Michael James Tomlinson-Mynors (born 1 October 1977) is a British politician serving as

Solicitor General for England and Wales His Majesty's Solicitor General for England and Wales, known informally as the Solicitor General, is one of the law officers of the Crown in the government of the United Kingdom. They are the deputy of the Attorney General for England and Wales ...

since September 2022. He served as Vice-Chamberlain of the Household from July to September 2022. He has been 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

Mid Dorset and North Poole Mid Dorset and North Poole is a constituency represented in the House of Commons of the UK Parliament since 2015 by Michael Tomlinson, a Conservative. Boundaries 1997–2010: The District of Purbeck wards of Bere Regis, Lytchett Matravers, ...

since 2015. 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 served as Deputy Chairman of 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 ese ...

(ERG) from 20 November 2016 until 19 March 2018.

Early life

Tomlinson was educated at

Hereford Cathedral School Hereford Cathedral School is an independent, co-educational day and boarding school for pupils of ages 3 to 18 years, from Nursery to Sixth Form. Its headmaster is a member of the Headmasters' and Headmistresses' Conference. The school's premi ...

and graduated from King's College London with a BA in Classics before studying for a Postgraduate Diploma in Law at the

College of Law A law school (also known as a law centre or college of law) is an institution specializing in legal education, usually involved as part of a process for becoming a lawyer within a given jurisdiction. Law degrees Argentina In Argentina, ...

and becoming a barrister at

Middle Temple The Honourable Society of the Middle Temple, commonly known simply as Middle Temple, is one of the four Inns of Court exclusively entitled to call their members to the English Bar as barristers, the others being the Inner Temple, Gray's Inn ...

. He was awarded the Queen Mother Scholarship and represented Middle Temple in international

mooting Moot court is a co-curricular activity at many law schools. Participants take part in simulated court or arbitration proceedings, usually involving drafting memorials or memoranda and participating in oral argument. In most countries, the phrase ...

competitions in the United States and Hong Kong.

Parliamentary career

Tomlinson has represented the constituency of

since the 2015 General Election. He lists his main areas of interest as education, employment, infrastructure and justice. He made his maiden speech in the House of Commons on 22 June 2015 during a debate on the Education and Adoption Bill. He voted for the UK to hold a referendum on continued membership of the European Union and he subsequently supported the campaign to leave the European Union. The

referendum A referendum (plural: referendums or less commonly referenda) is a direct vote by the electorate on a proposal, law, or political issue. This is in contrast to an issue being voted on by a representative. This may result in the adoption of a ...

itself was held in June 2016. Subsequently, between November 2016 and May 2017 and then again between October 2017 and November 2019, Tomlinson was a member of the

European Scrutiny Committee The European Scrutiny Committee is a select committee of the House of Commons in the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Following Britain's withdrawal from the European Union in January 2020 and the end of the transition period on 31 December 202 ...

. Tomlinson was appointed Parliamentary Private Secretary to the ministers at the

Department of International Development , type = Department , logo = DfID.svg , logo_width = 180px , logo_caption = , picture = File:Admiralty Screen (411824276).jpg , picture_width = 180px , picture_caption = Department for International Development (London office) (far right ...

in July 2017 and was promoted to Parliamentary Private Secretary to the Secretary of State,

Penny Mordaunt Penelope Mary Mordaunt (; born 4 March 1973) is a British politician who has been Leader of the House of Commons and Lord President of the Council since September 2022. A member of the Conservative Party, she has been Member of Parliament (MP) ...

, in January 2018. He had previously been involved in '' pro bono'' legal projects in Rwanda and

Sierra Leone Sierra Leone,)]. officially the Republic of Sierra Leone, is a country on the southwest coast of West Africa. It is bordered by Liberia to the southeast and Guinea surrounds the northern half of the nation. Covering a total area of , Sierr ...

. He was appointed Parliamentary Private Secretary to

Dominic Raab Dominic Rennie Raab (; born 25 February 1974) is a British politician who has served as Deputy Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, Secretary of State for Justice, and Lord Chancellor since October 2022, having previously served from 2021 to ...

Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union Her Majesty's Principal Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union or, informally, Brexit Secretary, was a secretary of state in the Government of the United Kingdom, responsible for the business of the Department for Exiting the Euro ...

in November 2018, less than 48 hours before the latter resigned from the

Cabinet Cabinet or The Cabinet may refer to: Furniture * Cabinetry, a box-shaped piece of furniture with doors and/or drawers * Display cabinet, a piece of furniture with one or more transparent glass sheets or transparent polycarbonate sheets * Filing ...

. Shortly thereafter Tomlinson wrote an article in ''

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 ...

'', in which he expressed reservations about the terms of the agreement to withdraw from the European Union negotiated 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 cabi ...

. In February 2020, Tomlinson was appointed a

Lord Commissioner of the Treasury In the United Kingdom there are at least six Lords Commissioners of His Majesty's Treasury, serving as a commission for the ancient office of Treasurer of the Exchequer. The board consists of the First Lord of the Treasury, the Second Lord of the ...

, making him a government whip. In September 2022, he was appointed

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 ...

and in October 2022 he was reappointed by Rishi Sunak. On 4 November 2022, he was appointed King's Counsel.

Personal life

In May 1997, Tomlinson made one appearance in Minor County Cricket, playing for

Herefordshire Herefordshire () is a county in the West Midlands of England, governed by Herefordshire Council. It is bordered by Shropshire to the north, Worcestershire to the east, Gloucestershire to the south-east, and the Welsh counties of Monmouthsh ...

against

Dorset Dorset ( ; archaically: Dorsetshire , ) is a county in South West England on the English Channel coast. The ceremonial county comprises the unitary authority areas of Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole and Dorset. Covering an area of , ...

, when he did not bat or bowl. He is currently a member of the Lords and Commons Cricket Club. He is married to wife Frances, and they have three children.

References

External links

* , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Tomlinson, Michael 1977 births Living people People educated at Hereford Cathedral School Alumni of King's College London British barristers English King's Counsel 21st-century King's Counsel Conservative Party (UK) MPs for English constituencies UK MPs 2015–2017 UK MPs 2017–2019 UK MPs 2019–present Herefordshire cricketers English cricketers Solicitors General for England and Wales