Daniel Leonard James Poulter (born 30 October 1978) is a

British Conservative Party The Conservative Party, officially the Conservative and Unionist Party and also known colloquially as the Tories, is one of the two main political parties in the United Kingdom, along with the Labour Party. It is the current governing party, ...

politician, who was elected at the 2010 general election as the Member of Parliament (MP) for Central Suffolk and North Ipswich. Poulter is a psychiatrist and served as a Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State in the

Department of Health A health department or health ministry is a part of government which focuses on issues related to the general health of the citizenry. Subnational entities, such as states, counties and cities, often also operate a health department of their ow ...

between September 2012 and May 2015 when he returned to the backbenches.Daniel Poulter
, parliament.uk. Retrieved 30 December 2012.

Early life and career

Poulter was born in

Beckenham Beckenham () is a town in Greater London, England, within the London Borough of Bromley, in Greater London. Until 1965 it was part of the historic county of Kent. It is located south-east of Charing Cross, situated north of Elmers End and E ...

in Kent. He was privately educated at Vinehall School and Battle Abbey School before attending the

University of Bristol , mottoeng = earningpromotes one's innate power (from Horace, ''Ode 4.4'') , established = 1595 – Merchant Venturers School1876 – University College, Bristol1909 – received royal charter , type ...

, graduating with a law degree, before qualifying as a medical doctor at

King's College London King's College London (informally King's or KCL) is a public research university located in London, England. King's was established by royal charter in 1829 under the patronage of King George IV and the Duke of Wellington. In 1836, King's ...

(MBBS; AKC). Poulter worked as a junior doctor training in obstetrics and gynaecological medicine and has published articles in the area of women's health. During the 2011 parliamentary summer recesses, Poulter worked at the

James Paget University Hospital James Paget University Hospital is at Gorleston-on-Sea, Great Yarmouth, Norfolk, England, on the A47 Lowestoft Road. It is managed by the James Paget University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust. History The hospital, which replaced Great Yarmout ...

Gorleston Gorleston-on-Sea (), known colloquially as Gorleston, is a town in the Borough of Great Yarmouth, in Norfolk, England, to the south of Great Yarmouth. Situated at the mouth of the River Yare it was a port town at the time of the Domesday Bo ...

, in the

Accident and Emergency An emergency department (ED), also known as an accident and emergency department (A&E), emergency room (ER), emergency ward (EW) or casualty department, is a medical treatment facility specializing in emergency medicine, the acute care of pat ...

department. At the time of meeting

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 ...

in 2006, who inspired him to enter politics, he was working in Mental Health. In 2018, Poulter became a Member of the Royal College of Psychiatrists and continues to work as an NHS mental health Doctor Poulter was elected as a

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 ...

member of Hastings Borough Council in 2006, serving until 2007. He was the deputy leader of Reigate and Banstead Council between 2008 and 2010. In June 2021, Poulter became a non-executive director for Kanabo Group PLC, a pharmaceutical company based in London.

Parliamentary career

Poulter was elected as the Member of Parliament for Central Suffolk and North Ipswich at the 2010 general election, receiving 27,125 votes, increasing the Conservative majority of his predecessor,

Michael Lord Michael Nicholson Lord, Baron Framlingham (born 17 October 1938) is a British politician, and was a Conservative Member of Parliament for Central Suffolk and North Ipswich between 1997 and 2010. He was first elected for the predecessor seat of ...

, seeing a vote share of 50.8%. In 2011, he was credited with a "lifesaving" intervention in Parliament when he persuaded fellow Conservative MP

Guy Opperman Guy Thomas Opperman (born 18 May 1965) is a British politician serving as Minister of State for Employment since October 2022. He served as Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Pensions and Financial Inclusion at the Department for Wor ...

to seek urgent medical treatment. Opperman subsequently had a brain tumour removed. Poulter announced he would resign from the

British Medical Association The British Medical Association (BMA) is a registered trade union for doctors in the United Kingdom. The association does not regulate or certify doctors, a responsibility which lies with the General Medical Council. The association's headqua ...

in 2012, following an announced doctors' strike. He said he did not believe "striking as a doctor could ever be justified". In September 2012, Poulter became the Parliamentary Under Secretary of State at the

. His primary responsibilities as a Health Minister were for workforce issues,

NHS The National Health Service (NHS) is the umbrella term for the publicly funded healthcare systems of the United Kingdom (UK). Since 1948, they have been funded out of general taxation. There are three systems which are referred to using the " ...

estates and IT systems. After the 2015 general election, Poulter returned to the back benches, and to working part-time as a doctor. In October 2015, Poulter expressed his support for protests by doctors and others against the Conservative government's proposed changes to the junior doctors' contract. In April 2016, Poulter widened his criticism of the Conservative government, in a ''

Guardian Guardian usually refers to: * Legal guardian, a person with the authority and duty to care for the interests of another * ''The Guardian'', a British daily newspaper (The) Guardian(s) may also refer to: Places * Guardian, West Virginia, Unit ...

'' article. Poulter was opposed to

Brexit Brexit (; a portmanteau of "British exit") was the Withdrawal from the European Union, withdrawal of the United Kingdom (UK) from the European Union (EU) at 23:00 Greenwich Mean Time, GMT on 31 January 2020 (00:00 1 February 2020 Central Eur ...

prior to the 2016 EU membership referendum. He later voted along party lines concerning leaving the EU. In his local constituency he is on record as being opposed to the building of a bypass around the North of Ipswich. In an article penned by Poulter for the ''

East Anglian Daily Times The ''East Anglian Daily Times'' is a British local newspaper for Suffolk and Essex, based in Ipswich. History The newspaper began publication on 13 October 1874, incorporating the ''Ipswich Express'', which had been published since 13 Augus ...

'', he said 'studies of healthy omnivores eating a diet rich in plant foods have failed to find consistent evidence that red meat is unhealthy'. This is despite

red meat In gastronomy, red meat is commonly red when raw and a dark color after it is cooked, in contrast to white meat, which is pale in color before and after cooking. In culinary terms, only flesh from mammals or fowl (not fish) is classified a ...

being currently classified by the World Health Organisation (WHO) as a level 2a carcinogen. In December 2022, he wrote an article in ''The Guardian'' advocating for increasing nurses pay during the 2022 National Health Service strikes.

''Sunday Times'' libel case

In November 2017, 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, w ...

'' published two articles based on claims made to the newspaper by the MP

Andrew Bridgen Andrew James Bridgen (born 28 October 1964) is a British politician and businessman who has served as the Member of Parliament (MP) for North West Leicestershire since 2010. A member of the Conservative Party and prominent figure on its right wi ...

that Poulter had sexually assaulted three female MPs eight years previously. The Conservative Party Panel investigated the matter and exonerated Poulter, confirming that no woman had ever made a complaint about him. It dismissed the claims as having "no reliable evidence" to support them. In February 2019, the ''Sunday Times'' apologised in open court to Poulter, acknowledging that the allegations were false, defamatory and should not have been published. The articles were removed from the newspaper's website and Times Newspapers Limited agreed that it would not republish the same or similar allegations about Poulter in the future. The ''Sunday Times'' paid substantial damages to him, as well as his legal costs.

References

External links

Official website

Daniel Poulter MP
Conservative Party profile
Central Suffolk and North Ipswich Conservatives
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Poulter, Daniel 1978 births Living people Alumni of the University of Bristol Alumni of King's College London Associates of King's College Conservative Party (UK) MPs for English constituencies UK MPs 2010–2015 UK MPs 2015–2017 UK MPs 2017–2019 UK MPs 2019–present Councillors in East Sussex Councillors in Surrey People from Beckenham