Greg David Smith (born 3 March 1979) is a British
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 i ...
politician. Previously deputy leader of
Hammersmith and Fulham Council
Hammersmith and Fulham London Borough Council is the local authority for the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham in Greater London, England. It is a London borough council, one of 32 in the United Kingdom capital of London. Hammersmith and F ...
, 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 the
Buckingham
Buckingham ( ) is a market town in north Buckinghamshire, England, close to the borders of Northamptonshire and Oxfordshire, which had a population of 12,890 at the 2011 Census. The town lies approximately west of Central Milton Keynes, sou ...
constituency since the
2019 general election.
Early life
Smith studied at
Bromsgrove School
Bromsgrove School is a co-educational independent day and boarding school in the Worcestershire town of Bromsgrove, England. Founded in 1553, it is one of the oldest public schools in Britain, and one of the 14 founding members of the Headmaste ...
and then the
University of Birmingham
, mottoeng = Through efforts to heights
, established = 1825 – Birmingham School of Medicine and Surgery1836 – Birmingham Royal School of Medicine and Surgery1843 – Queen's College1875 – Mason Science College1898 – Mason Univers ...
. He has had a career in design and marketing. Smith was a trustee of
Riverside Studios
Riverside Studios is an arts centre on the banks of the River Thames in Hammersmith, London, England. The venue plays host to contemporary performance, film, visual art exhibitions and television production.
Having closed for redevelopment in ...
from 2008 to 2019.
Career
Smith was a councillor on
Hammersmith and Fulham Council
Hammersmith and Fulham London Borough Council is the local authority for the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham in Greater London, England. It is a London borough council, one of 32 in the United Kingdom capital of London. Hammersmith and F ...
between
May 2006 and
May 2018, and was also deputy leader of the council. In
2014
File:2014 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Stocking up supplies and personal protective equipment (PPE) for the Western African Ebola virus epidemic; Citizens examining the ruins after the Chibok schoolgirls kidnapping; Bundles of wat ...
, the Conservatives lost control of the council to
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 ...
in the local elections, and Smith was appointed as Leader of the Conservative group. He stood down from the council in the 2018 elections.
At the
2017 general election, he stood as the Conservative candidate in
Hayes and Harlington, which has generally been a
safe seat
A safe seat is an electoral district (constituency) in a legislative body (e.g. Congress, Parliament, City Council) which is regarded as fully secure, for either a certain political party, or the incumbent representative personally or a combinat ...
for the Labour Party in recent years. He lost to
John McDonnell
John Martin McDonnell (born 8 September 1951) is a British politician who served as Shadow Chancellor of the Exchequer from 2015 to 2020. A member of the Labour Party, he has been Member of Parliament (MP) for Hayes and Harlington since 1997. ...
, with 28.6% of the vote.
In October 2019, Smith was announced as the Conservative candidate for the
Buckingham constituency, following the announcement by the
Speaker of the House of Commons Speaker of the House of Commons is a political leadership position found in countries that have a House of Commons, where the membership of the body elects a speaker to lead its proceedings.
Systems that have such a position include:
* Speaker of ...
John Bercow
John Simon Bercow (; born 19 January 1963) is a British former politician who was Speaker of the House of Commons from 2009 to 2019, and Member of Parliament (MP) for Buckingham between 1997 and 2019. A member of the Conservative Party prior to ...
that he would stand down at the end of October.
Bercow had held the seat since 1997, having been elected as a Conservative.
Smith announced his opposition to
HS2
High Speed 2 (HS2) is a planned high-speed railway line in England, the first phase of which is under construction in stages and due for completion between 2029 and 2033, depending on approval for later stages. The new line will run from its m ...
and the East West Expressway as part of his campaign.
He is a
Brexit
Brexit (; a portmanteau of "British exit") was the withdrawal of the United Kingdom (UK) from the European Union (EU) at 23:00 GMT on 31 January 2020 (00:00 1 February 2020 CET).The UK also left the European Atomic Energy Community (EAEC or ...
supporter and helped
Boris Johnson
Alexander Boris de Pfeffel Johnson (; born 19 June 1964) is a British politician, writer and journalist who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Conservative Party from 2019 to 2022. He previously served as F ...
in his Conservative party leadership campaign.
Smith opposes a Ministry of Justice plan to build a third prison in his constituency.
Smith was appointed as a member of the
Transport Select Committee
The Transport Select Committee is a select committee of the House of Commons in the Parliament of the United Kingdom. The remit of the Committee is to examine the expenditure, administration and policy of the Department for Transport and its asso ...
in February 2020. He is the co-chair of the Free-Market Forum. In May 2021 he became chairman of the Minimally Invasive Cancer Therapies
All-party parliamentary group
An all-party parliamentary group (APPG) is a grouping in the Parliament of the United Kingdom that is composed of members of parliament from all political parties, but have no official status within Parliament.
Description and functions
All-party ...
.
Controversies
In October 2020, following a national campaign by footballer
Marcus Rashford
Marcus Rashford (born 31 October 1997) is an English professional footballer who plays as a forward for club Manchester United and the England national team. Considered one of the best players in the world, he is known for his explosive ath ...
, the
Labour Party put down a House of Commons motion to extend the free school meals food vouchers to cover the October 2020 half-term break. Many local councils, individuals and businesses volunteered to offer assistance to
FareShare
FareShare is a charity network aimed at relieving food poverty and reducing food waste in the UK, which has been running since 1994. It does this by obtaining good quality surplus food from the food industry that would otherwise have gone to wast ...
to help them serve people in need. Despite Smith’s vote against the motion, he applied to one such volunteer organisation (a cafe in his constituency at
Ivinghoe
Ivinghoe is a village and civil parish in east Buckinghamshire, England, close to the border with Hertfordshire and Bedfordshire. It is northwest of London, north of Tring and south of Leighton Buzzard, close to the village of Pitstone.
Ety ...
) for a photo opportunity to "help get the meals ready for distribution or help with delivery". The request was refused by the cafe owners with national publicity.
Personal life
He moved to
Wendover
Wendover is a market town and civil parish at the foot of the Chiltern Hills in Buckinghamshire, England. It is situated at the point where the main road across the Chilterns between London and Aylesbury intersects with the once important road a ...
,
Buckinghamshire
Buckinghamshire (), abbreviated Bucks, is a ceremonial county in South East England that borders Greater London to the south-east, Berkshire to the south, Oxfordshire to the west, Northamptonshire to the north, Bedfordshire to the north-ea ...
, with his second wife, Annalise, in 2017.
In 2021, Smith moved to the Buckinghamshire village of
Chearsley
Chearsley is a village and civil parish within the Buckinghamshire district in the ceremonial county of Buckinghamshire, England. It is situated about seven miles south west of Aylesbury, and about four miles north of Thame, in Oxfordshire.
Histo ...
.
In 2021, he was asked to look into roadside pollution of extremely rare chalk streams. Out of a global count of less than 300, his constituency is responsible for the maintenance of more than 100 of these. He has expressed his views that all natural chalk streams within Buckinghamshire will be restored to their original status.
References
External links
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Smith, Greg
1979 births
Living people
Conservative Party (UK) councillors
Conservative Party (UK) MPs for English constituencies
Councillors in the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham
UK MPs 2019–present
People educated at Bromsgrove School