Matt Vickers | |
---|---|
![]() Official portrait, 2019 | |
Deputy Chairman of the Conservative Party | |
In office 9 July 2022 –5 July 2024 | |
Leader | Boris Johnson Liz Truss Rishi Sunak |
Preceded by | Justin Tomlinson |
Member of Parliament for Stockton West Stockton South (2019–2024) | |
Assumed office 12 December 2019 | |
Preceded by | Paul Williams |
Member of Stockton-on-Tees Borough Council for Hartburn | |
In office May 2015 –April 2021 ServingwithLynn Hall | |
Preceded by | Ken Lupton |
Succeeded by | Niall Innes |
Personal details | |
Born | Stockton-on-Tees,County Durham,England | 24 September 1983
Political party | Conservative |
Alma mater | Teesside University |
Website | mattvickers |
Matthew Alexander Vickers [1] (born 24 September 1983) [2] is a British politician who served as the member of Parliament (MP) for Stockton South from 12 December 2019 to 30 May 2024,and as Deputy Chairman of the Conservative Party since July 2022. In the 2024 general election,he was elected in Stockton West as the only Conservative in the whole of the North East of England. [3]
Vickers was born in University Hospital of North Tees to local business owners Hilary and Alexander Vickers. [4] [5] He grew up in Stockton-on-Tees and has three brothers. [6] He studied law and business management at Teesside University [7] and previously worked at Woolworths and Home Bargains including in a management role. [8] [9] [10]
Vickers stood for election in the Norton West ward on the Stockton-on-Tees Borough Council in 2007 and 2011 losing to Labour Party candidates Ann and Dick Cains [11] and David and Norma Wilburn respectively. [12] In 2015 he stood for election in the Hartburn ward and became a councillor and leader of the Conservative group on the council from May 2015 until April 2021,when he stood down forcing a by-election. [13]
Between 2009 and 2019,he was the constituency agent for Richmond (Yorks). Vickers initially worked with William Hague. Following Hague's retirement,Vickers helped to run Rishi Sunak's successful general election campaigns in 2015 and 2017. [14]
Vickers stood as the Conservative candidate for Cleveland Police and Crime Commissioner in 2016 losing to Barry Coppinger after the second preference votes were counted with a 37.9% vote share. [15] [16]
After being elected as an MP in 2019 he faced criticism due to his ongoing representation as a councillor whilst an elected MP,being labelled as a "part time MP" by other councillors from the region. [17] In response to criticism,Vickers highlighted how he did not claim any expenses and donated all his councillor salary to three local charities,which helped veterans,those suffering with dementia and homelessness in the constituency. [18] At the time of his departure as a councillor,his allowance amounted to a minimum of £9,300 per year. [19] [20] The only confirmed recipient of a donation is The Teesside Dementia Link Services who received a £500 donation from his councillor allowance. [21]
He was elected as MP for Stockton South at the 2019 general election with a majority of 5,260. The seat had previously been held by Labour's Paul Williams. [22] From March 2020 to 16 January 2021,Vickers sat on the Committee on the Future Relationship with the European Union. [23]
As of September 2020,Matt Vickers has served as the Chair of the All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) on Retail. [24]
On 19 November 2020,Vickers backed the home secretary,Priti Patel,after a Cabinet Office inquiry found evidence that Patel had breached the ministerial code following bullying allegations,publicly supporting Patel:"[Patel] is one of the most hardworking Home Secretaries this country has had." [25]
Vickers,along with 22 other MPs,wrote to Attorney General Suella Braverman in August 2020 requesting that the killing of police officer Andrew Harper case,where the perpetrators were convicted of manslaughter,be referred to the Court of Appeal under the unduly lenient sentence scheme as he supported a life imprisonment. [26]
He has been a member of the Petitions Committee since 1 March 2021. [23]
On 27 September 2021,Vickers wrote a letter to the House of Commons director of catering requesting that the Teesside dish the chicken Parmo be added to the menu. After a successful campaign,the Parmo was added to the menu for a short period of time. [27]
He was a member of the Levelling Up,Housing and Communities Committee from 19 October 2021 to 21 June 2022. [23]
Vickers was a member of the Home Affairs Select Committee and the Justice Select Committee from 15 March to 27 June 2022. [23]
Following a rebellion in which 36 MPs signed Vickers' amendment to the Police,Crime,Sentencing and Courts Act 2022,the Secretary of State for Justice pledged to introduce measures to make assaults on those performing a duty to the public a statutory aggravating factor in the form of Lords Amendment 104. Vickers subsequently hailed this as "a landmark victory for shop workers and retail staff across the country". [28] [29]
In June 2022,during the vote of no confidence in the Conservative Party leadership of Boris Johnson,Vickers publicly supported Johnson. [30]
On 13 June 2022,Vickers was appointed Parliamentary Private Secretary to the Home Office ministerial team,alongside Luke Evans. [31]
In July 2022,Vickers was appointed Deputy Chairman of the Conservative Party. [32]
Vickers led a debate in the House of Commons for tougher measures against off-road bikes and other anti-social behaviour in Stockton in July 2023 and continues to advocate for cooperation between local police and his constituents. [33] [34]
In November 2023,the Chancellor of the Exchequer,Jeremy Hunt extended the 75% retail,hospitality,and leisure business relief rates until April 2025. Hunt publicly thanked Vickers for his tenacious campaigning on this issue in his Autumn Statement address on 22 November 2023. [35]
Yarm,also referred to as Yarm-on-Tees,is a market town and civil parish in the Borough of Stockton-on-Tees,North Yorkshire,England. It is in Teesdale with a town centre on a small meander of the River Tees. To the south-east,it extends to the River Leven,to the south it extends into the Kirklevington.
Stockton-on-Tees is a market town in County Durham,England,with a population of 84,815 at the 2021 UK census. It gives its name to and is the largest settlement in the wider Borough of Stockton-on-Tees. It is part of Teesside and the Tees Valley,on the northern bank of the River Tees.
Tees Valley is a combined authority area in Northern England,around the lower River Tees. The area is not a geographical valley;the local term for the valley is Teesdale. The combined authority covers five council areas:Darlington,Hartlepool,Middlesbrough,Redcar and Cleveland and Stockton-on-Tees.
Aislaby is a small village and civil parish on the north bank of the River Tees within the borough of Stockton-on-Tees and the ceremonial county of County Durham,England. It is located to the west of Eaglescliffe and Yarm. The name,first attested as Asulue(s)bi in 1086,is of Viking origin and means "Aslak's farm." Aislaby was listed in the Domesday Book of 1086.
Kirklevington is a village in the borough of Stockton-on-Tees,North Yorkshire,England. At the 2011 census,the village had a population of 809.
Stockton South was a constituency represented in the House of Commons of the UK Parliament from 2019 until its abolition for the 2024 general election by Matt Vickers of the Conservative Party.
Parmo,or Teesside Parmesan,is a dish originating in Middlesbrough,England,and a popular item of take-away food in the Teesside area. It consists of a breaded cutlet of chicken or pork topped with a white béchamel sauce and cheese,usually cheddar.
The Borough of Darlington is a local government district with borough status in County Durham,England. Since 1997 Darlington Borough Council has been a unitary authority,being a district council which also performs the functions of a county council;it is independent from Durham County Council. It is named after its largest settlement,the town of Darlington,where the council is based. The borough also includes a rural area surrounding the town which contains several villages. The population of the borough at the 2021 census was 107,800,of which over 86% (93,015) lived in the built-up area of Darlington itself.
Stockton-on-Tees is a former borough constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It elected one Member of Parliament (MP) by the first past the post system of election from 1868 to 1983.
James Stephen Wharton,Baron Wharton of Yarm is a British Conservative Party politician. He was the Member of Parliament (MP) for his home constituency of Stockton South from the 2010 general election,until losing his seat in the 2017 general election. Wharton was appointed Minister for the Northern Powerhouse after his re-election in 2015 and moved to a ministerial position in the Department for International Development by Theresa May in 2016. In September 2020,he took his seat as a member of the House of Lords,taking the title Baron Wharton of Yarm.
Alexander Cunningham is a British politician who served as Member of Parliament (MP) for Stockton North from 2010 to 2024. A member of the Labour Party,he has been Shadow Minister for Courts and Sentencing since 2020.
Stockton-on-Tees Borough Council is the local authority of the Borough of Stockton-on-Tees,which straddles the ceremonial counties of County Durham and North Yorkshire in England. Since 1996 the council has been a unitary authority,being a district council which also performs the functions of a county council. It therefore provides services including Council Tax billing,libraries,social services,town planning,waste collection and disposal,and it is a local education authority. Since 2016 the council has been a member of the Tees Valley Combined Authority,which has been led by the directly elected Tees Valley Mayor since 2017.
The inaugural Tees Valley mayoral election was held on 4 May 2017 to elect the mayor of the Tees Valley Combined Authority. The mayor was elected by the supplementary vote system. Subsequent elections will be held in May 2021 and every four years after 2024.
Ben Houchen,Baron Houchen of High Leven,is a British Conservative politician and life peer. He has been Tees Valley Mayor since 2017,winning the inaugural mayoral election in the combined authority. Houchen was re-elected in 2021 and won a third term in 2024.
The 2021 Tees Valley mayoral election was held on 6 May 2021 to elect the Tees Valley Mayor on the same day as other local elections across the country. The mayor was elected by the supplementary vote. The election was originally due to take place in May 2020,but was postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Paul Daniel Williams is a British general practitioner (GP) and former Labour Party politician,who served as the Member of Parliament (MP) for Stockton South from 2017 to 2019,when he lost his seat to the Conservative candidate Matt Vickers in the 2019 general election. In May 2021,Williams stood as the Labour Party candidate in the 2021 Hartlepool by-election but lost to the Conservative candidate Jill Mortimer.
Sir Simon Richard Clarke is a British Conservative politician who was the Member of Parliament (MP) for Middlesbrough South and East Cleveland from 2017 to 2024. He briefly served as Secretary of State for Levelling Up,Housing and Communities from September to October 2022 and Chief Secretary to the Treasury from 2021 to 2022.
Christian Wakeford is a British politician serving as Assistant Government Whip since 2024. He has been the Member of Parliament (MP) for Bury South since the 2019 general election. Elected in 2019 as a Conservative,he crossed the floor to Labour in 2022. He was re-elected for Labour in the 2024 general election.
Gagan Mohindra is a British Conservative Party politician whohas been the Member of Parliament (MP) for South West Hertfordshire since 2019.
Stockton West is a constituency of the House of Commons in the UK Parliament. Further to the completion of the 2023 Periodic Review of Westminster constituencies,it was first contested at the 2024 general election,and is now the only seat held by the Conservative Party in the whole of the North East of England.