–07.

In September 2012, he was sworn of the Privy Council of the United Kingdom, upon his appointment as Minister at the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills.

Fallon has been a director at Tullett Prebon, a leading brokerage firm in the City of London, and one of the biggest supporters of the privatisation of Royal Mail.

In January 2014 Fallon was appointed Minister for Portsmouth, subsequently being promoted to the Cabinet, on 15 July 2014, as Secretary of State for Defence.

Run-up to the 2015 general election

In the run-up to the 2015 general election Fallon wrote an article in The Times saying that Ed Miliband had stabbed his brother, David Miliband, in the back to become Labour leader and he would also stab the UK in the back to become prime minister. Fallon subsequently declined the opportunity to describe Miliband as a decent person and his comments embarrassed Conservative supporters. Miliband's response saying that Fallon had fallen below his usual standards and demeaned himself were seen by the New Statesman as dignified, contrasting with Fallon's counter-productive personal attack.

An Election Communication posted to his constituents states that Fallon "has taken a close interest in family issues, voting against gay marriage and supporting parental responsibility. He works closely with local churches when moral matters come before Parliament."

Expenses scandal

According to the Daily Telegraph, Fallon, Deputy Chairman of the Treasury Select Committee, claimed for mortgage repayments on his Westminster flat in their entirety. MPs are only allowed to claim for interest charges.

Between 2002 and 2004, Fallon regularly claimed £1,255 per month in capital repayments and interest, rather than the £700-£800 for the interest-component alone. After his error was noticed by staff at the Commons Fees Office in September 2004, he asked: "Why has no one brought this to my attention before?" He repaid £2,200 of this over-claim, but was allowed to offset the remaining £6,100 against his allowance. After realising they had failed to notice the excessive claims, Commons staff reportedly suggested Fallon submit fresh claims which would "reassign" the surplus payments to other costs he had legitimately incurred.

Personal life

Fallon has been married to Wendy Elisabeth Payne since 1986 and they have two sons. The family lives in Sundridge, Kent. While he was out of Parliament he was a director of Quality Care Homes plc and other companies founded by Dragon's Den star Duncan Bannatyne.

He was banned from driving for 18 months in 1983 after admitting a drink driving offence during the General Election campaign.

Publications

• The Quango Explosion: Public Bodies and Ministerial Patronage by Philip Holland and Michael Fallon, 1978, Conservative Political Centre ISBN 0-85070-621-1
• Sovereign Members by Michael Fallon, 1982
• The Rise of the Euroquango by Michael Fallon, 1982, Adam Smith Institute ISBN 0-906517-22-2
• Brighter Schools: Attracting Private Investment into State Schools by Michael Fallon, 1993, Social Market Foundation ISBN 1-874097-15-1

External links

• Michael Fallon website
• Debrett's People of Today
• Guardian Unlimited Politics – Ask Aristotle: Michael Fallon MP
• TheyWorkForYou.com – Michael Fallon MP

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