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Richard Shepherd MP
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 Richard Shepherd photographed in September 2007 |
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Member of Parliament
for Aldridge-Brownhills |
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| Incumbent | |
| Assumed office 3 May 1979 |
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| Preceded by | Geoffrey Edge |
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| Majority | 5,507 (13.9%) |
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| Born | 6 December 1942 Aberdeen, Scotland |
| Nationality | British |
| Political party | Conservative |
| Alma mater | London School of Economics & Johns Hopkins University |
Richard Charles Scrimgeour Shepherd (born 6 December 1942, in Aberdeen, Scotland) is a Conservative Party politician in the United Kingdom. He is currently a Member of Parliament, representing the constituency of Aldridge-Brownhills.
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Early life
Shepherd was born in Aberdeen, Scotland, and educated at Isleworth Grammar School (now Isleworth and Syon School) in Isleworth. He then went on to the London School of Economics where he received a Bachelor of Science degree in Economics, and where he studied with and became a friend of Robert Kilroy-Silk. At the Paul H. Nitze School of Advanced International Studies at Johns Hopkins University in the United States, Shepherd received an Master of Science in Economics.
Shepherd was a director of the retail food businesses Partridges[1] of Sloane Street and Shepherd Foods in London. He was then was an underwriter at Lloyd's of London from 1974-94.
Parliamentary career
Shepherd contested the constituency of Nottingham East in February 1974, where he was defeated by the Labour Party candidate Jack Dunnett. Shepherd was formerly an assistant to Sir Teddy Taylor, and has been the Member of Parliament for Aldridge-Brownhills since 1979. He was selected as 'Backbencher of the Year' in 1985 and the Spectator's 'Parliamentarian of the Year' in 1995. In 1989, he was identified by a Mori poll of his fellow MPs to be one of the ten most effective MPs currently sitting in Parliament.
One of the most significant events in Shepherd's career came in 1988 when he introduced his Protection of Official Information Bill,[2] which was to replace parts of the Official Secrets Act. The government introduced a three line whip which called on its MPs to vote against the bill, even though it was introduced by a member of their own party. This brought considerable debate at the time both in parliament and in the media. The bill was defeated.
Shepherd was one of the Maastricht rebels, and is known to have libertarian leanings. He had close links to fellow Maastricht rebels Nicholas Budgen and Christopher Gill, even giving the eulogy at Budgen's funeral at Lichfield Cathedral.
Personal life
Shepherd is single. He has served as President of Walsall Football Club.
References
External links
- Conservatives.com - Richard Shepherd MP official biography
- Guardian Unlimited Politics - Ask Aristotle: Richard Shepherd MP
- They WorkForYou.com - Richard Shepherd MP
- Aldridge-Brownhills Conservative Association Conservative constituency association
- BBC Politics page
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