Sir Robert Edward Russell (born 31 March 1946) is a former
Liberal Democrat
Several political parties from around the world have been called the Liberal Democratic Party or Liberal Democrats. These parties usually follow a liberal democratic ideology.
Active parties
Former parties
See also
*Liberal democracy
*Lib ...
politician in the United Kingdom who was the Member of Parliament for
Colchester
Colchester ( ) is a city in Essex, in the East of England. It had a population of 122,000 in 2011. The demonym is Colcestrian.
Colchester occupies the site of Camulodunum, the first major city in Roman Britain and its first capital. Colch ...
from 1997 to 2015. He was first elected at the
1997 United Kingdom general election and won subsequent re-election in 2001, 2005 and 2010; he was defeated in
2015 United Kingdom general election by the
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 ...
candidate and Colchester MP
Will Quince
William James Quince (born 27 December 1982) is a British politician and former lawyer serving as Minister of State for Health and Secondary Care since 2022. A member of the Conservative Party, he was first elected at the 2015 general electio ...
.
Russell was
knighted for public service in the 2012 New Year Honours. He holds the ceremonial position of
High Steward of Colchester.
Career
Prior to his first election to the
House of Commons
The House of Commons is the name for the elected lower house of the bicameral parliaments of the United Kingdom and Canada. In both of these countries, the Commons holds much more legislative power than the nominally upper house of parliament. T ...
, Russell was a
councillor
A councillor is an elected representative for a local government council in some countries.
Canada
Due to the control that the provinces have over their municipal governments, terms that councillors serve vary from province to province. Unl ...
representing New Town
ward
Ward may refer to:
Division or unit
* Hospital ward, a hospital division, floor, or room set aside for a particular class or group of patients, for example the psychiatric ward
* Prison ward, a division of a penal institution such as a pris ...
continuously from 1978 to 2002. He was originally elected as a
Labour Party candidate before defecting to the
Social Democratic Party
The name Social Democratic Party or Social Democrats has been used by many political parties in various countries around the world. Such parties are most commonly aligned to social democracy as their political ideology.
Active parties
Fo ...
in 1981, and then standing as a
Liberal Democrat
Several political parties from around the world have been called the Liberal Democratic Party or Liberal Democrats. These parties usually follow a liberal democratic ideology.
Active parties
Former parties
See also
*Liberal democracy
*Lib ...
candidate from 1988 onwards. He held a
dual mandate of Member of Parliament and
councillor
A councillor is an elected representative for a local government council in some countries.
Canada
Due to the control that the provinces have over their municipal governments, terms that councillors serve vary from province to province. Unl ...
from 1997 to 2002.
He was leader of
Colchester Borough Council
Colchester ( ) is a city in Essex, in the East of England. It had a population of 122,000 in 2011. The demonym is Colcestrian.
Colchester occupies the site of Camulodunum, the first major city in Roman Britain and its first capital. Colchest ...
until 1991, having previously served as
Mayor of Colchester
The Mayor of Colchester sits as non-political chairman of Colchester Borough Council and serves as the civic representative of the borough. The mayoralty is customarily awarded to the most senior councillor of one of the political groups
Current ...
for the year 1986–87.
Prior to standing as parliamentary candidate for the Liberal Democrats, Russell stood unsuccessfully for Parliament for
Colchester
Colchester ( ) is a city in Essex, in the East of England. It had a population of 122,000 in 2011. The demonym is Colcestrian.
Colchester occupies the site of Camulodunum, the first major city in Roman Britain and its first capital. Colch ...
in
1979
Events
January
* January 1
** United Nations Secretary-General Kurt Waldheim heralds the start of the '' International Year of the Child''. Many musicians donate to the '' Music for UNICEF Concert'' fund, among them ABBA, who write the so ...
as a Labour candidate.
Russell was the Liberal Democrats' spokesman on
Culture, Media and Sport from 2002 to 2005, when he was replaced by
Don Foster. He was a member of the Liberal Democrat Shadow Defence team until the formation of the
Conservative – Liberal Democrat Coalition Government on 11 May 2010, at which point he became a backbencher.
At the
2010 general election Russell's majority was 6,982 votes (15.1%). In 2011, Russell was a member of the special Select Committee set up to scrutinise the
Armed Forces Bill
Armed Forces Act (with its variations) is a stock short title used for legislation in India, Malaysia and the United Kingdom relating to armed forces. The bill for an act with this short title will usually have been known as an Armed Forces Bill du ...
which was passed.
During his period in parliament, Russell was a member of the
Beveridge Group, vice-chair of the All Party Parliamentary Flag Group and sat on the
Defence Select Committee.
Following his defeat at the
2015 general election, he was appointed the
High Steward of Colchester (also known as ''High Sheriff of Colchester''), a position he currently holds. He stood at the
2017 general election as the Liberal Democrat candidate for his former seat, but slumped to third place.
Causes
Russell is known for supporting unusual causes, such as petitioning the House of Commons for the return of
Young's
Young's (Young & Co.'s Brewery Plc) is a British pub chain operating nearly 220 pubs.
The company was founded as a brewery in 1831 by Charles Young and Anthony Bainbridge when they purchased the Ram Brewery in Wandsworth. The company closed t ...
bitter
Bitter may refer to:
Common uses
* Resentment, negative emotion or attitude, similar to being jaded, cynical or otherwise negatively affected by experience
* Bitter (taste), one of the five basic tastes
Books
* '' Bitter (novel)'', a 2022 nove ...
to the
Strangers' Bar. He spoke out against celebrity
tax exile
A tax exile is a person who leaves a country to avoid the payment of income tax or other taxes. The term refers to an individual who already owes money to the tax authorities or wishes to avoid being liable in the future for taxation at what they ...
s, including
Lewis Hamilton
Sir Lewis Carl Davidson Hamilton (born 7 January 1985) is a British racing driver currently competing in Formula One for Mercedes. In Formula One, Hamilton has won a joint-record seven World Drivers' Championship titles (tied with Mic ...
. He campaigned against the 1996 sale of
Ministry of Defence housing to
Annington Homes
Annington Homes is a provider of privately rented homes in the United Kingdom, specialising in converting former Ministry of Defence (MoD) housing for the general public since 1996. Since 2012, the company has been a wholly owned subsidiary of T ...
and for soldiers' housing to be improved.
Controversy
In December 2010, a reply that Russell wrote to a constituent who was concerned about the cost of the upcoming
Royal Wedding of Prince William and Catherine Middleton was published. In it, Russell told the constituent to "get a life and stop whinging". In 2011, he followed this up with a contentious letter to a member of the public who had asked whether he would lend support to Colchester's new Visual Arts Facility (later to become
Firstsite
Firstsite is a visual arts organisation based in Colchester, Essex, which opened in 2011.
It was the national Art Fund's Museum of the Year in 2021.
The building Firstsite occupy as tenants was designed by Rafael Viñoly and the freehold is r ...
). Referring to alleged implications that he did not support the arts as "Rubbish
man!", Russell accused those in support of Firstsite as "expecting the council to fund their social life".
Russell caused further controversy in February 2012, when another letter he had written to a constituent appeared in the press. Russell responded to the constituent's query as to what would happen if sufficient funds for a new
Royal yacht could not be raised by stating, “Are you serious? Don’t you have more important things in your life to be worried about without bothering me with this?"
Expenses
In 2012, Russell was found to have broken parliamentary expenses rules after claiming more than £70,000 over seven years for an office owned by a company in which he was a major shareholder. He was found to have acted in good faith, but was found to be in "clear breach" of the rules. Russell apologised, stating: "I have not personally made a financial gain from the arrangements. Rather I have made a significant personal contribution to provide an office which is fit for purpose at no additional cost to the public purse."
Other interests
Russell is a former season ticket holder for
Colchester United
Colchester United Football Club is a professional association football club based in the city of Colchester, Essex, England. The team competes in , the fourth tier of the English football league system.
Founded in 1937, the club spent its earl ...
football club, and wrote the foreword for a history of the club.
References
Sources
*
LibDem website biography'
*
'
*
www.publicwhip.org.uk'
External links
Bob Russell MP''official constituency website''
Profileat the Liberal Democrats
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Russell, Bob
Liberal Democrats (UK) MPs for English constituencies
Labour Party (UK) councillors
Social Democratic Party (UK) politicians
UK MPs 1997–2001
UK MPs 2001–2005
UK MPs 2005–2010
UK MPs 2010–2015
Politicians from London
1946 births
Living people
Councillors in Essex
Mayors of Colchester
Knights Bachelor
Labour Party (UK) parliamentary candidates
Politicians awarded knighthoods
Leaders of local authorities of England
Liberal Democrats (UK) councillors