Richard Barnes (British politician)
| Richard Barnes | |
|---|---|
Barnes on stage at the St George's Day festival, 2010
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| Deputy Mayor of London | |
| In office 6 May 2008 – 4 May 2012 |
|
| Mayor | Boris Johnson |
| Preceded by | Nicky Gavron |
| Succeeded by | Victoria Borwick |
| Leader of the London Assembly Conservative Group | |
| In office 2006–2008 |
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| Preceded by | Angie Bray |
| Succeeded by | Roger Evans |
| Member of the London Assembly for Ealing and Hillingdon |
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| In office 4 May 2000 – 4 May 2012 |
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| Preceded by | Constituency Created |
| Succeeded by | Onkar Sahota |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 1 December 1947 (age 66) |
| Nationality | British |
| Political party | UKIP (2014–present) Conservative (until 2014) |
| Alma mater | University of Wales Institute of Science and Technology |
Richard Michael Barnes (born 1 December 1947) is a former Conservative Party politician in the United Kingdom, who was the Deputy Mayor of London from 2008 to 2012, and the Member of the London Assembly for Ealing and Hillingdon from 2000 to 2012, when he lost his seat to Labour. On 30 September 2014, Barnes defected to the UK Independence Party.[1]
Contents
Education
He was educated at Trinity High School, Northampton, and Wolverhampton Grammar Technical School, where he was head boy, and graduated from the University of Wales Institute of Science and Technology with a Bachelor of Science degree in Economics.[2][3]
Political career and community involvement
Barnes has been a councillor in the London Borough of Hillingdon since 1982 and was leader of that council from 1998, securing the re-election of the Conservative administration with an 11% swing, one of the most remarkable results in a poor year for the party. In 2014, he stood as an Independent against the Conservatives but gained very little support and only recorded 460 votes and the Harefield seats were held by the Conservatives (Henry Higgins & Jane Palmer).[4]
Barnes was a member of the Metropolitan Police Authority, of which he was formerly deputy chairman. He used to speak on policing for the Conservatives on the London Assembly and in late 2007 was elected as Leader of the Conservatives in the London Assembly. After a shock election result on 4 May 2012, Barnes was beaten by Dr Onkar Sahota to represent Ealing and Hillingdon in the London Assembly. This is the first time he has not represented the area since the creation of the assembly in 2000.
A member of the Metropolitan Police Authority, formerly Deputy Chair, law and order / crime and disorder / London resilience and safety are Richard’s foremost interests on the Assembly and he authored the report, and chaired the enquiry, into the London bombings of 7 July 2005. This has led to his taking a very public national and international role in the fight against terrorism, particularly in addressing the ability of urban authorities to build resistance and response mechanisms to potential atrocities. In 2007 he spoke at conferences in both Dubai and New York.
Barnes is openly gay,[5] and opposed Section 28 of the Local Government Act 1988, which stated that a local authority "shall not intentionally promote homosexuality or publish material with the intention of promoting homosexuality". His reputation was tarnished in September 2013 when he inadvertently posted naked pictures of himself on the internet,[6] but he claimed that his account had been hacked.[7]
On 30 September 2014, Barnes announced that he was leaving the Conservative Party to join the UK Independence Party.[8] He was unsuccessful in being selected as the UKIP candidate in the Ruislip, Northwood & Pinner Constituency in May 2015. He failed to be selected as the UKIP candidate for London Mayor in 2016, but expects to stand for UKIP in the Ealing & Hillingdon constituency.
Appointment as statutory Deputy Mayor of London
After Boris Johnson's victory in the 2008 mayoral election, Barnes was appointed on 6 May 2008 as statutory Deputy Mayor of London,[9] making him both the first male and the first LGBT Deputy Mayor of London.
References
- ↑ http://www.standard.co.uk/news/politics/richard-barnes-ditches-tories-for-ukip-mayors-former-righthand-man-defects-9763938.html
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ ‘BARNES, Richard Michael’, Who's Who 2014, A & C Black, an imprint of Bloomsbury Publishing plc, 2014
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External links
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by
Constituency Created
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Member of the London Assembly for Ealing and Hillingdon 2000 – 2012 |
Succeeded by Onkar Sahota |
| Preceded by | Deputy Mayor of London 2008 – 2012 |
Succeeded by Victoria Borwick |
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