Chris Grayling
Encyclopedia
Christopher Stephen "Chris" Grayling, PC
, MP
(born 1 April 1962), is a British
politician
. A member of the Conservative Party
, he served in the Shadow Cabinet
from 2005 to 2010 and was the party's Shadow Home Secretary
from 2009 to 2010. Following the 2010 general election, he was appointed a Minister of State
in the Department for Work and Pensions
. He has been a Member of Parliament
(MP) representing the constituency of Epsom and Ewell
since 2001.
in High Wycombe
. He then went on to Cambridge University
, where he completed a Bachelor of Arts
degree in history
at Sidney Sussex College
in 1984.
in 1985 as a trainee, becoming a producer
in 1986. He left the BBC in 1988 to join Channel 4
as an editor
on its Business Daily programme
. He rejoined the BBC in 1991 as a business development manager on BBC Select
. On leaving the BBC in 1993, he ran several television production companies, including managing the corporate communications division of Workhouse Ltd from 1992-5 and SSVC Group in Gerrards Cross
from 1995-7. He became a management consultant in 1997 with Burson Marsteller, where he remained until his election to Westminster
.
Prior to joining the Conservative Party, Grayling was a member of the Social Democratic Party
, along with a number of other Cameron frontbenchers.
-held marginal seat of Warrington South
at the 1997 general election
, but was defeated by Labour candidate Helen Southworth
by 10,807 votes. He was elected as a councillor in the London Borough of Merton
in 1998 and remained on the council until 2002.
seat of Epsom and Ewell at the 2001 general election
following the retirement of the veteran Tory MP Archie Hamilton
. Grayling held the seat with a majority of 10,080 and has remained the MP there since. He made his maiden speech
on 25 June 2001.
by Iain Duncan Smith
in 2002, moving to become a spokesman on health
later in the year. He became a spokesman on education and skills by Michael Howard
in 2003, and following the 2005 general election
he became a member of Howard's Shadow Cabinet
as Shadow Leader of the House of Commons
, and since the election of David Cameron
as the leader of the Conservative Party
in December 2005 he has served as the Shadow Secretary of State for Transport
. In June 2007, he was made Shadow Secretary of State for Work and Pensions
, a post he held until January 2009 when he became Shadow Home Secretary
.
He also challenged Cherie and Tony Blair over the money they made from lectures while he was in Downing Street and former Minister Stephen Byers over his handling of the Railtrack collapse.
, close to the House of Commons, despite having a constituency home less than 17 miles away and owning two buy to let
properties in Wimbledon
. Grayling says he uses the flat when "working very late" because he needs to "work very erratic and late hours most days when the House of Commons is sitting."
During the Parliamentary expenses scandal
, The Daily Telegraph
reported that Grayling refitted and redecorated the flat in 2005 at a cost of thousands of pounds. Grayling said that both the water and electrical systems failed "leaving the place needing a major overhaul"..
set TV series The Wire
. In a speech on gang problems he also talked about the gang problems in Manchester’s Moss Side. His Comments met with an angry response in Manchester
, from locals and the police. Having been out on patrol for a day with the police, observing the results of a shooting at a house, he described himself as having witnessed an "urban war". Police responded that gang related shootings in Greater Manchester
had fallen by 82 percent on the previous year, and that to speak of "urban war" was "sensationalistic". Local councillor Roy Walters complained of the Moss Side unfairly being a "negative target" due to historical associations. However he was defended by right wing commentators who said he spoke for the “mainstream majority”. Sticking by his comments, he said, "I didn't say Moss Side equals Baltimore. What I said is that we have in Moss Side symptoms of a gang conflict in this country which I find profoundly disturbing". Baltimore, with a population of about 600,000, was noted as having 191 gun related murders in the past year, in comparison to Moss Side, population 11,000, which had none.
, Sir Michael Scholar
, said that the figures Grayling was using were "likely to mislead the public" and "likely to damage public trust in official statistics". Scholar further added that reliable statistics showed that there had not been an increase in crime during Labour's period in office. However a subsequent report produced by the independent House of Commons library confirmed that Grayling and the Conservative Party had been right to say that violent crime had risen significantly.
saying that during the debates on civil liberties under the Labour Government, he had felt that Christians should have the right to live by their consciences and that Christian owners of bed and breakfast
s should have the right to turn away gay couples. Grayling said:
When the recording was released by The Observer
on 3 April 2010, Grayling's comments caused uproar, with Ben Summerskill
, chief executive of the gay rights group Stonewall
, saying that this position would be illegal and "very alarming to a lot of gay people who may have been thinking of voting Conservative". Lord Mandelson
, the most senior gay
minister in the government, said that the comment showed that the Conservative party had not changed, that "when the camera is on they say one thing, but when the camera is off they say another". There have since been growing calls for Grayling to resign. Conservative party leader David Cameron
was subsequently urged to "back or sack" Grayling, with gay rights campaigner Peter Tatchell
saying that "Cameron's silence is worrying. Many voters – gay and straight – will be disturbed by his failure to swiftly disown Grayling's support for homophobic discrimination. What does this say about the sincerity and seriousness of his commitment to gay equality?" A poll for the website pinknews.co.uk released on 5 April found that support for the Conservatives in the LGBT
community had fallen drastically since Grayling's comment. Author Douglas Murray
has dubbed Grayling "a political buffoon, unsure of what he is saying and with little idea of how to say it." Anastasia Beaumont-Bott, founder of "LGBTory
", a gay rights group that campaigns for the Conservatives, announced that she would be voting for Labour
, not the Conservatives, in response to Grayling's comment. She said, "I feel guilty because as a gay woman affected by LGBT rights I am on record saying you should vote Conservative, and I want to reverse that. I want to go on record to say don't vote Conservative. I'd go as far to say that I'll vote Labour at this general election." Beaumont-Bott was joined in defecting from the Conservatives to Labour a week later by prominent gay rights campaigner David Heathcote. However Grayling’s comments were defended by a number of commentators, including the Today Programme presenter and leading gay broadcaster Evan Davis, and by leading Christian groups.
Grayling apologised on 9 April, saying "I am sorry if what I said gave the wrong impression, I certainly didn't intend to offend anyone... I voted for gay rights, I voted for this particular measure
." On the 12 April edition of The Daily Politics
, presenter Andrew Neil
claimed the programme makers had been unable to contact Grayling about an appearance and suggested that he had gone to ground since his comments were published. Since the start of the 2010 general election campaign on 6 April, Grayling has been "hidden away" by the Conservatives, making very few public appearances. During the launch of the Labour Party's "LGBT Manifesto" on 15 April, Deputy Leader Harriet Harman
renewed calls for Grayling to be sacked, saying "We don't want to wake up and find we have a homophobic home secretary. David Cameron should have sacked him as soon as he said that." It is unclear whether his remarks were the reason that David Cameron chose to appoint Theresa May
as Home Secretary in his new cabinet, rather than Grayling who held the position in the Shadow Cabinet; Grayling was not given any cabinet post, as had been predicted by some media commentators prior to the election.
on 9 June 2010.
, and can boast that he once hit a four
off the Australia
n fast bowler
Dennis Lillee
.
Privy Council of the United Kingdom
Her Majesty's Most Honourable Privy Council, usually known simply as the Privy Council, is a formal body of advisers to the Sovereign in the United Kingdom...
, MP
Member of Parliament
A Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...
(born 1 April 1962), is a British
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
politician
Politician
A politician, political leader, or political figure is an individual who is involved in influencing public policy and decision making...
. A member of the Conservative Party
Conservative Party (UK)
The Conservative Party, formally the Conservative and Unionist Party, is a centre-right political party in the United Kingdom that adheres to the philosophies of conservatism and British unionism. It is the largest political party in the UK, and is currently the largest single party in the House...
, he served in the Shadow Cabinet
Shadow Cabinet
The Shadow Cabinet is a senior group of opposition spokespeople in the Westminster system of government who together under the leadership of the Leader of the Opposition form an alternative cabinet to the government's, whose members shadow or mark each individual member of the government...
from 2005 to 2010 and was the party's Shadow Home Secretary
Shadow Home Secretary
In British politics, the Shadow Home Secretary is the person within the shadow cabinet who 'shadows' the Home Secretary; this effectively means scrutinising government policy on home affairs including policing, national security, immigration, the criminal justice system, the prison service, and...
from 2009 to 2010. Following the 2010 general election, he was appointed a Minister of State
Minister of State
Minister of State is a title borne by politicians or officials in certain countries governed under a parliamentary system. In some countries a "minister of state" is a junior minister, who is assigned to assist a specific cabinet minister...
in the Department for Work and Pensions
Department for Work and Pensions
The Department for Work and Pensions is the largest government department in the United Kingdom, created on June 8, 2001 from the merger of the employment part of the Department for Education and Employment and the Department of Social Security and headed by the Secretary of State for Work and...
. He has been a Member of Parliament
Member of Parliament
A Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...
(MP) representing the constituency of Epsom and Ewell
Epsom and Ewell (UK Parliament constituency)
Epsom and Ewell is a borough constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It elects one Member of Parliament by the first past the post system of election.- Boundaries :...
since 2001.
Education
Grayling was educated at the Royal Grammar SchoolRoyal Grammar School, High Wycombe
See Royal Grammar School for the other schools with the name RGS.The Royal Grammar School High Wycombe is a selective grammar school situated in High Wycombe, Buckinghamshire, England. As a state school it does not charge fees for students to attend, but they must pass an entrance exam...
in High Wycombe
High Wycombe
High Wycombe , commonly known as Wycombe and formally called Chepping Wycombe or Chipping Wycombe until 1946,is a large town in Buckinghamshire, England. It is west-north-west of Charing Cross in London; this figure is engraved on the Corn Market building in the centre of the town...
. He then went on to Cambridge University
University of Cambridge
The University of Cambridge is a public research university located in Cambridge, United Kingdom. It is the second-oldest university in both the United Kingdom and the English-speaking world , and the seventh-oldest globally...
, where he completed a Bachelor of Arts
Bachelor of Arts
A Bachelor of Arts , from the Latin artium baccalaureus, is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate course or program in either the liberal arts, the sciences, or both...
degree in history
History
History is the discovery, collection, organization, and presentation of information about past events. History can also mean the period of time after writing was invented. Scholars who write about history are called historians...
at Sidney Sussex College
Sidney Sussex College, Cambridge
Sidney Sussex College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge in England.The college was founded in 1596 and named after its foundress, Frances Sidney, Countess of Sussex. It was from its inception an avowedly Puritan foundation: some good and godlie moniment for the mainteynance...
in 1984.
Life and career
Grayling joined BBC NewsBBC News
BBC News is the department of the British Broadcasting Corporation responsible for the gathering and broadcasting of news and current affairs. The department is the world's largest broadcast news organisation and generates about 120 hours of radio and television output each day, as well as online...
in 1985 as a trainee, becoming a producer
Television producer
The primary role of a television Producer is to allow all aspects of video production, ranging from show idea development and cast hiring to shoot supervision and fact-checking...
in 1986. He left the BBC in 1988 to join Channel 4
Channel 4
Channel 4 is a British public-service television broadcaster which began working on 2 November 1982. Although largely commercially self-funded, it is ultimately publicly owned; originally a subsidiary of the Independent Broadcasting Authority , the station is now owned and operated by the Channel...
as an editor
Editing
Editing is the process of selecting and preparing written, visual, audible, and film media used to convey information through the processes of correction, condensation, organization, and other modifications performed with an intention of producing a correct, consistent, accurate, and complete...
on its Business Daily programme
Television program
A television program , also called television show, is a segment of content which is intended to be broadcast on television. It may be a one-time production or part of a periodically recurring series...
. He rejoined the BBC in 1991 as a business development manager on BBC Select
BBC Select
BBC Select was an overnight television service run by the BBC during the hours when BBC1 or BBC2 had closed down, usually between 2am and 6am.The channel showed programming intended for specialist audiences, such as businessmen, lawyers, nurses and teachers, and was designed to be viewed after...
. On leaving the BBC in 1993, he ran several television production companies, including managing the corporate communications division of Workhouse Ltd from 1992-5 and SSVC Group in Gerrards Cross
Gerrards Cross
Gerrards Cross is a village in Buckinghamshire, England. It is in the south of the county, near the border with Greater London, south of Chalfont St Peter. Gerrards Cross is also a civil parish within South Bucks district, which was known as the Beaconsfield district from 1974 to 1980...
from 1995-7. He became a management consultant in 1997 with Burson Marsteller, where he remained until his election to Westminster
Palace of Westminster
The Palace of Westminster, also known as the Houses of Parliament or Westminster Palace, is the meeting place of the two houses of the Parliament of the United Kingdom—the House of Lords and the House of Commons...
.
Prior to joining the Conservative Party, Grayling was a member of the Social Democratic Party
Social Democratic Party (UK)
The Social Democratic Party was a political party in the United Kingdom that was created on 26 March 1981 and existed until 1988. It was founded by four senior Labour Party 'moderates', dubbed the 'Gang of Four': Roy Jenkins, David Owen, Bill Rodgers and Shirley Williams...
, along with a number of other Cameron frontbenchers.
Councillor
Grayling was selected to contest the LabourLabour Party (UK)
The Labour Party is a centre-left democratic socialist party in the United Kingdom. It surpassed the Liberal Party in general elections during the early 1920s, forming minority governments under Ramsay MacDonald in 1924 and 1929-1931. The party was in a wartime coalition from 1940 to 1945, after...
-held marginal seat of Warrington South
Warrington South (UK Parliament constituency)
-Elections in the 2000s:In 2006 Paul Kennedy joined the Conservative Party, becoming a Conservative Councillor on Warrington Borough Council in May 2008, representing the Hatton, Stretton & Walton Ward.-Elections in the 1990s:...
at the 1997 general election
United Kingdom general election, 1997
The United Kingdom general election, 1997 was held on 1 May 1997, more than five years after the previous election on 9 April 1992, to elect 659 members to the British House of Commons. The Labour Party ended its 18 years in opposition under the leadership of Tony Blair, and won the general...
, but was defeated by Labour candidate Helen Southworth
Helen Southworth
Helen Mary Southworth is a Labour Party politician in the United Kingdom. She is the former Member of Parliament for Warrington South, and was first elected at the 1997 general election. She retained the Warrington South seat at the 2001 and 2005 general elections, each time with a reduced majority...
by 10,807 votes. He was elected as a councillor in the London Borough of Merton
London Borough of Merton
The London Borough of Merton is a borough in southwest London, England.The borough was formed under the London Government Act in 1965 by the merger of the Municipal Borough of Mitcham, the Municipal Borough of Wimbledon and the Merton and Morden Urban District, all formerly within Surrey...
in 1998 and remained on the council until 2002.
Member of Parliament
He was elected to the House of Commons for the SurreySurrey
Surrey is a county in the South East of England and is one of the Home Counties. The county borders Greater London, Kent, East Sussex, West Sussex, Hampshire and Berkshire. The historic county town is Guildford. Surrey County Council sits at Kingston upon Thames, although this has been part of...
seat of Epsom and Ewell at the 2001 general election
United Kingdom general election, 2001
The United Kingdom general election, 2001 was held on Thursday 7 June 2001 to elect 659 members to the British House of Commons. It was dubbed "the quiet landslide" by the media, as the Labour Party was re-elected with another landslide result and only suffered a net loss of 6 seats...
following the retirement of the veteran Tory MP Archie Hamilton
Archie Hamilton, Baron Hamilton of Epsom
Archibald Gavin Hamilton, Baron Hamilton of Epsom, PC is a British Conservative Party politician.-Background and education:...
. Grayling held the seat with a majority of 10,080 and has remained the MP there since. He made his maiden speech
Maiden speech
A maiden speech is the first speech given by a newly elected or appointed member of a legislature or parliament.Traditions surrounding maiden speeches vary from country to country...
on 25 June 2001.
Shadow Cabinet
He served as a member of the environment, transport and the regions select committee from 2001 until he was promoted to the Opposition Whips' OfficeWhip (politics)
A whip is an official in a political party whose primary purpose is to ensure party discipline in a legislature. Whips are a party's "enforcers", who typically offer inducements and threaten punishments for party members to ensure that they vote according to the official party policy...
by Iain Duncan Smith
Iain Duncan Smith
George Iain Duncan Smith is a British Conservative politician. He is currently the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions and was previously leader of the Conservative Party from September 2001 to October 2003...
in 2002, moving to become a spokesman on health
Department of Health (United Kingdom)
The Department of Health is a department of the United Kingdom government with responsibility for government policy for health and social care matters and for the National Health Service in England along with a few elements of the same matters which are not otherwise devolved to the Scottish,...
later in the year. He became a spokesman on education and skills by Michael Howard
Michael Howard
Michael Howard, Baron Howard of Lympne, CH, QC, PC is a British politician, who served as the Leader of the Conservative Party and Leader of the Opposition from November 2003 to December 2005...
in 2003, and following the 2005 general election
United Kingdom general election, 2005
The United Kingdom general election of 2005 was held on Thursday, 5 May 2005 to elect 646 members to the British House of Commons. The Labour Party under Tony Blair won its third consecutive victory, but with a majority of 66, reduced from 160....
he became a member of Howard's Shadow Cabinet
Official Opposition Shadow Cabinet (UK)
The Official Loyal Opposition Shadow Cabinet are, in British parliamentary practice, senior members of Her Majesty's Loyal Opposition who scrutinise their corresponding office holders in the Government, develop alternative policies, and hold the Government to account for its actions and responses...
as Shadow Leader of the House of Commons
Shadow Leader of the House of Commons
The Shadow Leader of the House of Commons is a member of the Official Opposition Shadow Cabinet responsible for working with the Leader of the House in arranging Commons business and holding the Government to account in its overall management of the House...
, and since the election of David Cameron
David Cameron
David William Donald Cameron is the current Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, First Lord of the Treasury, Minister for the Civil Service and Leader of the Conservative Party. Cameron represents Witney as its Member of Parliament ....
as the leader of the Conservative Party
Leaders of the Conservative Party
The Leader of the Conservative Party is the most senior politician within the Conservative Party in the United Kingdom. The post is currently held by David Cameron, who s eeded Michael Howard in 2005, and who since 2010 is also the serving Prime Minister....
in December 2005 he has served as the Shadow Secretary of State for Transport
Secretary of State for Transport
The Secretary of State for Transport is the member of the cabinet responsible for the British Department for Transport. The role has had a high turnover as new appointments are blamed for the failures of decades of their predecessors...
. In June 2007, he was made Shadow Secretary of State for Work and Pensions
Secretary of State for Work and Pensions
The Secretary of State for Work and Pensions is a post in the British Cabinet, responsible for the Department for Work and Pensions. It was created on 8 June 2001 by the merger of the Employment part of the Department for Education and Employment and the Department of Social Security.The Ministry...
, a post he held until January 2009 when he became Shadow Home Secretary
Shadow Home Secretary
In British politics, the Shadow Home Secretary is the person within the shadow cabinet who 'shadows' the Home Secretary; this effectively means scrutinising government policy on home affairs including policing, national security, immigration, the criminal justice system, the prison service, and...
.
Conservative Attack Dog
Grayling became known as a national politician through his “attack dog” pressure on leading Labour politicians . He was heavily involved in the questioning of David Blunkett, the then Work and Pensions Secretary, over his business affairs that led to his resignation in 2005.He also challenged Cherie and Tony Blair over the money they made from lectures while he was in Downing Street and former Minister Stephen Byers over his handling of the Railtrack collapse.
Expenses claims
Between 2001 and 2009, Grayling claimed for a flat in PimlicoPimlico
Pimlico is a small area of central London in the City of Westminster. Like Belgravia, to which it was built as a southern extension, Pimlico is known for its grand garden squares and impressive Regency architecture....
, close to the House of Commons, despite having a constituency home less than 17 miles away and owning two buy to let
Buy to let
Buy-to-let is a British phrase referring to the purchase of a property specifically to let out. A buy to let mortgage is a mortgage specifically designed for this purpose....
properties in Wimbledon
Wimbledon, London
Wimbledon is a district in the south west area of London, England, located south of Wandsworth, and east of Kingston upon Thames. It is situated within Greater London. It is home to the Wimbledon Tennis Championships and New Wimbledon Theatre, and contains Wimbledon Common, one of the largest areas...
. Grayling says he uses the flat when "working very late" because he needs to "work very erratic and late hours most days when the House of Commons is sitting."
During the Parliamentary expenses scandal
United Kingdom Parliamentary expenses scandal
The United Kingdom parliamentary expenses scandal was a major political scandal triggered by the leak and subsequent publication by the Telegraph Group in 2009 of expense claims made by members of the United Kingdom Parliament over several years...
, The Daily Telegraph
The Daily Telegraph
The Daily Telegraph is a daily morning broadsheet newspaper distributed throughout the United Kingdom and internationally. The newspaper was founded by Arthur B...
reported that Grayling refitted and redecorated the flat in 2005 at a cost of thousands of pounds. Grayling said that both the water and electrical systems failed "leaving the place needing a major overhaul"..
Comparing Moss Side to 'The Wire'
As Shadow Home Secretary Chris Grayling's provoked controversy in August 2009 when he compared parts of to Britain to the BaltimoreBaltimore
Baltimore is the largest independent city in the United States and the largest city and cultural center of the US state of Maryland. The city is located in central Maryland along the tidal portion of the Patapsco River, an arm of the Chesapeake Bay. Baltimore is sometimes referred to as Baltimore...
set TV series The Wire
The WIRE
the WIRE is the student-run College radio station at the University of Oklahoma, broadcasting in a freeform format. The WIRE serves the University of Oklahoma and surrounding communities, and is staffed by student DJs. The WIRE broadcasts at 1710 kHz AM in Norman, Oklahoma...
. In a speech on gang problems he also talked about the gang problems in Manchester’s Moss Side. His Comments met with an angry response in Manchester
Manchester
Manchester is a city and metropolitan borough in Greater Manchester, England. According to the Office for National Statistics, the 2010 mid-year population estimate for Manchester was 498,800. Manchester lies within one of the UK's largest metropolitan areas, the metropolitan county of Greater...
, from locals and the police. Having been out on patrol for a day with the police, observing the results of a shooting at a house, he described himself as having witnessed an "urban war". Police responded that gang related shootings in Greater Manchester
Greater Manchester
Greater Manchester is a metropolitan county in North West England, with a population of 2.6 million. It encompasses one of the largest metropolitan areas in the United Kingdom and comprises ten metropolitan boroughs: Bolton, Bury, Oldham, Rochdale, Stockport, Tameside, Trafford, Wigan, and the...
had fallen by 82 percent on the previous year, and that to speak of "urban war" was "sensationalistic". Local councillor Roy Walters complained of the Moss Side unfairly being a "negative target" due to historical associations. However he was defended by right wing commentators who said he spoke for the “mainstream majority”. Sticking by his comments, he said, "I didn't say Moss Side equals Baltimore. What I said is that we have in Moss Side symptoms of a gang conflict in this country which I find profoundly disturbing". Baltimore, with a population of about 600,000, was noted as having 191 gun related murders in the past year, in comparison to Moss Side, population 11,000, which had none.
Statistics controversy
Grayling came under fire as Shadow Home Secretary over the Conservative Party's use of violent crime statistics. In February 2010, the Conservative Party issued press releases to every constituency in the UK claiming that crime had "risen sharply" in the UK. However, they failed to take into account the more rigorous system for recording crime. The chairman of The UK Statistics AuthorityUK Statistics Authority
The UK Statistics Authority is an independent body operating at arm's length from Government as a non-ministerial department, directly accountable to Parliament...
, Sir Michael Scholar
Michael Scholar
Sir Michael Charles Scholar KCB is President of St John's College, Oxford. He was educated at St Olave's Grammar School, St John's College, Cambridge...
, said that the figures Grayling was using were "likely to mislead the public" and "likely to damage public trust in official statistics". Scholar further added that reliable statistics showed that there had not been an increase in crime during Labour's period in office. However a subsequent report produced by the independent House of Commons library confirmed that Grayling and the Conservative Party had been right to say that violent crime had risen significantly.
Gay couples in B&Bs controversy
In March 2010, Grayling was recorded at an open meeting of the thinktank Centre for Policy StudiesCentre for Policy Studies
The Centre for Policy Studies is a British right wing policy think tank whose goal is to promote coherent and practical public policy, to roll back the state, reform public services, support communities, and challenge threats to Britain’s independence...
saying that during the debates on civil liberties under the Labour Government, he had felt that Christians should have the right to live by their consciences and that Christian owners of bed and breakfast
Bed and breakfast
A bed and breakfast is a small lodging establishment that offers overnight accommodation and breakfast, but usually does not offer other meals. Since the 1980s, the meaning of the term has also extended to include accommodations that are also known as "self-catering" establishments...
s should have the right to turn away gay couples. Grayling said:
"I personally always took the view that, if you look at the case of should a Christian hotel owner have the right to exclude a gay couple from a hotel, I took the view that if it's a question of somebody who's doing a B&B in their own home, that individual should have the right to decide who does and who doesn't come into their own home. If they are running a hotel on the High Street, I really don’t think that it is right in this day and age that a gay couple should walk into a hotel and be turned away because they are a gay couple, and I think that is where the dividing line comes."
When the recording was released by The Observer
The Observer
The Observer is a British newspaper, published on Sundays. In the same place on the political spectrum as its daily sister paper The Guardian, which acquired it in 1993, it takes a liberal or social democratic line on most issues. It is the world's oldest Sunday newspaper.-Origins:The first issue,...
on 3 April 2010, Grayling's comments caused uproar, with Ben Summerskill
Ben Summerskill
Ben Jeffrey Peter Summerskill OBE is a British businessman and journalist, who is the Chief Executive of the UK-based Lesbian, Gay and Bisexual equality organisation Stonewall, now the largest gay equality body in Europe...
, chief executive of the gay rights group Stonewall
Stonewall (UK)
Stonewall is a lesbian, gay and bisexual rights charity in the United Kingdom named after the Stonewall Inn of Stonewall riots fame. Now the largest gay equality organization not only in the UK but in Europe, it was formed in 1989 by political activists and others lobbying against section 28 of the...
, saying that this position would be illegal and "very alarming to a lot of gay people who may have been thinking of voting Conservative". Lord Mandelson
Peter Mandelson
Peter Benjamin Mandelson, Baron Mandelson, PC is a British Labour Party politician, who was the Member of Parliament for Hartlepool from 1992 to 2004, served in a number of Cabinet positions under both Tony Blair and Gordon Brown, and was a European Commissioner...
, the most senior gay
Homosexuality
Homosexuality is romantic or sexual attraction or behavior between members of the same sex or gender. As a sexual orientation, homosexuality refers to "an enduring pattern of or disposition to experience sexual, affectional, or romantic attractions" primarily or exclusively to people of the same...
minister in the government, said that the comment showed that the Conservative party had not changed, that "when the camera is on they say one thing, but when the camera is off they say another". There have since been growing calls for Grayling to resign. Conservative party leader David Cameron
David Cameron
David William Donald Cameron is the current Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, First Lord of the Treasury, Minister for the Civil Service and Leader of the Conservative Party. Cameron represents Witney as its Member of Parliament ....
was subsequently urged to "back or sack" Grayling, with gay rights campaigner Peter Tatchell
Peter Tatchell
Peter Gary Tatchell is an Australian-born British political campaigner best known for his work with LGBT social movements...
saying that "Cameron's silence is worrying. Many voters – gay and straight – will be disturbed by his failure to swiftly disown Grayling's support for homophobic discrimination. What does this say about the sincerity and seriousness of his commitment to gay equality?" A poll for the website pinknews.co.uk released on 5 April found that support for the Conservatives in the LGBT
LGBT
LGBT is an initialism that collectively refers to "lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender" people. In use since the 1990s, the term "LGBT" is an adaptation of the initialism "LGB", which itself started replacing the phrase "gay community" beginning in the mid-to-late 1980s, which many within the...
community had fallen drastically since Grayling's comment. Author Douglas Murray
Douglas Murray (author)
Douglas Murray is a British writer and commentator who was the director of the Centre for Social Cohesion from 2007 until 2011 and is currently an associate director of the Henry Jackson Society. Murray appears regularly in the British broadcast media, commentating on issues from a conservative...
has dubbed Grayling "a political buffoon, unsure of what he is saying and with little idea of how to say it." Anastasia Beaumont-Bott, founder of "LGBTory
LGBTory
LGBTory is a LGBT and Conservative Group linked to, but not run, directed or funded by the Conservative Party of the United Kingdom. The first LGBT Conservative group was called CGHE LGBTory is a LGBT and Conservative Group linked to, but not run, directed or funded by the Conservative Party of the...
", a gay rights group that campaigns for the Conservatives, announced that she would be voting for Labour
Labour Party (UK)
The Labour Party is a centre-left democratic socialist party in the United Kingdom. It surpassed the Liberal Party in general elections during the early 1920s, forming minority governments under Ramsay MacDonald in 1924 and 1929-1931. The party was in a wartime coalition from 1940 to 1945, after...
, not the Conservatives, in response to Grayling's comment. She said, "I feel guilty because as a gay woman affected by LGBT rights I am on record saying you should vote Conservative, and I want to reverse that. I want to go on record to say don't vote Conservative. I'd go as far to say that I'll vote Labour at this general election." Beaumont-Bott was joined in defecting from the Conservatives to Labour a week later by prominent gay rights campaigner David Heathcote. However Grayling’s comments were defended by a number of commentators, including the Today Programme presenter and leading gay broadcaster Evan Davis, and by leading Christian groups.
Grayling apologised on 9 April, saying "I am sorry if what I said gave the wrong impression, I certainly didn't intend to offend anyone... I voted for gay rights, I voted for this particular measure
Equality Act (Sexual Orientation) Regulations
The Equality Act Regulations are secondary legislation in the United Kingdom, outlawing discrimination in the provision of goods, facilities, services, education and public functions on the grounds of sexual orientation....
." On the 12 April edition of The Daily Politics
The Daily Politics
The Daily Politics is a British television show launched by the BBC in 2003. Presented by Andrew Neil and Jo Coburn, the programme takes an in-depth and sometimes irreverent look at the daily goings on in Westminster and other areas across Britain and the world, and includes interviews with leading...
, presenter Andrew Neil
Andrew Neil
Andrew Ferguson Neil is a Scottish journalist and broadcaster.He currently works for the BBC, presenting the live political programmes The Daily Politics and This Week...
claimed the programme makers had been unable to contact Grayling about an appearance and suggested that he had gone to ground since his comments were published. Since the start of the 2010 general election campaign on 6 April, Grayling has been "hidden away" by the Conservatives, making very few public appearances. During the launch of the Labour Party's "LGBT Manifesto" on 15 April, Deputy Leader Harriet Harman
Harriet Harman
Harriet Ruth Harman QC is a British Labour Party politician, who is the Member of Parliament for Camberwell and Peckham, and was MP for the predecessorPeckham constituency from 1982 to 1997...
renewed calls for Grayling to be sacked, saying "We don't want to wake up and find we have a homophobic home secretary. David Cameron should have sacked him as soon as he said that." It is unclear whether his remarks were the reason that David Cameron chose to appoint Theresa May
Theresa May
Theresa Mary May is a British Conservative politician who is Home Secretary in the Conservative – Liberal Democrat Coalition government. She was elected to Parliament in 1997 as the Member of Parliament for Maidenhead, and served as the Chairman of the Conservative Party, 2003–04...
as Home Secretary in his new cabinet, rather than Grayling who held the position in the Shadow Cabinet; Grayling was not given any cabinet post, as had been predicted by some media commentators prior to the election.
Privy Council
He was appointed as a Privy CounsellorPrivy Council of the United Kingdom
Her Majesty's Most Honourable Privy Council, usually known simply as the Privy Council, is a formal body of advisers to the Sovereign in the United Kingdom...
on 9 June 2010.
Personal life
In April 1987 Grayling married Susan Clare Dillistone in Surrey and they have a daughter, Laura (born December 1992), and a son, Matthew (born August 1996). He supports Manchester UnitedManchester United F.C.
Manchester United Football Club is an English professional football club, based in Old Trafford, Greater Manchester, that plays in the Premier League. Founded as Newton Heath LYR Football Club in 1878, the club changed its name to Manchester United in 1902 and moved to Old Trafford in 1910.The 1958...
, and can boast that he once hit a four
Boundary (cricket)
Boundary has two distinct meanings in the sport of cricket:# the edge or boundary of the playing field, and# a manner of scoring runs.-Edge of the field:...
off the Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
n fast bowler
Fast bowling
Fast bowling, sometimes known as pace bowling, is one of the two main approaches to bowling in the sport of cricket. The other is spin bowling...
Dennis Lillee
Dennis Lillee
Dennis Keith Lillee, AM, MBE is a former Australian cricketer rated as the "outstanding fast bowler of his generation"...
.
Publications
- The Bridgewater Heritage: The Story of Bridgewater Estates by Chris Grayling, 1983, Bridgewater Estates PLC
- A Land Fit for Heroes: Life in England After the Great War by Christopher Grayling, 1985, Buchan & Enright ISBN 0-907675-68-9
- Holt's: The Story of Joseph Holt by Christopher Grayling, 1985, Joseph Holt PLC
- Just Another Star?: Anglo-American Relations Since 1945 by Christopher Grayling and Christopher Langdon, 1987, Virgin Books ISBN 0-245-54603-0
- Insight Guide Waterways of Europe contribution by Chris Grayling, 1989, Apa Publications ISBN 0-88729-825-7
External links
- Chris Grayling MP official constituency website
- Epsom and Ewell Conservatives
- Article archive at The GuardianThe GuardianThe Guardian, formerly known as The Manchester Guardian , is a British national daily newspaper in the Berliner format...
- Speaking to Wirral Conservatives