Jillian Wendy Mortimer (née Sowerby; born 20 March 1965) is a British
Conservative Party politician serving as
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 o ...
(MP) for
Hartlepool since 2021.
Personal life
Mortimer was born Jillian Wendy Sowerby on 20 March 1965 in
Leeds
Leeds () is a city and the administrative centre of the City of Leeds district in West Yorkshire, England. It is built around the River Aire and is in the eastern foothills of the Pennines. It is also the third-largest settlement (by popula ...
. Her father was a
builder and her mother was a
greengrocer. She attended
Parklands Girls High School and later read law at
Teesside University
, mottoeng = Deeds Not Words
, established = 1930 – Constantine Technical College1969 – as Teesside Polytechnic 1992 – gained university status
, type = Public
, endowment = £0.23 m (2019/20)
, chancellor ...
as a
mature student
An adult learner or, more commonly, a mature student, is a person who is older and is involved in forms of learning. Adult learners fall in a specific criterion of being experienced, and do not always have a high school diploma. Many of the adult ...
at the age of 50, studying alongside two of her three children. One of her grandmothers grew up in
Hartlepool.
Before entering 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 ...
, Mortimer was a farmer in
Knayton
Knayton is a small village in Hambleton District of North Yorkshire, England. It is located north of Thirsk just off the A19. It is linked with the hamlet of Brawith, approximately 1 mile away. ThDog and Gunpublic house faces the village green ...
,
North Yorkshire
North Yorkshire is the largest ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county (lieutenancy area) in England, covering an area of . Around 40% of the county is covered by National parks of the United Kingdom, national parks, including most of ...
, hand-rearing Dexter cows and selling the beef and lamb from the gate of the farm and also training to become a
barrister. Today the farm operates as a upmarket B&B with planning permission granted for yurts and shepherd's huts to be added to the site. She announced her intention to buy a property in the
Hartlepool constituency following her election, however is yet to do so.
Political career
Mortimer served as 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 ...
for
Raskelf &
White Horse Ward on
Hambleton District Council Hambleton may refer to:
Places
*Hambleton District, a local government district of North Yorkshire, England
** Hambleton Ales, a brewery originally based in Hambleton
*Hambleton, Lancashire, England
*Hambleton, Rutland, England
* Hambleton, Crave ...
between May 2019 and October 2021. She contested
Leeds East
Leeds East is a constituency represented in the House of Commons of the UK Parliament since 2015 by Richard Burgon of the Labour Party.
The constituency is notable for having been represented by Denis Healey who was the MP from 1955 to 1992. ...
at the
2019 general election.
Member of Parliament
Mortimer was confirmed as the
prospective parliamentary candidate for Hartlepool on 26 March 2021, in advance of the subsequent
by-election on 6 May. The by-election was announced following the resignation of
Mike Hill, the incumbent
Labour MP.
She described her priorities for Hartlepool as being: "Recovering from the pandemic, regenerating our high streets and local communities, unlocking the opportunities of Brexit to help create good quality sustainable jobs, helping businesses deliver more apprenticeships and recruiting more police officers."
During the campaign, the
deputy leader of the Labour Party,
Angela Rayner
Angela Rayner (' Bowen; born 28 March 1980) is a British politician serving as Shadow Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster, Shadow Minister for the Cabinet Office and Shadow Secretary of State for the Future of Work since 2021. She has been Sha ...
, accused Mortimer of
tax avoidance
Tax avoidance is the legal usage of the tax regime in a single territory to one's own advantage to reduce the amount of tax that is payable by means that are within the law. A tax shelter is one type of tax avoidance, and tax havens are jurisdi ...
when previously living with her first husband, Marcus Killick, and their family in the
Cayman Islands. The
co-chairman of the Conservative Party,
Amanda Milling
Amanda Anne Milling (born 12 March 1975) is a British politician serving as Member of Parliament (MP) for Cannock Chase since the 2015 general election. She served as Minister without Portfolio in the UK cabinet and, alongside Ben Elliot, as C ...
, tweeted that Rayner had made "an eye-popping error" in having "tried to slur" Mortimer as Killick had been working as for the
Cayman Islands Monetary Authority
The Cayman Islands Monetary Authority (CIMA) is the primary financial services regulator of the Cayman Islands and supervises its currency board.
The CIMA manages the Cayman Islands currency, regulates and supervises financial services, provide ...
, the primary financial services regulator for the
British Overseas Territory. Milling stated Mortimer and her ex-husband "did not gain any tax advantage from living in the Cayman Islands, nor did she advise any others on this".
Mortimer won the by-election with a majority of 6,940 votes and a
swing from Labour of 16.0%, becoming the first
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 ...
and woman to represent the constituency in
Parliament
In modern politics, and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: representing the electorate, making laws, and overseeing the government via hearings and inquiries. Th ...
since its creation in 1974.
John Kerans
Commander John Simon Kerans (30 June 191512 September 1985) was an officer in the Royal Navy and later a Conservative Party politician. He is also the author of the 1964 book ''The World's Greatest Sea Adventures'', Publisher: Odhams Books Ltd ...
had been the last Conservative MP to represent the town and
The Hartlepools
The Hartlepools was a borough constituency represented in the House of Commons of the UK Parliament. The constituency became Hartlepool in 1974. The seat's name reflected the representation of both old Hartlepool and West Hartlepool.
Hist ...
between 1959 and 1964.
Mortimer made her
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 Commons on 21 September 2021.
In June 2022, during the
, Mortimer expressed her support for the prime minister.
In September 2022, Mortimer resigned as a
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 ...
after two weeks in the role to focus on her constituency.
Mortimer sent a letter of no confidence in the leadership of
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 ...
on 20 October 2022.
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Mortimer, Jill
1965 births
Living people
People from Hambleton District
Politicians from Leeds
Alumni of Teesside University
UK MPs 2019–present
Conservative Party (UK) MPs for English constituencies
Female members of the Parliament of the United Kingdom for English constituencies
Conservative Party (UK) councillors
Councillors in North Yorkshire
21st-century British women politicians
21st-century English women politicians
Women councillors in England