Daniel Kawczynski
 Daniel Kawczynski    | ||||||||||
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| Born | 24 January 1972 | |||||||||
| Member of | Conservative Friends of Israel | |||||||||
| Interests | Conservative Friends of Israel | |||||||||
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Daniel Kawczynski is a British Conservative Party politician who has been Member of Parliament for Shrewsbury and Atcham since 2005.
Kawczynski was Parliamentary Private Secretary at the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, a parliamentary aide to the former Welsh Secretary David Jones, as well as a member of the Foreign Affairs Select Committee and as Special Advisor to Prime Minister David Cameron on Central and Eastern Europe and on Central and Eastern Europeans living in the United Kingdom.
Opinions
Daniel Kawczynski is a strong supporter of Brexit and is a former member of the European Research Group, which he left in April 2019. He was chair of the All-Party Group for Saudi Arabia between 2011 and 2016, and during his time as chairman he led delegations to the country.[1] He was chair of the All-Party Group for Libya but that group has now ceased to exist.[2]
Antisemitism
In February 2020, Kawczynski generated controversy for sharing a platform with right-wing populist politicians including Hungarian prime minister Viktor Orbán and the former deputy prime minister of Italy Matteo Salvini, at a conference organised by the Edmund Burke Foundation. Also billed to speak at the National Conservatism conference were Giorgia Meloni, the leader of the far-right Brothers of Italy party, and the Spanish MEP Hermann Tertsch of Vox, a far-right party.
The Board of Deputies of British Jews called on the Conservative Party to take disciplinary action. Marie van der Zyl, the president of the Board of Deputies, said:
“We condemn the decision by Conservative MP Daniel Kawczynski to speak at a conference alongside some of Europe’s most notorious far-right politicians.
"Mr Kawczynski’s defence, that ‘it is only common sense to talk with parties and politicians that are either leading their respective countries, or will perhaps take power in the next few years’, is a specious one, for the simple reason that the MP for Shrewsbury and Atcham is not any sort of government representative.
"If the Conservative Party fails to discipline Mr Kawczynski, it runs the serious risk of the public assuming that they share his views on association with such people.”
The Jewish Labour Movement called on the Tories to remove the whip. Labour MPs Margaret Hodge and Alex Sobel wrote a letter to government chief whip Mark Spencer, warning: “If Daniel Kawcyznski attends this conference then he must have the whip removed. There can be no place for these hateful views in our parliament.”[3]
In a Spectator article, Kawczynski explained why he attended the conference.[4]
Pro Saudi
In December 2021, journalists gained access to some of Kawczynski's WhatsApp messages where he described himself as the most "pro-Saudi" MP, and that Saudi leader, Mohammed bin Salman, "has stated that Saudi has no better friend in UK than me". Kawczynski was seeking through an agent a well-paid second job with a Saudi or other Middle East company. He arranged to meet a potential Saudi employer in parliament, and also arranged to meet the agent in his parliamentary office. He also wrote that he was disillusioned with Westminster politics and would like in due course to become UK Ambassador to Saudi Arabia. He was subsequently reported to the Parliamentary Commissioner for Standards.[5]
Blue plaque for sewage
In November 2022, Daniel Kawczynski was accused of "shamefully" voting to dump raw sewage into the River Severn when activists turned up at Kawczynski's office with a bucket full of manure and a toilet to stage a "dirty protest" over the sewage issue. Blue plaques, which have been put up at various locations along the river in Shrewsbury, read: "Daniel Kawczynski 20th October 2021 Voted to allow raw sewage to be dumped in this river. Shameful."
Kenny Anderson, a spokesperson for the Shrewsbury River Action group, said:
"You wouldn’t leave a toilet overflowing for 28 years and we shouldn’t do the same with our waterways. The River Severn river lies at the heart of Shrewsbury. We all swim in it, boat on it, fish in it, and walk along it on a daily basis. So why isn’t our MP fighting to stop it from being turned into an open sewer?"
However, Mr Kawczynski said the plaques were "vandalism", "don't explain the issue at all" and that it was "sad" that someone had created them, rather than speak directly to him about their concerns.[6]
References
- ↑ "Daniel Kawczynski leads All Party Parliamentary Delegation to Saudi Arabia"
- ↑ "Daniel Kawczynski meets Former Libyan Head of State"
- ↑ "Jewish And Muslim Groups Have Condemned A Tory MP For Attending A Conference With Far-Right Politicians In Italy"
- ↑ "Why I’m going to the National Conservatism conference in Rome"
- ↑ "Tory MP who pleaded for Saudi work reported to standards watchdog"
- ↑ "Blue plaques installed criticising Shrewsbury MP Daniel Kawczynski over raw sewage issue"
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