Derek Conway
Derek Leslie Conway TD (born 15 February 1953) is an English politician and television presenter. A member of the Conservative Party, Conway served as a Member of Parliament (MP) for the constituency of Shrewsbury and Atcham from 1983 to 1997, and Old Bexley and Sidcup from 2001 to 2010. He is currently a presenter of Epilogue, a book review programme on Press TV, an English-language international television news channel funded by the Iranian government.
Derek Conway | |
|---|---|
| Vice-Chamberlain of the Household | |
| In office 23 July 1996 – 2 May 1997 | |
| Prime Minister | John Major |
| Preceded by | Andrew MacKay |
| Succeeded by | Janet Anderson |
| Lord Commissioner of the Treasury | |
| In office 20 July 1994 – 23 July 1996 | |
| Prime Minister | John Major |
| Preceded by | Nicholas Baker |
| Succeeded by | Richard Ottaway |
| Member of Parliament for Old Bexley and Sidcup | |
| In office 7 June 2001 – 12 April 2010 | |
| Preceded by | Sir Edward Heath |
| Succeeded by | James Brokenshire |
| Member of Parliament for Shrewsbury and Atcham | |
| In office 9 June 1983 – 8 April 1997 | |
| Preceded by | Constituency created |
| Succeeded by | Paul Marsden |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 15 February 1953 Gateshead, England |
| Political party | Conservative |
| Spouse | Colette Elizabeth Mary Lamb |
| Children | 2 sons, 1 daughter |
| Alma mater | Newcastle upon Tyne Polytechnic |
| Awards | Territorial Decoration |
| Military service | |
| Allegiance | United Kingdom |
| Rank | Lieutenant colonel |
In January 2008, Conway announced that he would stand down at the next general election after a Commons standards committee found that he had employed his son Freddie, a full-time student at Newcastle University, as a political researcher using public funds, despite there being no record of his son doing any work at Westminster. As a result, Conservative Party leader David Cameron withdrew the whip from Conway, effectively expelling him from the Parliamentary Conservative group. He received considerable criticism from the press concerning the misuse of funds.