Parliamentary career
At the 2010 general election,Walker was elected as MP for Worcester,winning with 39.5% of the vote and a majority of 2,982. [4] His father,Peter Walker,had previously been the MP for Worcester from 1961 to 1992. [5]
Walker was one of a small group of Conservative MPs who rebelled from the party line and voted in favour of an in/out referendum on Britain's membership of the European Union. [6] He ultimately supported the government's plan to hold a referendum by 2017,and voted against a rebel amendment to hold the referendum in 2014. [7]
Walker has campaigned for fairer funding in education as a member of the cross party F40 campaign,which in 2014 secured an extra £350 million for lower funded areas –£5 million of which is earmarked for Worcestershire. [8] [9]
Walker was made the chairman of the All Party Group for Credit Unions in October 2014. [10] Walker has supported a number of cross party initiatives on making credit unions available in post offices as well as helping them to compete with larger lenders. [11] He had also received the Citizens Advice Parliamentarian of the Year Award earlier in the year,in recognition for his campaign for better regulation of pay day lenders. [12]
In July 2014,Walker called on Prime Minister David Cameron to use "every tool in the box" to de-escalate the violence in Gaza,and bring both sides to the table. [13] Later that year,Walker campaigned for a two-hour train service from Worcester to London,citing benefits to local constituents and businesses. [14] He spoke on this topic during a parliamentary debate in the House of Commons,calling for a "faster and more frequent train service". [15]
He campaigned for Scotland to remain part of the United Kingdom during the 2014 Scottish independence referendum. [16]
At the 2015 general election,Walker was re-elected as MP for Worcester with an increased vote share of 45.3% and an increased majority of 5,646. [17] After the election,Walker was made PPS to Secretary of State for Education Nicky Morgan and also sat on the House of Commons Select Committee for Administration.
Walker was opposed to Brexit prior to the 2016 referendum. [18] In July 2016,he was appointed as Minister at the Department for Exiting the European Union,in the government led by Theresa May. [19] [20]
In October 2016,Walker formally debated a petition calling for the observance of a British Independence Day in the United Kingdom. Arguing against,he said that "tempting though that might be,I think the idea of an independence day would face fierce competition from the likes of St George's Day,Trafalgar Day and many more." [21] [22]
At the snap 2017 general election,Walker was again re-elected,with an increased vote share of 48.1% and a decreased majority of 2,508. [23]
In July 2019,Walker was made the Minister of State for Northern Ireland. [20] During his time in the role he helped introduce a number of reforms related to the right to abortion in Northern Ireland.
Walker was again re-elected at the 2019 general election,with an increased vote share of 50.8% and an increased majority of 6,758. [24]
In September 2021,Walker became the Minister for School Standards,leaving his role with the Northern Ireland Office. [20] He resigned from his role as schools minister in July 2022. [25]
In November 2022,Walker was elected as Chair of the Education Select Committee by Conservative MPs. [26] As such he also became a member of the Liaison Committee in the House of Commons. [27]
In February 2023,Walker announced he would be standing down at the next general election. [28]
