Greg Stafford (politician)
Gregory James Stafford[1] is a British Conservative Party politician who has served as the Member of Parliament for Farnham and Bordon since 2024.[2] He is a member of the Health and Social Care Select Committee[3] and an Opposition Assistant Whip.[4] Stafford served as councillor in the London Borough of Ealing from 2007 to 2024, and was both leader of the Conservatives group and Leader of the Opposition from 2014 until 2022. He was Chairman of Conservative Future in West London. His brother, Alexander Stafford, served as Conservative MP for Rother Valley from 2019 to 2024.[5] Early life and EducationBorn in Queen Charlotte's and Chelsea Hospital,[6] he attended St Benedict's School, a Catholic independent school, and later studied Modern History at St Peter's College, Oxford.[7][8] He has familial ties to his seat, with his father's family originally coming from Haslemere, a town in which his grandparents owned the former Stafford's Sweet Shop. [9][10] Stafford's mother's family immigrated from Ukraine after the Second World War to Witley,[6] located in the neighbouring constituency of Godalming and Ash. Early careerAfter he completed his studies at Oxford University in 2004, Stafford worked in the Parliamentary office of a former Shadow Home Office Minister for nearly four years. During this time, he also supported the All Party Parliamentary Group for the Holy See and was on the committee for the Conservative Friends of Gibraltar. In 2008, Stafford began working as a public affairs professional in the healthcare industry, initially for the Royal College of Occupational Therapists before joining the General Dental Council in June 2012. He later went on to join the national NHS England programme known as Getting It Right First Time (GIRFT). As his most recent role before his election as a Member of Parliament, Stafford was the programme's Director of Policy and Engagement until July 2024. According to the GIRFT website, its "methodology has been applied across more than 40 surgical and medical specialities" [11], with a focus on improving clinician-to-clinician cooperation and sharing of good practice. Parliamentary careerIn the 2024 United Kingdom general election, Stafford was elected as the first Parliamentary representative for the new Farnham and Bordon constituency. He sits as one of the two Conservative MPs on the Commons' Health and Social Care Select Committee.[3] Along with eight others from the new intake of Conservatives MPs, Stafford was appointed to the Opposition Whips' Office by Kemi Badenoch[4] in November 2024. He is an officer of four All-Party Parliamentary Groups (APPGs) for:
He was elected by his colleagues in the Conservative Party to the executive committee of the 1922 Committee shortly after the general election. References
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