Jason McCartney (politician)

Jason McCartney
Member of Parliament
for Colne Valley
In office
6 May 2010 – 3 May 2017
Preceded by Kali Mountford
Succeeded by Thelma Walker
Personal details
Born (1968-01-29) 29 January 1968[1]
Harrogate, West Riding of Yorkshire, England[2]
Nationality British
Political party

Conservative

Liberal Democrat (until 2006)
Children 2
Residence Honley, West Yorkshire
Alma mater Leeds Trinity & All Saints[3]
Profession Journalist, Broadcaster, RAF Officer
Website www.jasonmccartney.com

Jason Alexander McCartney[4] (born 29 January 1968) is a former TV sports reporter, British Conservative Party politician and Liberal Democrat politician who served as the Member of Parliament (MP) for Colne Valley in West Yorkshire from 2010-2017.

Early career

McCartney was educated at Lancaster Royal Grammar School. He went on to serve as an officer in the Royal Air Force for nine years, fulfilling tours in Las Vegas, Turkey and Iraq. After reaching the rank of Flight Lieutenant, he resigned his commission[5] in 1997.[6]

After studying for a postgraduate diploma in broadcast journalism,[3] McCartney worked as a reporter for BBC Radio Leeds, notably interviewing Northern Ireland Secretary Mo Mowlam in 1997.[5] From 1998 he worked as a presenter on ITV's Calendar News.[7]

McCartney stood as a Liberal Democrat candidate for the Pudsey ward of Leeds City Council in 2006.[8]

Member of Parliament

He was selected as the Conservative prospective parliamentary candidate for the Colne Valley in March 2007.[9] He stood in the 2010 general election taking the seat with a majority of 4,837.[10] McCartney gave his maiden speech on 17 June 2010 in a debate on the economy, expressing his support for local rural Post Offices.[11] He was one of the few Conservative members of Parliament who voted against an increase to the cap on University Tuition fees[12] and supported the need for a referendum on the EU.[13] McCartney holds strong views on welfare, and consistently voted to reduce housing benefit, and generally voted against raising welfare benefits in line with prices.[14]

In November 2010, William Hague appointed McCartney to the NATO Parliamentary Assembly UK Delegation.[15]

McCartney served on the Transport Committee between 2013 and 2015[16]

In the run up to the 2015 general election, McCartney took the unusual step of replying to a constituent who disagreed with the Coalition's austerity plan with a letter recommending they backed the Green Party candidate instead. McCartney told the constituent he respected their differences of opinion but the Green Party candidate was "the only candidate who matches what you believe". Labour accused him of trying to split the left wing vote, whilst McCartney said he often put constituents in touch with political rivals if he believed it could help.[17]

McCartney supported Brexit in the 2016 European Union Referendum [18] He voted to reject an amendment to the Brexit bill which demanded an analysis of the impact of exiting the EU on the NHS [19]

Personal life

McCartney lives in Honley, West Yorkshire, and has two children.[7]

References

  1. ↑ "Jason McCartney MP". BBC Democracy Live. BBC. Retrieved 25 July 2010.
  2. ↑ "Who's Who". www.ukwhoswho.com.
  3. 1 2 "Jason McCartney – Leeds Metropolitan University – Faculty of Business and Law". Archived from the original on 10 December 2010.
  4. ↑ "No. 59418". The London Gazette. 13 May 2010. p. 8739.
  5. 1 2 http://www.conservatives.com/People/Members_of_Parliament/McCartney_Jason.aspx
  6. ↑ "No. 54726". The London Gazette (Supplement). 7 April 1997. p. 4176.
  7. 1 2 "General Election 2010: Colne Valley Conservative candidate Jason McCartney". Huddersfield Daily Examiner.
  8. ↑ John Roberts (6 March 2007). "TV sports presenter is Tory candidate". Yorkshire Post.
  9. ↑ "Tories' election choice". Huddersfield Daily Examiner. 2 March 2007. Archived from the original on 20 March 2012.
  10. ↑ "UK > England > Yorkshire & the Humber > Colne Valley". Election 2010. BBC. 7 May 2010. Retrieved 11 May 2010.
  11. ↑ "Building a High-Skilled Economy: 17 Jun 2010: House of Commons debates - TheyWorkForYou". TheyWorkForYou.
  12. ↑ "Voting Record — Jason McCartney MP, Colne Valley (24887) — The Public Whip". www.publicwhip.org.uk.
  13. ↑ "Colne Valley MP Jason McCartney backs call for referendum on Britain's membership of the European Union". Huddersfield Daily Examiner. 19 October 2011.
  14. ↑ "Voting record - Jason McCartney, former MP, Colne Valley - TheyWorkForYou". TheyWorkForYou.
  15. ↑ "NATO Parliamentary Assembly (New UK Delegation): 8 Nov 2010: Hansard Written Answers - TheyWorkForYou". TheyWorkForYou.
  16. ↑ "Jason McCartney". Parliament UK. Retrieved 5 April 2015.
  17. ↑ Holehouse, Matthew (16 January 2015). "Is this evidence of a Tory plot to split Labour's vote? MP tells voter to back the Greens". Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 5 April 2015.
  18. ↑ "Which Tory MPs back Brexit, who doesn't and who is still on the fence? - Coffee House". 16 February 2016.
  19. ↑ "These are the MPs who voted against giving £350m to the NHS but for Brexit". 9 February 2017.
Parliament of the United Kingdom
Preceded by
Kali Mountford		 Member of Parliament for Colne Valley
2010–2017		 Succeeded by
Thelma Walker
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