Abimbola Afolami
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Abimbola "Bim" Afolami (born 11 February 1986) is a British
Conservative Party The Conservative Party is a name used by many political parties around the world. These political parties are generally right-wing though their exact ideologies can range from center-right to far-right. Political parties called The Conservative P ...
politician. He has served as the
Member of Parliament A member of parliament (MP) is the representative in parliament of the people who live in their electoral district. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, this term refers only to members of the lower house since upper house members of ...
(MP) for Hitchin and Harpenden since the
2017 general election This national electoral calendar for 2017 lists the national/federal elections held in 2017 in all sovereign states and their dependent territories. By-elections are excluded, though national referendums are included. January *5 November  ...
.


Early life

Afolami was born and brought up in Crowthorne,
Berkshire Berkshire ( ; in the 17th century sometimes spelt phonetically as Barkeshire; abbreviated Berks.) is a historic county in South East England. One of the home counties, Berkshire was recognised by Queen Elizabeth II as the Royal County of Berk ...
. His father Samuel is a Nigerian consultant doctor in the NHS, who moved to the UK in his early twenties. Afolami was educated at Bishopsgate School,
Eton College Eton College () is a public school in Eton, Berkshire, England. It was founded in 1440 by Henry VI under the name ''Kynge's College of Our Ladye of Eton besyde Windesore'',Nevill, p. 3 ff. intended as a sister institution to King's College, C ...
and
University College, Oxford University College (in full The College of the Great Hall of the University of Oxford, colloquially referred to as "Univ") is a constituent college of the University of Oxford in England. It has a claim to being the oldest college of the univer ...
, where he read Modern History, served as Librarian of the Oxford Union Society, and played football for the university team. Before he became an MP, Afolami worked as a corporate lawyer at Freshfields, and
Simpson Thacher & Bartlett Simpson Thacher & Bartlett LLP is an international white shoe law firm headquartered in New York City. The firm specializes in litigation and corporate practices, particularly mergers and acquisitions, with over 1,000 attorneys in 11 offices worl ...
, and then as a senior executive at
HSBC HSBC Holdings plc is a British multinational universal bank and financial services holding company. It is the largest bank in Europe by total assets ahead of BNP Paribas, with US$2.953 trillion as of December 2021. In 2021, HSBC had $10.8 tri ...
.


Political career

Afolami was the Conservative Party candidate for
Lewisham Deptford Lewisham Deptford is a parliamentary constituency represented in the House of Commons of the UK Parliament since 2015 by Vicky Foxcroft of the Labour Party. History This seat was created in 1974. It has remained largely urban in its consti ...
at the 2015 general election, where he finished in second place with 7,056 votes. Afolami voted "Remain" in the 2016 referendum on EU membership. He was selected as the Conservative candidate for Hitchin and Harpenden constituency in
2017 File:2017 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: The War Against ISIS at the Battle of Mosul (2016-2017); aftermath of the Manchester Arena bombing; The Solar eclipse of August 21, 2017 ("Great American Eclipse"); North Korea tests a ser ...
following the announcement that the sitting Conservative MP,
Peter Lilley Peter Bruce Lilley, Baron Lilley, PC (born 23 August 1943) is a British politician and life peer who served as a cabinet minister in the governments of Margaret Thatcher and John Major. A member of the Conservative Party, he was Member of Parl ...
, was to stand down. He has described
Winston Churchill Sir Winston Leonard Spencer Churchill (30 November 187424 January 1965) was a British statesman, soldier, and writer who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom twice, from 1940 to 1945 Winston Churchill in the Second World War, dur ...
as his "biggest hero". Afolami has generally voted against UK membership of the EU whilst in Parliament, following the Conservative
whip A whip is a tool or weapon designed to strike humans or other animals to exert control through pain compliance or fear of pain. They can also be used without inflicting pain, for audiovisual cues, such as in equestrianism. They are generally e ...
. In 2018, Afolami was named one of the
Franco-British Council The Franco-British Council is an organisation created on the joint initiative of President Georges Pompidou and Prime Minister Edward Heath in order to promote better understanding between United Kingdom and France and to contribute to the develop ...
's Young Leaders. In January that year, it was revealed that Afolami had claimed £2,000 in expenses for subscription to the
European Research Group The European Research Group (ERG) is a research support group and caucus of Eurosceptic Conservative Members of Parliament of the United Kingdom. The journalist Sebastian Payne described it in the ''Financial Times'' as "the most influential e ...
. In April, Afolami was a member of the delegation to
Beijing } Beijing ( ; ; ), alternatively romanized as Peking ( ), is the capital of the People's Republic of China. It is the center of power and development of the country. Beijing is the world's most populous national capital city, with over 21 ...
for the tenth Anniversary Leadership Forum, led by David Lidington MP. The Forum, entitled "Partners for Progress: Strengthening the UK-China relationship in the Golden Era", aimed to discuss practical cooperation between the UK and China. It was announced in May that Afolami would be one of 14 members of the Conservative Reform Group, a group of
centrist Centrism is a political outlook or position involving acceptance or support of a balance of social equality and a degree of social hierarchy while opposing political changes that would result in a significant shift of society strongly to the l ...
Conservative MPs. At the end of 2018, Afolami joined the Steering Committee of the Constitution Reform Group, a cross-party pressure group chaired by
Robert Gascoyne-Cecil, 7th Marquess of Salisbury Robert Michael James Gascoyne-Cecil, 7th Marquess of Salisbury, Baron Gascoyne-Cecil, (born 30 September 1946), is a British Conservative politician. From 1979 to 1987 he represented South Dorset in the House of Commons, and in the 1990s he wa ...
, which supports the Act of Union Bill 2018, a
private member's bill A private member's bill is a bill (proposed law) introduced into a legislature by a legislator who is not acting on behalf of the executive branch. The designation "private member's bill" is used in most Westminster system jurisdictions, in whi ...
introduced by
Lord Lisvane Robert James Rogers, Baron Lisvane, (born 5 February 1950) is a British life peer and retired public servant. He served as Clerk of the House of Commons from October 2011 until August 2014. Following his elevation as a Life Peer in 2014, Lord ...
in the
House of Lords The House of Lords, also known as the House of Peers, is the Bicameralism, upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Membership is by Life peer, appointment, Hereditary peer, heredity or Lords Spiritual, official function. Like the ...
on 9 October 2018. In September 2018, Afolami was appointed parliamentary private secretary in the
Department for Transport The Department for Transport (DfT) is a department of His Majesty's Government responsible for the English transport network and a limited number of transport matters in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland that have not been devolved. The d ...
. In December, Afolami announced his support for Theresa May's Brexit deal. In February 2019, Afolami was appointed PPS to the Secretary of State for International Development, followed by his appointment as PPS to the Secretary of State for International Trade,
Liz Truss Mary Elizabeth Truss (born 26 July 1975) is a British politician who briefly served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Conservative Party from September to October 2022. On her fiftieth day in office, she stepped down ...
. He was subsequently appointed as PPS to the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions,
Therese Coffey Therese or Thérèse is a variant of the feminine given name Teresa. It may refer to: Persons Therese *Duchess Therese of Mecklenburg-Strelitz (1773–1839), member of the House of Mecklenburg-Strelitz and a Duchess of Mecklenburg *Therese of Br ...
. In April 2021, a
private member's bill A private member's bill is a bill (proposed law) introduced into a legislature by a legislator who is not acting on behalf of the executive branch. The designation "private member's bill" is used in most Westminster system jurisdictions, in whi ...
introduced by Afolami, the British Library Board (Power to Borrow) Act 2021, gained
royal assent Royal assent is the method by which a monarch formally approves an act of the legislature, either directly or through an official acting on the monarch's behalf. In some jurisdictions, royal assent is equivalent to promulgation, while in other ...
. He was appointed in September 2021 as
Parliamentary Private Secretary A Parliamentary Private Secretary (PPS) is a Member of Parliament (MP) in the United Kingdom who acts as an unpaid assistant to a minister or shadow minister. They are selected from backbench MPs as the 'eyes and ears' of the minister in the H ...
to the
Foreign Secretary The secretary of state for foreign, Commonwealth and development affairs, known as the foreign secretary, is a minister of the Crown of the Government of the United Kingdom and head of the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office. Seen as ...
,
Liz Truss Mary Elizabeth Truss (born 26 July 1975) is a British politician who briefly served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Conservative Party from September to October 2022. On her fiftieth day in office, she stepped down ...
. Afolami was appointed in November 2021 as Parliamentary Private Secretary to the
Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport The secretary of state for digital, culture, media and sport, also referred to as the culture secretary, is a secretary of state in the Government of the United Kingdom, with overall responsibility for strategy and policy across the Department f ...
,
Nadine Dorries Nadine Vanessa Dorries (''née'' Bargery, 21 May 1957) is a British politician who served as Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport from 2021 to 2022 under Prime Minister Boris Johnson. A member of the Conservative Party, she ...
, and served in this role until his appointment as Vice Chairman of the Conservative Party for Youth in February 2022. Afolami is Chair of PRASEG, the cross-party Parliamentary Renewable & Sustainable Energy Group, the largest and longest standing energy and climate change group in Westminster. In this role, Afolami plays a key role driving parliamentary activity relating to the UK's Presidency of
COP26 The 2021 United Nations Climate Change Conference, more commonly referred to as COP26, was the 26th United Nations Climate Change conference, held at the SEC Centre in Glasgow, Scotland, United Kingdom, from 31 October to 13 November 2021. The ...
. Afolami is Chair of the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Credit Unions and a Commissioner for the Financial Inclusion Commission, a
financial inclusion Financial inclusion is defined as the availability and equality of opportunities to access financial services. It refers to a process by which individuals and businesses can access appropriate, affordable, and timely financial products and service ...
campaign group. He is active in supporting charities and other voluntary groups. He is patron of Harpenden Spotlight on Africa a charity working in health and education in rural Uganda. He is also patron of GRIT (Growing Resilience in Teens) and Tilehouse Counselling, two mental health charities in his constituency. Afolami also sits on the advisory board of the Social Market Foundation and on the Programme Committee of the Ditchley Foundation. On 5 July 2022, whilst being interviewed live on television, Afolami resigned from his role as Vice Chair of the Conservative Party, owing to the recent scandals in government under Boris Johnson.


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* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Afolami, Bim 1986 births People from Crowthorne Living people Conservative Party (UK) MPs for English constituencies UK MPs 2017–2019 English people of Nigerian descent People educated at Eton College Alumni of University College, Oxford Simpson Thacher & Bartlett UK MPs 2019–present English people of Yoruba descent Yoruba politicians HSBC people Black British MPs