Tom Tugendhat

Tom Tugendhat
MBE VR MP
Chair of the Foreign Affairs Select Committee
Assumed office
12 July 2017
Preceded by Crispin Blunt
Member of Parliament
for Tonbridge and Malling
Assumed office
8 May 2015
Preceded by John Stanley
Majority 23,508 (41.3%)
Personal details
Born Thomas Georg John Tugendhat
(1973-06-27) 27 June 1973
Westminster, London, England
Citizenship
Political party Conservative
Alma mater University of Bristol
Gonville and Caius College, Cambridge
Website tomtugendhat.org.uk
Military career
Allegiance  United Kingdom
Service/branch  British Army
Years of service 2003–2013
Rank Lieutenant colonel
Service number 560649
Unit Adjutant General's Corps
Intelligence Corps
Battles/wars Iraq War
War in Afghanistan
Awards Member of the Order of the British Empire (2010)
Volunteer Reserves Service Medal (2013)

Lieutenant Colonel Thomas Georg John Tugendhat[1] MBE VR (born 27 June 1973) is a British Conservative Party politician and former Army officer. He has been the Member of Parliament (MP) for Tonbridge and Malling since May 2015.[2] Since 12 July 2017, Tugendhat serves as chair of the Foreign Affairs Committee.

Early life and education

Tugendhat is the son of the High Court Judge Sir Michael Tugendhat and his French wife Blandine de Loisne.[3] He is the nephew of fellow Conservative politician Christopher Tugendhat, Baron Tugendhat. After attending St Paul's School, London, Tugendhat studied Theology at the University of Bristol, before doing a Masters in Islamic studies at Gonville and Caius College, Cambridge and learning Arabic in Yemen.[4]

Tugendhat holds dual British and French citizenship. His wife is a French judge and senior civil servant, and his father-in-law is a French diplomat, the lead OSCE mediator in Ukraine.[5]

Military career

On 6 July 2003, Tugendhat was commissioned into the Educational and Training Services Branch of the Adjutant General's Corps, Territorial Army, British Army, as a second lieutenant (on probation).[6] His commission was confirmed on 16 July 2003.[7] He transferred to the Intelligence Corps on 29 July 2003.[8]

He was promoted to lieutenant on 16 July 2005,[9] captain on 1 April 2007,[10] and to major on 1 January 2010.[11] He had been promoted to lieutenant colonel by July 2013.[12]

Tugendhat has seen service on operations during the Iraq War and the War in Afghanistan. He later served as the military assistant to the Chief of the Defence Staff.[13]

Political career

Tugendhat was elected as the Member of Parliament for the safe Conservative seat of Tonbridge and Malling in Kent at the 2015 General Election, with an increased vote share and larger majority than his predecessor.

Tugendhat supported continued membership of the European Union in the 2016 referendum.[14]

On 12 July 2017, Tugendhat was elected chair of the Foreign Affairs Committee.[15] Soon after the poisoning of Sergei and Yulia Skripal in Salisbury by a nerve agent, Tugendhat said the attack was "if not an act of war … certainly a warlike act by the Russian federation".[16]

On 21 May 2018, Tugendhat's Foreign Affairs Committee published a report heavily criticising the law firm Linklaters on the work it undertook relating to the initial public offering of EN, a Russian company with alleged close ties to the Kremlin. The Committee was widely criticised for failing to comprehend the statutory rules of confidentiality that would likely have made it an offence for Linklaters to give evidence [17]

Honours

In the 2010 New Year Honours, Tugendhat was appointed a Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE).[18] In July 2013, he was awarded the Volunteer Reserves Service Medal for ten years' service in the Territorial Army.[12]



RibbonDescriptionNotes
Order of the British Empire (MBE)
  • 2010
  • Member
  • Military Division
Iraq Medal
  • With clasp "19 Mar to 28 Apr 2003"
Operational Service Medal for Afghanistan
  • With clasp "AFGHANISTAN"
Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal
  • 2012
  • UK version of this medal
Volunteer Reserves Service Medal (VR)

References

  1. ↑ "No. 61230". The London Gazette. 18 May 2015. p. 9123.
  2. ↑ Tonbridge and Malling (UK Parliament constituency) profile, bbc.co.uk; accessed 16 August 2016.
  3. ↑ "Tugendhat, Hon. Sir Michael (George), (born 21 Oct. 1944), a Judge of the High Court of Justice, Queen's Bench Division, 2003–14; Judge in charge of Queen's Bench jury and non-jury lists, 2010–14". Who's Who. 2007. doi:10.1093/ww/9780199540884.013.U38156.
  4. ↑ Boffey, Daniel (10 May 2015). "How representative are our MPs now?". The Observer.
  5. ↑ "Formal Minutes" (PDF). Foreign Affairs Select Committee. p. 54.
  6. ↑ "No. 57043". The London Gazette (Supplement). 2 September 2003. p. 10846.
  7. ↑ "No. 58002". The London Gazette (Supplement). 6 June 2006. p. 7725.
  8. ↑ "No. 57089". The London Gazette (Supplement). 21 October 2003. p. 12991.
  9. ↑ "No. 58008". The London Gazette (Supplement). 13 June 2006. p. 8068.
  10. ↑ "No. 59237". The London Gazette (Supplement). 10 November 2009. p. 19393.
  11. ↑ "No. 59537". The London Gazette (Supplement). 7 September 2010. p. 17234.
  12. 1 2 "No. 60575". The London Gazette (Supplement). 23 July 2013. p. 14489.
  13. ↑ Kirkup, James (1 November 2013). "Conservatives call up veterans to combat career politicians". The Telegraph.
  14. ↑ Gimson, Andrew (7 September 2017). "Profile: Tom Tugendhat, successful insurgent and a possible future Tory leader". Conservative Home. Retrieved 25 August 2018.
  15. ↑ "What do the elections of select committee chairs tell us?". BBC News. 12 July 2017. Retrieved 3 October 2017.
  16. ↑ "Russian spy poisoning: Theresa May issues ultimatum to Moscow". The Guardian. 13 March 2018. Retrieved 21 March 2018.
  17. ↑ "MPs criticise elite law firm Linklaters for work with Putin allies". The Times. 21 May 2018. Retrieved 21 May 2018.
  18. ↑ "No. 59282". The London Gazette (Supplement). 30 December 2009. p. 5.
Parliament of the United Kingdom
Preceded by
John Stanley		 Member of Parliament
for Tonbridge and Malling
2015–present		 Incumbent
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.