Natascha Engel

Last updated

David Salisbury-Jones
​
​
(div. 2012)​
Natascha Engel
Natascha Engel 2012.png
Engel in 2012
Deputy Speaker of the House of Commons
Second Deputy Chair of Ways and Means
In office
3 June 2015 –8 June 2017
Children3 sons
ResidenceUnited Kingdom
Alma mater King's College London,
University of Westminster
ProfessionTranslator; trade union organiser
WebsitePalace Yard

Natascha Engel (born 9 April 1967) [1] is a British former politician. She served as Labour Party Member of Parliament (MP) for North East Derbyshire from 2005 until her defeat at the 2017 general election. [2]

Contents

During her time in Parliament, Engel was Deputy Speaker (Second Deputy Chair of Ways and Means). She established and was the inaugural chair of the Backbench Business Committee (2010–2015) for which she was awarded Parliamentarian of the Year in 2013 by the Political Studies Association [3] and the Spectator's Backbencher of the Year in 2015. [4]

Engel is now CEO of cross-party policy and research institute, Palace Yard.

Early life and education

The King's School, Canterbury The Kings School Canterbury.jpg
The King's School, Canterbury

Engel was born in Berlin, Germany, [5] to a German father and an English mother. After her parents' divorce she moved with her mother to Kent and was educated at Kent College and The King's School, Canterbury. [6]

She later trained as a linguist in German and Portuguese at King's College London and at the University of Westminster where she obtained a Master's degree in Technical and Specialised Translation (German, Dutch, Spanish and Portuguese). [1] [7]

Early career

While living in Madrid, Spain, Engel worked as a volunteer for two years in the local office of Amnesty International while earning a living as an English and German teacher. After returning to Britain to work as a Teletext subtitler, Engel learned British Sign Language and volunteered as a communication support worker. She was among the first to join the Organising Academy of the Trade Union Congress, serving with the Graphical, Paper and Media Union. In 2001 she co-ordinated the political fund ballots to help trade unions to maintain their political funds.

Engel joined the Labour Party staff as a Trade Union Liaison Officer in 1997 organising marginal seats campaigning and co-ordinating trade union policy with the Labour Party. In 2001 she became programme director at the think tank, the Smith Institute.

Parliamentary career

House of Commons

After her election in 2005, Engel was appointed to the Work and Pensions Select Committee.

She served as Parliamentary Private Secretary to Peter Hain when he was Secretary of State for Work and Pensions. She performed the same role for Liam Byrne in 2008 when he was at the Cabinet Office, and then for John Denham when he was Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government in 2009.

In July 2009, she was elected to the Select Committee on Reform of the House of Commons, [8] chaired by Tony Wright MP.

On 15 June 2010, the House of Commons voted to create a Backbench Business Committee, and one week later, Engel defeated Sir Alan Haselhurst 202 to 173 in a secret ballot of MPs to become its first chair. [9] On 6 July 2011 she was named "Backbencher of the Year" for her work with the committee. [10]

Engel's role was to allocate roughly one day a week parliamentary debating time between competing backbenchers by a process described by Quentin Letts as akin to Dragons' Den . [11] She expressed pride in the committee, which is "a powerful check on the executive". [11] Debates are allowed on any topic and, unless they are against party policy, the whips don't interfere. [11] The most contentious debate was on the EU referendum [11] held on 24 October 2011. [12] Engel was re-elected, unopposed, to the chair of the committee May 2012. [13]

After the 2015 General Election, Engel was elected unopposed to be Deputy Speaker (Second Chairman of Ways and Means) under John Bercow's speakership. Alongside her fellow Deputies, Rt Hon Sir Lindsay Hoyle and Dame Eleanor Laing, Engel never said how she voted in the 2016 EU referendum knowing that she would later have to chair debates on the subject.

Youth campaigns

Engel in 2008 Engel UKMP.jpg
Engel in 2008

Engel was on the Board of Trustees of the UK Youth Parliament and has worked to encourage young people to participate in democracy. Engel became chair of the All Party Parliamentary Group on Youth Affairs in 2008. [14] [15] At the ePolitix Charity Champion awards in November 2007, Engel was named "Children and Youth Champion" for her work. [16] [17] At the 2007–08 annual general meeting of the British Youth Council, she was chosen as an Honorary President of the council. [18]

Expenses

The Legg Report [19] showed that 343 MPs had been asked to repay money, including several from Derbyshire. [20] Engel repaid £1,934 of which she said £1,339 was a mortgage claim the Fees office paid twice which she repaid immediately whilst £595 was a refund of a house rental deposit. [20]

Later elections

In the 2015 general election, Engel's majority of 1,883 was the 17th-smallest of Labour's 232 seats by percentage. [21] She had been expected to lose but she retained her seat. [22]

At the 2017 general election, Engel lost to Conservative Lee Rowley by 2,861 despite increasing her share of the vote and total number votes on the previous election. [22]

After Parliament

On 5 October 2018 the Conservative government announced Engel as the new Commissioner for Shale Gas. [23] According to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy the role was to be "a direct communication link between local communities, the shale gas industry and the industry regulators." [24]

From 2019 to 2022, Engel was partner at policy and opinion research agency, Public First where she established the energy and infrastructure practice. [25]

From September 2022, Engel co-founded Palace Yard with former Public First associate, Tom Waterhouse, where she is now CEO. Palace Yard is a cross-party policy and research institute which specialises in making complex policy accessible to policy-makers. [26]

Personal life

In 2012, she and her veterinary surgeon husband divorced; they have three sons. [11]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Margaret Beckett</span> British Labour politician (born 1943)

Dame Margaret Mary Beckett is a British politician who has served as the Member of Parliament (MP) for Derby South since 1983. A member of the Labour Party, she became Britain's first female Foreign Secretary in 2006 and served in the Cabinet of Prime Minister Tony Blair throughout his tenure. Deputy Leader of the Opposition and Deputy Leader of the Labour Party from 1992 to 1994, Beckett briefly served as Leader of the Opposition and Acting Leader of the Labour Party following John Smith's death in 1994.

The National Executive Committee (NEC) is the governing body of the UK Labour Party, setting the overall strategic direction of the party and policy development. Its composition has changed over the years, and includes representatives of affiliated trade unions, the Parliamentary Labour Party, constituency Labour parties (CLP), and socialist societies, as well as ex officio members such as the party Leader and Deputy Leader and several of their appointees.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Harriet Harman</span> British Labour politician

Harriet Ruth Harman is a British politician and solicitor who has served as Member of Parliament (MP) for Camberwell and Peckham, formerly Peckham, since 1982. A member of the Labour Party, she has served in various Cabinet and Shadow Cabinet positions.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Alan Haselhurst, Baron Haselhurst</span> British Conservative politician and life peer

Alan Gordon Barraclough Haselhurst, Baron Haselhurst,, is a British Conservative Party politician who served as Member of Parliament (MP) for Saffron Walden from 1977 to 2017, having previously represented Middleton and Prestwich from 1970 to 1974. Haselhurst was Chairman of Ways and Means from 14 May 1997 to 8 June 2010, and later Chairman of the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association between 2011 and 2014. The oldest Conservative MP to stand down at the 2017 general election, he was created a Life Peer in May 2018, sitting in the House of Lords as Baron Haselhurst.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ann Taylor, Baroness Taylor of Bolton</span> British Labour Party politician (born 1947)

Winifred Ann Taylor, Baroness Taylor of Bolton, is a British politician and life peer who served in the Cabinet of the United Kingdom from 1997 to 2001. A member of the Labour Party, she was Member of Parliament (MP) for Bolton West from 1974 to 1983, and Dewsbury from 1987 to 2005.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hugh Bayley</span> British Labour Party politician

Sir Hugh Nigel Edward Bayley is a British Labour politician who served as the Member of Parliament (MP) for York Central, previously York and City of York, from 1992 to 2015.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Angela Eagle</span> British Labour politician

Dame Angela Eagle DBE is a British Labour Party politician serving as the Member of Parliament (MP) for Wallasey since 1992. Eagle was born in Yorkshire and studied PPE at the University of Oxford, before working for the CBI and then a trade union.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Caroline Flint</span> British Labour politician

Caroline Louise Flint is a British politician who served as Member of Parliament (MP) for Don Valley from 1997 to 2019. A member of the Labour Party, she attended the Cabinet as Minister for Housing and Planning in 2008 and Minister for Europe from 2008 to 2009.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Eleanor Laing</span> British politician (born 1958)

Dame Eleanor Fulton Laing, is a British politician who has been the Member of Parliament (MP) for the Epping Forest constituency since 1997. A member of the Conservative Party, Laing has served in the shadow cabinets of Michael Howard and David Cameron. Since 2013, Laing has served as a Deputy Speaker of the House of Commons; and since 2020, as Chairman of Ways and Means, making her the senior Deputy Speaker, and the first woman to hold this post.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dawn Butler</span> British Labour politician

Dawn Petula Butler is a British Labour Party politician who has been a Member of Parliament (MP) for Brent Central since 2015.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Roberta Blackman-Woods</span> British Labour politician

Roberta Carol Blackman-Woods is a British academic and former Labour Party politician who was the Member of Parliament (MP) for the City of Durham from 2005 to 2019.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sharon Hodgson</span> British Labour politician

Sharon Hodgson is a British politician serving as Member of Parliament (MP) for Washington and Sunderland West, previously Gateshead East and Washington West, since 2005. A member of the Labour Party, she has chaired the Finance Committee since 2023.

The UK Youth Parliament (UKYP) is a youth organisation in the United Kingdom, consisting of democratically elected members aged between 11 and 18.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nikki Kaye</span> New Zealand politician

Nicola Laura Kaye is a New Zealand politician who served as Deputy Leader of the New Zealand National Party and Deputy Leader of the Opposition from 22 May 2020 to 14 July 2020.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Julie Elliott</span> British Labour politician (born 1963)

Julie Elliott is a British Labour Party politician, who was first elected Member of Parliament (MP) for Sunderland Central in 2010. Elliott served as Shadow Minister for Energy and Climate Change from October 2013 to September 2015, with specific responsibility for renewable energy, the Green Investment Bank, and skills and supply chain issues. She has also served as chair of the All-Party Parliamentary Group for Rugby Union and vice-chair of the All-Party Parliamentary Group on State Pension Inequality for Women. Elliott was re-elected for the Labour Party in Sunderland Central at the 2019 general election with a majority of 2,964.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Heather Wheeler</span> British Conservative politician

Heather Kay Wheeler is a British Conservative Party politician, who was first elected at the 2010 general election as the member of Parliament (MP) for South Derbyshire, taking the seat from the Labour Party after 13 years.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kate Green</span> British Labour politician

Katherine Anne Green OBE JP is a British politician serving as Deputy Mayor of Greater Manchester for Policing and Crime since 2023. She previously served as Member of Parliament (MP) for Stretford and Urmston between 2010 and 2022. A member of the Labour Party, she served as Shadow Minister for Women and Equalities from 2015 to 2016, Chair of the Committees on Privileges and Standards from 2018 to 2020, and Shadow Secretary of State for Education from 2020 to 2021.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lilian Greenwood</span> British Labour politician

Lilian Rachel Greenwood is a British Labour Party politician serving as the Member of Parliament (MP) for Nottingham South since 2010, and the Shadow Minister for Arts, Heritage and Civil Society since 2023.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Huw Merriman</span> British politician

Huw William Merriman is a British politician who has been the Member of Parliament (MP) for Bexhill and Battle in East Sussex since the 2015 general election. A member of the Conservative Party, he has served as Minister of State for Rail and HS2 since October 2022. He previously chaired the Transport Select Committee between January 2020 and October 2022. Prior to his parliamentary career, Merriman was a barrister and a local councillor.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lloyd Russell-Moyle</span> British Labour Co-op politician

Lloyd Cameron Russell-Moyle is a British Labour and Co-operative Party politician who was elected as the Member of Parliament (MP) for Brighton Kemptown in the 2017 general election. He retained his seat in the 2019 general election. He is a member of the left-wing Socialist Campaign Group parliamentary caucus.

References

  1. 1 2 "Natascha Engel: Biography". Politics. Archived from the original on 28 March 2019. Retrieved 4 July 2017.
  2. ↑ Kyla Mandel; Mat Hope (9 June 2017). "What Does a Hung Parliament Mean for Energy and Climate Change Issues?".
  3. ↑ "Director presents Awards at PSA Ceremony". University of Edinburgh Academy of Government. Archived from the original on 19 December 2013. Retrieved 18 December 2013.
  4. ↑ Nelson, Fraser (5 November 2015). "Spectator Parliamentarian of the Year 2015: the winners". The Spectator. Retrieved 3 January 2023.
  5. ↑ Engel, Natascha (31 October 2011). "Parliament Week and contributing to democracy". Total Politics. Archived from the original on 28 March 2019. Retrieved 28 March 2019.
  6. ↑ Waller, Robert; Criddle, Byron (2007). The Almanac of British Politics. Taylor & Francis. p. 351. ISBN   9780415378246.
  7. ↑ Natascha Engel on LinkedIn OOjs UI icon edit-ltr-progressive.svg
  8. ↑ "Reform of the House of Commons Committee". UK Parliament. Archived from the original on 8 March 2010. Retrieved 19 February 2012.
  9. ↑ "Election for Chair of Backbench Business Committee—Result" (PDF). House of Commons. Archived (PDF) from the original on 13 October 2010. Retrieved 22 June 2010.
  10. ↑ "Natascha Engel Recognized As "Backbencher of the Year"". The Chesterfield Post. 7 July 2011. Archived from the original on 9 August 2011. Retrieved 3 August 2011.
  11. 1 2 3 4 5 Elliott, Amber (21 April 2012). "Engel: 'The last two years have been hell on earth'". Total Politics. Archived from the original on 11 July 2019. Retrieved 4 July 2017.
  12. ↑ "EU referendum: Rebels lose vote in Commons". BBC News. 25 October 2011. Archived from the original on 8 June 2012. Retrieved 2 June 2012.
  13. ↑ "Natascha Engel Elected Chair of the Backbench Business Committee". House of Commons. 17 May 2012. Archived from the original on 26 July 2012. Retrieved 31 May 2012.
  14. ↑ "Page cannot be found". UK Parliament. Archived from the original on 1 October 2017. Retrieved 5 September 2017.
  15. ↑ Youth Affairs Group [ permanent dead link ], British Youth Council.
  16. ↑ Charity award winners announced [ permanent dead link ], 28 November 2007.
  17. ↑ Derbyshire Times, 13 December 2007
  18. ↑ BYC Honorary President Archived 1 May 2009 at the Wayback Machine .
  19. ↑ "Review of past ACA payments" (PDF). House of Commons Members Estimate Committee. 4 February 2010. Archived (PDF) from the original on 14 February 2010. Retrieved 5 February 2010.
  20. 1 2 "MPs told they should repay thousands in expenses row". Derby Telegraph. 14 October 2009. Archived from the original on 5 May 2013.
  21. ↑ "Labour Members of Parliament 2015". UK Political.info. Archived from the original on 29 September 2018.
  22. 1 2 Pidd, Helen (29 June 2017). "Derbyshire North-East: 'In our part of the world Corbyn wasn't an asset'". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 3 July 2017. Retrieved 4 July 2017.
  23. ↑ "Natascha Engel appointed as Commissioner for Shale Gas". Archived from the original on 28 October 2018. Retrieved 27 October 2018.
  24. ↑ Perry, Claire. "Letter to Clive Betts MP" (PDF). Housing, Communities and Local Government Committee . House of Commons of the United Kingdom . Retrieved 28 April 2019.
  25. ↑ Delahunty, Stephen (2 July 2019). "Public First hires former House of Commons deputy speaker". PR Week. Retrieved 15 August 2023.
  26. ↑ "London Influence: Nature calls — New think tank klaxon — Comms 101". POLITICO. 13 October 2022. Retrieved 15 August 2023.
Parliament of the United Kingdom
Preceded by Member of Parliament for North East Derbyshire
2005–2017 		Succeeded by
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.