Simon Kirby

For the British computational linguist, see Simon M. Kirby.
Simon Kirby
MP
Economic Secretary to the Treasury
(City Minister)
Assumed office
17 July 2016
Prime Minister Theresa May
Chancellor Philip Hammond
Preceded by Harriett Baldwin
Member of Parliament
for Brighton Kemptown
Assumed office
6 May 2010
Preceded by Des Turner
Majority 690 (1.5%)
Personal details
Born (1964-12-22) 22 December 1964
Hastings, Sussex, England
Nationality British
Political party Conservative
Spouse(s) Elizabeth Kirby
Children 6
Alma mater Open University
London School of Economics
Website simonkirby.org

Simon Gerard Kirby (born 22 December 1964), also known as Simon Radford-Kirby, is an British entrepreneur and Conservative Party politician. He has been the Member of Parliament (MP) for Brighton Kemptown since 2010. In July 2016 he was appointed Economic Secretary to the Treasury and City Minister.

Early life and career

Kirby was born in Hastings, Sussex in 1964.[1] He attended Chantry Infants School, Sandown Primary School and Hastings Grammar School. He has a BSc(Hons) degree in Mathematical Modelling from the Open University and studied Operational Research at the London School of Economics.

Kirby established a number of successful businesses in a variety of industries in the Brighton area, including playing a part in establishing Surf 107, Brighton's independent radio station (later renamed Juice 107.2). He worked with Martin Webb to found the Webb Kirby (later C-Side) pub, restaurant and nightclub chain in the city employing over 200 people. He has been a school governor at a number of schools.

Political career

Kirby was elected as a councillor in 1992 on Brighton and Hove City Council, later also serving on Mid Sussex District Council and East Sussex County Council, where he was cabinet member with responsibility for Economic Development. He stood down as a councillor in 2009 to concentrate on winning the parliamentary seat of Brighton Kemptown.

He was elected to the House of Commons as MP for Brighton, Kemptown in the May 2010 general election, with a majority of 1,328, gaining the seat from Labour.

He was listed as one of twenty Conservative MPs with "true grit" by the ConservativeHome website and has been recognised for his work on LGBT and animal welfare issues as well as taking a close interest in issues affecting the elderly. He has also recently received an award for being a local champion on his Twitter page, and was declared the most responsive MP in Sussex.

Following his election to Parliament, Mr Kirby became Vice Chair of the All Party Parliamentary Group on HIV/AIDS and served on the Business, Innovation and Skills and Administration Select Committees. Since becoming a member of parliament he has also become a patron of the Sussex Beacon, the Sussex ME society.

In 2012 he was appointed the Parliamentary Private Secretary (PPS) to the Minister for Sport and Tourism Hugh Robertson.[2] In October 2013 he was promoted to PPS to the Minister of State for the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, also Mr Robertson.[3] In August 2014 Mr Kirby was promoted to the role of PPS to the Secretary of State for Health, the Rt. Hon. Jeremy Hunt.[4]

He retained his marginal seat in the May 2015 general election with a reduced majority of 690 votes, increasing his share of the vote by 2.7%.

He was appointed as an Assistant Government Whip on 13 May 2015.[5]

In July 2016 Kirby was appointed Economic Secretary to the Treasury and City Minister.[6] He is responsible for financial services policy and the overall strategic relationship with UK financial services. This includes working with banks, insurance companies and the financial services sector. He also has an interest in pensions and savings.

Kirby was opposed to Brexit prior to the 2016 referendum.[7]

Personal life

Simon is married to Elizabeth and has six children. He supports Brighton & Hove Albion Football Club and is an honorary Vice-President of Whitehawk Football Club in his constituency.[8]

References

  1. ↑ http://www.ukwhoswho.com/view/article/oupww/whoswho/U251406/
  2. ↑ "Brighton MP becomes ministerial aide – The Latest". 12 September 2012. Retrieved 2 July 2016.
  3. ↑ "SIMON KIRBY MP PROMOTED TO FOREIGN OFFICE ROLE". Simon Kirby MP. Retrieved 2 July 2016.
  4. ↑ "Brighton MP becomes parliamentary aide to Health Secretary". Brighton and Hove News. 22 July 2014. Retrieved 2 July 2016.
  5. ↑ "Simon Kirby MP – GOV.UK". www.gov.uk. Retrieved 2 July 2016.
  6. ↑ Simon Kirby MP, HM Government, retrieved 4 August 2016
  7. ↑ Goodenough, Tom (16 February 2016). "Which Tory MPs back Brexit, who doesn't and who is still on the fence?". The Spectator. Retrieved 11 October 2016.
  8. ↑ "About Simon". Simon Kirby MP. Retrieved 2 July 2016.
News articles
Parliament of the United Kingdom
Preceded by
Des Turner		 Member of Parliament for Brighton Kemptown
2010–present 		Incumbent
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