Edward Henry Butler Vaizey, Baron Vaizey of Didcot, (born 5 June 1968) is a British politician, media columnist, political commentator and barrister who was
Minister for Culture, Communications and Creative Industries
In the Government of the United Kingdom, the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Arts and Heritage is a ministerial post in the Department for Culture, Media and Sport.
The post is usually a junior to middle-ranking minister to the mor ...
from 2010 to 2016. A member of the
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 ...
, he was
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
Wantage
Wantage () is a historic market town and civil parish in Oxfordshire, England. Although within the boundaries of the historic county of Berkshire, it has been administered as part of the Vale of White Horse district of Oxfordshire since 1974. T ...
from 2005 to 2019.
Early life
Vaizey was born in June 1968 in
St Pancras, London. He is the son of the late
John Vaizey
John Ernest Vaizey, Baron Vaizey (1 October 1929 – 19 July 1984) was a British author and economist, who specialised in education.
Background and education
Vaizey was the son of Ernest Vernon Vaizey and his wife Lucy Butler Hart. He was educ ...
, a
Labour
Labour or labor may refer to:
* Childbirth, the delivery of a baby
* Labour (human activity), or work
** Manual labour, physical work
** Wage labour, a socioeconomic relationship between a worker and an employer
** Organized labour and the labour ...
life peer
In the United Kingdom, life peers are appointed members of the peerage whose titles cannot be inherited, in contrast to hereditary peers. In modern times, life peerages, always created at the rank of baron, are created under the Life Peerages ...
, and the
art historian
Art history is the study of aesthetic objects and visual expression in historical and stylistic context. Traditionally, the discipline of art history emphasized painting, drawing, sculpture, architecture, ceramics and decorative arts; yet today ...
Marina Vaizey (The Lady Vaizey
CBE). His father's family is from South London. He spent part of his childhood in
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 ...
. He was educated at
St Paul's School, London
(''By Faith and By Learning'')
, established =
, closed =
, type = Independent school Public school
, religion = Church of England
, president =
, he ...
before reading history at
Merton College, Oxford
Merton College (in full: The House or College of Scholars of Merton in the University of Oxford) is one of the Colleges of Oxford University, constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England. Its foundation can be traced back to the ...
. Elected Librarian of the
Oxford Union
The Oxford Union Society, commonly referred to simply as the Oxford Union, is a debating society in the city of Oxford England, whose membership is drawn primarily from the University of Oxford. Founded in 1823, it is one of Britain's oldest ...
, he graduated with an upper second class degree. After leaving university, Vaizey worked for the Conservative MPs
Kenneth Clarke
Kenneth Harry Clarke, Baron Clarke of Nottingham, (born 2 July 1940), often known as Ken Clarke, is a British politician who served as Home Secretary from 1992 to 1993 and Chancellor of the Exchequer from 1993 to 1997 as well as serving as de ...
and
Michael Howard
Michael Howard, Baron Howard of Lympne (born Michael Hecht; 7 July 1941) is a British politician who served as Leader of the Conservative Party and Leader of the Opposition from November 2003 to December 2005. He previously held cabinet posi ...
as an adviser on employment and education issues. He practised as a
barrister
A barrister is a type of lawyer in common law jurisdictions. Barristers mostly specialise in courtroom advocacy and litigation. Their tasks include taking cases in superior courts and tribunals, drafting legal pleadings, researching law and ...
for several years, in family law and child care.
[''Debrett's People of Today''](_blank)
/ref>
Political career
Vaizey first stood for Parliament
In modern politics, and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: Representation (politics), representing the Election#Suffrage, electorate, making laws, and overseeing ...
at the 1997 general election, when he was the Conservative Party candidate for Bristol East
Bristol East is a List of United Kingdom Parliament constituencies, constituency recreated in 1983 covering the eastern part of the City of Bristol, represented in the House of Commons of the United Kingdom, House of Commons of the Parliament of ...
. In the 2001 general election, he acted as an election aide to Iain Duncan Smith
Sir George Iain Duncan Smith (born George Ian Duncan Smith; 9 April 1954), often referred to by his initials IDS, is a British politician who served as Leader of the Conservative Party and Leader of the Opposition from 2001 to 2003. He was S ...
. He unsuccessfully stood at the 2002 local elections for the safe
A safe (also called a strongbox or coffer) is a secure lockable box used for securing valuable objects against theft or fire. A safe is usually a hollow cuboid or cylinder, with one face being removable or hinged to form a door. The body and ...
Labour 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 ...
of Harrow Road (based around the area of that name) in the City of Westminster
The City of Westminster is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and London boroughs, borough in Inner London. It is the site of the United Kingdom's Houses of Parliament and much of the British government. It occupies a large area of cent ...
.
He is regarded as a moderniser within the Conservative Party, contributing in both policy and image terms. He was a speechwriter for Michael Howard
Michael Howard, Baron Howard of Lympne (born Michael Hecht; 7 July 1941) is a British politician who served as Leader of the Conservative Party and Leader of the Opposition from November 2003 to December 2005. He previously held cabinet posi ...
, Leader of the Conservative Party until December 2004, and editor of the ''Blue Books'' series which looked into new approaches to Conservative policy in areas such as health and transport.
Vaizey was one of Michael Howard's inner circle of advisers and a member of a group of Young Conservatives somewhat disparagingly referred to as the " Notting Hill Set" along with David Cameron
David William Donald Cameron (born 9 October 1966) is a British former politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 2010 to 2016 and Leader of the Conservative Party from 2005 to 2016. He previously served as Leader o ...
—elected party leader in December 2005—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 ...
, Michael Gove
Michael Andrew Gove (; born Graeme Andrew Logan, 26 August 1967) is a British politician serving as Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities and Minister for Intergovernmental Relations since 2021. He has been Member of Parli ...
, Nicholas Boles
Nicholas Edward Coleridge Boles (born 2 November 1965) is a British politician who served as Member of Parliament (MP) for Grantham and Stamford from 2010 to 2019. He was a member of the Conservative Party until 2019.
Before entering Parliament ...
and Rachel Whetstone
Rachel Marjorie Joan Whetstone (born 22 February 1968) is a British public relations executive. Whetstone was in charge of communications and public policy for Google for nearly 10 years. She was senior vice-president of communications and publ ...
. Like Gove and Boles, he is a fellow
A fellow is a concept whose exact meaning depends on context.
In learned or professional societies, it refers to a privileged member who is specially elected in recognition of their work and achievements.
Within the context of higher education ...
of the Henry Jackson Society
The Henry Jackson Society (HJS) is a trans-Atlantic foreign policy and national security think tank, based in the United Kingdom. While describing itself as non-partisan, its outlook has been described variously as neoliberal and as neoconser ...
, and also a vice-chairman of Conservative Friends of Poland.
Member of Parliament
In 2002, Vaizey was selected by Wantage Conservative Association to be its candidate for the 2005 general election to succeed the sitting MP, Robert Jackson, who subsequently crossed the floor
Crossed may refer to:
* ''Crossed'' (comics), a 2008 comic book series by Garth Ennis
* ''Crossed'' (novel), a 2010 young adult novel by Ally Condie
* "Crossed" (''The Walking Dead''), an episode of the television series ''The Walking Dead''
S ...
to Labour. Vaizey won a two-thirds majority in the final ballot of members and was elected as MP in that election, receiving 22,394 votes. His majority was 8,017 over the Liberal Democrats; this represented 43% of the voters and a 1.9% swing from the Liberal Democrats to the Conservatives.
When first elected to the House of Commons, Vaizey became a member of the Standing Committee on the Consumer Credit Bill. Before being appointed to the Opposition frontbench
The frontbench of His Majesty's Loyal Opposition in the Parliament of the United Kingdom consists of the Shadow Cabinet and other official shadow ministers of the political party currently serving as the Official Opposition. The Opposition fron ...
he was a member of the Modernisation and Environmental Audit Select Committees and was Deputy Chairman of the Conservative's Globalisation and Global Poverty Policy Group.
In November 2006, Vaizey was appointed to the Conservative frontbench
In many parliaments and other similar assemblies, seating is typically arranged in banks or rows, with each political party or caucus grouped together. The spokespeople for each group will often sit at the front of their group, and are then know ...
as a Shadow Minister for Culture, overseeing Arts and Broadcasting policy.
In the 2010 general election he received a vote of 29,284, which was 52% of the votes cast, winning an increased majority of 13,457. While the Conservative Party was in negotiations with the Lib Dems in the days after 6 May 2010, Vaizey was appearing regularly on television putting forward the Conservative viewpoint. In the 2015 general election Vaizey increased his majority to 21,749. In the 2017 general election Vaizey's majority was reduced but his share of the vote increased to 54.2%.
Vaizey was one of the group of 21 MPs who had the Conservative Whip removed in September 2019, sitting as an independent politician
An independent or non-partisan politician is a politician not affiliated with any political party or bureaucratic association. There are numerous reasons why someone may stand for office as an independent.
Some politicians have political views th ...
until having the whip restored on 29 October 2019. On 6 November 2019 Vaizey announced his decision not to stand for re-election in the 2019 general election.
Ministerial career
In 2010, Vaizey was appointed as Minister for Culture, Communications and Creative Industries
In the Government of the United Kingdom, the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Arts and Heritage is a ministerial post in the Department for Culture, Media and Sport.
The post is usually a junior to middle-ranking minister to the mor ...
. with responsibilities in the Departments for Culture, Media and Sport and for Business, Innovation and Skills. Vaizey was the longest serving Minister of Culture since the post was created in 1964, serving a total of 2,255 days, exceeding the total set by the first incumbent, Jennie Lee, by 186 days.
Upon leaving office, over 150 senior figures from the arts and creative industries wrote to the ''Daily Telegraph'' to express their thanks for his service as Minister for Culture and the Digital Economy. In 2011 he was mistakenly informed that he was to be Trade Minister, a post actually intended for Ed Davey
Sir Edward Jonathan Davey (born 25 December 1965) is a British politician who has served as Leader of the Liberal Democrats since 2020. He served in the Cameron–Clegg coalition as Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change from 2012 t ...
.
Vaizey supported continued membership of the European Union
The European Union (EU) is a supranational political and economic union of member states that are located primarily in Europe. The union has a total area of and an estimated total population of about 447million. The EU has often been des ...
in the 2016 referendum and is supportive of the European Atomic Energy Community
The European Atomic Energy Community (EAEC or Euratom) is an international organisation established by the Euratom Treaty on 25 March 1957 with the original purpose of creating a specialist market for nuclear power in Europe, by developing nucl ...
(Euratom).
As a minister, Vaizey upheld the policy of free entry to the UK's national museums. Towards the end of his tenure, the Treasury introduced tax credit
A tax credit is a tax incentive which allows certain taxpayers to subtract the amount of the credit they have accrued from the total they owe the state. It may also be a credit granted in recognition of taxes already paid or a form of state "disc ...
s for theatre, orchestras and museums. Vaizey also secured £150 million in capital funding from the Treasury to help reform museum storage.
He oversaw the separation of English Heritage into two arms – a regulator, now known as Historic England
Historic England (officially the Historic Buildings and Monuments Commission for England) is an executive non-departmental public body of the British Government sponsored by the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport. It is tasked wit ...
, and a charity, English Heritage
English Heritage (officially the English Heritage Trust) is a charity that manages over 400 historic monuments, buildings and places. These include prehistoric sites, medieval castles, Roman forts and country houses.
The charity states that i ...
. Vaizey also held responsibility for the creative industries and ensured the continuance of the film tax credits, as well as the introduction of tax credits for video games, television and visual effects. As a result, the film industry became the second highest contributor to growth in the service sector
The tertiary sector of the economy, generally known as the service sector, is the third of the three economic sectors in the three-sector model (also known as the economic cycle). The others are the primary sector (raw materials) and the second ...
in 2017, growing by 72.4% since 2014, compared to European growth of 8.5%. During his tenure, the creative industries grew at three times the rate of the UK economy as a whole. He was dismissed as a minister by Theresa May
Theresa Mary May, Lady May (; née Brasier; born 1 October 1956) is a British politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Conservative Party from 2016 to 2019. She previously served in David Cameron's cab ...
on 14 July 2016, and returned to the backbenches. He was appointed a member of the Privy Council
A privy council is a body that advises the head of state of a state, typically, but not always, in the context of a monarchic government. The word "privy" means "private" or "secret"; thus, a privy council was originally a committee of the mon ...
in July 2016.
Expenses claims
On 18 May 2009, ''The Daily Telegraph
''The Daily Telegraph'', known online and elsewhere as ''The Telegraph'', is a national British daily broadsheet newspaper published in London by Telegraph Media Group and distributed across the United Kingdom and internationally.
It was fo ...
'' reported that receipts submitted by Vaizey show that he ordered a £467 sofa, a £544 chair, a £280.50 low table and a £671 table in February 2007 from Oka
Oka or OKA may refer to:
Cars
* Oka (automobile), a small car designed by AvtoVAZ and produced by ZMA and SeAZ
* OKA 4wd, a large 4-wheel-drive vehicle made in Western Australia by OKA
Military
* 2B1 Oka, Soviet 420 mm self-propelled mor ...
, a furniture shop run by Annabel Astor
Annabel Lucy Veronica Astor, Viscountess Astor (, formerly Sheffield; born 14 August 1948), is an English businesswoman and socialite who is the CEO of OKA (retailer), OKA, a home furnishings design company. Before co-founding OKA, she was the o ...
. The Commons Fees Office initially rejected the claim as the receipt said that the furniture was due to be delivered to Vaizey's home address in West London, but was later paid when Vaizey advised the Fees Office that the furniture was intended for his second home at his Wantage constituency. Vaizey told ''The Daily Telegraph'' that he and his wife "had it delivered to London because we would be in to collect it and we were driving down with it".
When these claims became public, Vaizey said that he had repaid the cost of the Oka furniture and the antique chair which he had bought with taxpayers' money: "I accept that the £300 armchair was an antique item and therefore that claim should not have been made. I also accept that the Oka items could be deemed as being of higher quality than necessary. I have paid back both these claims. I have not claimed for any other furniture bought for my constituency home at any time before or since." Vaizey has described himself as "relatively affluent".
In November 2011, it was further reported that Vaizey had submitted expenses claims of 8p for a 350-yard car journey and 16p for a 700-yard journey.
Peerage
It was announced on 31 July 2020 that Vaizey was to be raised to the peerage in the 2019 Dissolution Honours. He was created Baron Vaizey of Didcot, ''of Wantage in the County of Oxfordshire'' in the afternoon of 1 September.
He made his maiden speech
A maiden speech is the first speech given by a newly elected or appointed member of a legislature or parliament.
Traditions surrounding maiden speeches vary from country to country. In many Westminster system governments, there is a convention th ...
in the House of Lords on 21 September 2020.
Media career
Vaizey has been a regular commentator for the Conservative Party in the broadcast and news media. He wrote regular comment pieces for ''The Guardian
''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...
'' between 1998 and 2005 and has contributed articles to ''The Sunday Times
''The Sunday Times'' is a British newspaper whose circulation makes it the largest in Britain's quality press market category. It was founded in 1821 as ''The New Observer''. It is published by Times Newspapers Ltd, a subsidiary of News UK, whi ...
'', ''The Times
''The Times'' is a British daily national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its current name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its sister paper ''The Sunday Times'' (fou ...
'' and ''The Daily Telegraph''. He briefly wrote editorials for the ''Evening Standard
The ''Evening Standard'', formerly ''The Standard'' (1827–1904), also known as the ''London Evening Standard'', is a local free daily newspaper in London, England, published Monday to Friday in tabloid format.
In October 2009, after be ...
''. Vaizey is also a regular broadcaster, having appeared on Fi Glover
Fiona Susannah Grace "Fi" Glover (born 27 February 1969) is a British BBC journalist and presenter who formerly presented the ''Fortunately'' podcast,
'' The Listening Project'' for BBC Radio 4 and ''My Perfect Country'' for the BBC World Ser ...
's and Edwina Currie
Edwina Currie (' Cohen; born 13 October 1946) is a British writer, broadcaster and former politician, serving as Conservative Party Member of Parliament for South Derbyshire from 1983 until 1997. She was a Junior Health Minister for two year ...
's shows on BBC Radio 5 Live
BBC Radio 5 Live is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC that broadcasts mainly news, sport, discussion, interviews and phone-ins. It is the principal BBC radio station covering sport in the United Kingdom, broadcast ...
, as a regular panelist on Channel 5's ''The Wright Stuff
''The Wright Stuff'' is a British television chat show which was hosted by former tabloid journalist Matthew Wright from 2000 until 2018. It aired on Channel 5 on weekday mornings from 9:15 to 11:15am. The series characterised itself as "Br ...
'', BBC Radio 4
BBC Radio 4 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC that replaced the BBC Home Service in 1967. It broadcasts a wide variety of spoken-word programmes, including news, drama, comedy, science and history from the BBC' ...
's ''Despatch Box
A despatch box (alternatively dispatch box) is one of several types of boxes used in government business. Despatch boxes primarily include both those sometimes known as red boxes or ministerial boxes, which are used by the Sovereign and his min ...
'' and '' Westminster Hour'', and occasionally presented ''People and Politics'' on the BBC World Service
The BBC World Service is an international broadcasting, international broadcaster owned and operated by the BBC, with funding from the Government of the United Kingdom, British Government through the Foreign Secretary, Foreign Secretary's o ...
.
On 24 September 2010, Vaizey was named tenth in the 2010 ''Guardian'' Film Power 100 list. He played a cameo role as an Oxfordshire
Oxfordshire is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the north west of South East England. It is a mainly rural county, with its largest settlement being the city of Oxford. The county is a centre of research and development, primarily ...
MP in the 2012 film ''Tortoise in Love
''Tortoise in Love'' is a 2012 British romantic comedy film. The story follows a microbiologist turned stately home gardener who enlists the help of his village in an attempt to woo a Polish au pair he has fallen in love with. First shown at th ...
''.
Other work
Subsequent to leaving office as Minister for Culture, Communications and Creative Industries
In the Government of the United Kingdom, the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Arts and Heritage is a ministerial post in the Department for Culture, Media and Sport.
The post is usually a junior to middle-ranking minister to the mor ...
, Vaizey became a trustee of the National Youth Theatre
The National Youth Theatre of Great Britain (NYT) is a youth theatre and registered charity in London. Its aim is to develop and nurture young people through creative arts and theatrical productions. Founded in 1956 as the world's first youth th ...
and the international charity BritDoc Doc Society (formerly Channel 4 BRITDOC Foundation and BRITDOC Foundation) is a social entrepreneurship organisation created in 2005. They have supported the production of over 60 films that have won awards .
Development
Initially supported by UK b ...
, which supports long-form documentary making, both of which roles are unpaid. Vaizey is also a trustee of London Music Masters
Music Masters (formerly London Music Masters/LMM) is a UK-based music education charity which works with schools, teachers and arts organisations with the aim of making music accessible to all.
Founded in 2007, Music Masters provides teaching, m ...
, a charity which provides children from disadvantaged backgrounds access to a high quality music education.
He was appointed the unpaid chairman of Creative Fuse NE, a programme overseen by five universities in North East England to look at the importance of fusing creativity and technology.
Vaizey took a role with LionTree Advisors
LionTree LLC is an American investment banking firm that has a focus on industries related to technology, media and telecommunications (TMT). Although the firm is based in the United States, it also has a significant presence in Europe. LionTre ...
who paid a salary of £50,000 for one day's work per week. The Advisory Committee on Business Appointments
The Advisory Committee on Business Appointments (ACOBA) is a non-departmental public body in the United Kingdom, which was set up in 1975 to provide advice on applications from the most senior Crown servants who wish to take up outside appointments ...
approved his application to work for the investment bank, which specialises in media and technology mergers and acquisitions, despite Vaizey's having met the firm on "official business" three times in his final months as minister.
He is president of the Old Pauline Club, the alumni association of St Paul's School which he attended as a boy.
Bibliography
*''A Blue Tomorrow – New Visions for Modern Conservatives'' (2001) (ed. with Michael Gove and Nicholas Boles).
*''Blue Book on Health: Conservative Visions for Health Policy'' (2002)
*''Blue Book on Transport: Conservative Visions for Transport Policy'' (ed with Michael McManus) (2002)
*''Blue Book on Education'' (ed with Michael McManus) (2003)
Arms
Notes
References
External links
Official website
Profile
at the Conservative Party
Wantage and Didcot Conservatives
*
*
Video game industry interview with Ed Vaizey
Bruceongames, 27 July 2009
Art interview with Ed Vaizey
Artforums.co.uk, 15 December 2009
{{DEFAULTSORT:Vaizey, Ed
1968 births
Alumni of Merton College, Oxford
British male journalists
British special advisers
Conservative Party (UK) life peers
Conservative Party (UK) MPs for English constituencies
Independent members of the House of Commons of the United Kingdom
English barristers
English people of American descent
English people of Jewish descent
Government ministers of the United Kingdom
Living people
Members of the Middle Temple
Members of the Privy Council of the United Kingdom
People from Berkshire
People from Wantage
People from Essex
People educated at Colet Court
People educated at St Paul's School, London
The Guardian journalists
The Sunday Times people
The Times people
UK MPs 2005–2010
UK MPs 2010–2015
UK MPs 2015–2017
UK MPs 2017–2019
Life peers created by Elizabeth II
Sons of life peers
Vaizey