Andrew Simon Feldman, Baron Feldman of Elstree, (born 25 February 1966) is a British barrister, businessman and
Conservative
Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization in ...
fundraiser and politician.
''
The Financial Times
The ''Financial Times'' (''FT'') is a British daily newspaper printed in broadsheet and published digitally that focuses on business and economic current affairs. Based in London, England, the paper is owned by a Japanese holding company, Nik ...
'' described Feldman as "
David Cameron's oldest political friend" since their days together at
Brasenose College, Oxford. Feldman was responsible for fundraising David Cameron's successful
Tory leadership campaign in 2005.
He was created a
life peer by David Cameron in 2010, and then
Chairman of the Conservative Party
The chairman of the Conservative Party in the United Kingdom is responsible for party administration and overseeing the Conservative Campaign Headquarters, formerly Conservative Central Office.
When the Conservatives are in government, the off ...
, first as co-chairman alongside
Sayeeda Warsi
Sayeeda Hussain Warsi, Baroness Warsi, (; born 28 March 1971) is a British lawyer, politician, and member of the House of Lords who served as co-Chairwoman of the Conservative Party from 2010 to 2012. She served in the Cameron–Clegg coalit ...
and then
Grant Shapps between 2010 and 2015, then on his own as sole chairman from May 2015. His tenure ended after David Cameron's administration ended in July 2016.
Early life and family
He was born into a Jewish family in London, the eldest son of Malcolm R Feldman (b. 1939) and his wife Marcia J, ''
née'' Summers (b. 1944). His paternal grandmother was of Austrian descent.
He married Gabrielle Gourgey in 1999; they have two sons and one daughter. They live in a townhouse in
Holland Park, just round the corner from David Cameron's pre-Downing Street family home in
Notting Hill
Notting Hill is a district of West London, England, in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea. Notting Hill is known for being a cosmopolitan and multicultural neighbourhood, hosting the annual Notting Hill Carnival and Portobello Road Ma ...
.
Feldman was educated at
The Haberdashers' Aske's Boys' School
Haberdashers' Boys' School (also known as Haberdashers', Habs, or Habs Boys), until September 2021 known as Haberdashers' Aske's Boys' School, is a public school for pupils age 4 to 18 in Elstree, Hertfordshire, England. The school is a me ...
, an
independent school in
Elstree
Elstree is a large village in the Hertsmere borough of Hertfordshire, England. It is about northwest of central London on the former A5 road, that follows the course of Watling Street. In 2011, its population was 5,110. It forms part of t ...
in
Hertfordshire, followed by
Brasenose College
Brasenose College (BNC) is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom. It began as Brasenose Hall in the 13th century, before being founded as a college in 1509. The library and chapel were added in the m ...
at the
University of Oxford
, mottoeng = The Lord is my light
, established =
, endowment = £6.1 billion (including colleges) (2019)
, budget = £2.145 billion (2019–20)
, chancellor ...
, where he was awarded a first-class degree in
jurisprudence
Jurisprudence, or legal theory, is the theoretical study of the propriety of law. Scholars of jurisprudence seek to explain the nature of law in its most general form and they also seek to achieve a deeper understanding of legal reasoning a ...
. He went on to the
Inns of Court School of Law
The City Law School is one of the five schools of City, University of London. In 2001, the Inns of Court School of Law became part of City, and is now known as the City Law School. Until 1997, the ICSL had a monopoly on the provision of the Bar ...
.
Whilst at Oxford, he played for the Brasenose College tennis team, where he became friends with Cameron and
Guy Spier. Feldman and Cameron together helped organise the college's May Ball in their second year. Feldman was chairman of the Ball committee, while Cameron booked the entertainment. Feldman has since remained a close confidant of Cameron, who gave him his own office in
Downing Street
Downing Street is a street in Westminster in London that houses the official residences and offices of the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and the Chancellor of the Exchequer. Situated off Whitehall, it is long, and a few minutes' walk f ...
.
Business career
Feldman worked as a
management consultant
Management consulting is the practice of providing consulting services to organizations to improve their performance or in any way to assist in achieving organizational objectives. Organizations may draw upon the services of management consultants ...
at
Bain & Co
Bain & Company is an American management consulting company headquartered in Boston, Massachusetts. The firm provides advice to public, private, and non-profit organizations. One of the Big Three management consultancies, Bain & Company was fou ...
before being
called to the bar in 1991 and working as a commercial barrister at One Essex Court until 1995.
He subsequently worked for the family fashion firm, Jayroma (London) Ltd, serving as Managing Director and later Chief Executive.
He has donated to the Conservative Party through his company Jayroma the following amounts: £8,500 in 2008, £30,000 in 2009, £17,200 in 2010, £13,000 in 2011, £8,690 in 2012.
David Cameron leadership campaign
With the encouragement and financial backing from
Philip Harris, Baron Harris of Peckham, Feldman ran the operations and
fundraising for David Cameron's
2005 leadership bid for the Conservative party.
Feldman himself gave £10,000 to Cameron's campaign from his family clothing company Jayroma and secured tens of thousands more from other business backers.
Chief Executive of the Conservative Party
In July 2008 David Cameron promoted Feldman to Chief Executive of the
Conservative Campaign Headquarters, a key role in preparing the Tories for the
2010 general election.
In October 2008, Feldman was embroiled in the
"Yachtgate" scandal with
George Osborne
George Gideon Oliver Osborne (born Gideon Oliver Osborne; 23 May 1971) is a former British politician and newspaper editor who served as Chancellor of the Exchequer from 2010 to 2016 and as First Secretary of State from 2015 to 2016 in the ...
. Both he and Shadow Chancellor Osborne were guests on billionaire
Oleg Deripaska's yacht off
Corfu when Osborne was accused of soliciting a £50,000 donation to the party, which would have been a violation of the law against political donations by foreign citizens. This was when Feldman was Cameron's chief fundraiser. Both denied they had discussed soliciting donations from Deripaska, contrary to the claim made at the time by
Nathaniel Philip Rothschild who organised the party event.
In March 2016, Feldman was questioned by journalist
Michael Crick about election expenses that may have broken the law.
Chairman of the Conservative Party
After the
Conservatives entered government with the Liberal Democrats on 11 May 2010, Cameron appointed Feldman as the co-chairman of the party, with
Sayeeda Warsi
Sayeeda Hussain Warsi, Baroness Warsi, (; born 28 March 1971) is a British lawyer, politician, and member of the House of Lords who served as co-Chairwoman of the Conservative Party from 2010 to 2012. She served in the Cameron–Clegg coalit ...
.
[ His being given an office in Downing Street is a privilege never bestowed before on a party chairman.] One of his jobs was to strengthen the voluntary party and increase membership.
On 17 December 2010, Feldman was created a life peer as Baron Feldman of Elstree, of Elstree
Elstree is a large village in the Hertsmere borough of Hertfordshire, England. It is about northwest of central London on the former A5 road, that follows the course of Watling Street. In 2011, its population was 5,110. It forms part of t ...
in the County of Hertfordshire; he was introduced in the House of Lords, where he sits as a Conservative, on 20 December 2010.
In 2012, Feldman helped Cameron prepare for the Leveson Inquiry by roleplaying the lead counsel of the inquiry Robert Jay QC.
Feldman was severely criticised by one of his Conservative councillors, Catherine Faulks, for failing to vote for her in the 2011 by-election for the Norland ward in Kensington and Chelsea Borough Council
Kensington and Chelsea London Borough Council is the local authority for the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea in Greater London, England. It is a London borough council, one of 32 in the United Kingdom capital of London. Kensington and Chel ...
. Feldman claimed at the time that he was prohibited from voting as a member of the House of Lords, although this was a misunderstanding.
In May 2013, Feldman was widely attributed with making a claim that Conservative parliamentary rebellions on both a referendum on European Union membership and same sex marriage
Same-sex marriage, also known as gay marriage, is the marriage of two people of the same sex or gender. marriage between same-sex couples is legally performed and recognized in 33 countries, with the most recent being Mexico, constituting ...
were due to Conservative Associations being "all mad, swivel-eyed loons", a claim that he has denied. The alleged words were claimed to have been said on the evening of Wednesday 15 May during a Conservative Friends of Pakistan event held in St James's
St James's is a central district in the City of Westminster, London, forming part of the West End. In the 17th century the area developed as a residential location for the British aristocracy, and around the 19th century was the focus of the d ...
, central London.
References
External links
Lord Feldman of Elstree
��biography, www.parliament.uk
{{DEFAULTSORT:Feldman, Andrew
1966 births
Alumni of Brasenose College, Oxford
Chairmen of the Conservative Party (UK)
Conservative Party (UK) life peers
Conservative Party (UK) officials
English Jews
Jewish British politicians
Living people
People educated at Haberdashers' Boys' School
People from Elstree
Members of the Privy Council of the United Kingdom
Life peers created by Elizabeth II