Simon Burns

Infobox MP
honorific-prefix =
name = Simon Burns
honorific-suffix =

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caption =
constituency_MP = West Chelmsford
Chelmsford (1987-1997)
parliament =
term_start = 11 June 1987
term_end =
majority = 9,620 (18.8%)
predecessor = Norman St John-Stevas
successor =
birth_date = Birth date and age|1952|09|6|df=yes
birth_place = Nottingham
death_date =
death_place =
nationality = British
spouse = Emma Clifford (div. 2000)
party = Conservative
relations =
children =
residence =
alma_mater = Worcester College, Oxford
occupation =
profession =
religion =


website =
footnotes =

Simon Hugh McGuigan Burns (born 6 September, 1952, Nottingham) is a United Kingdom politician. He has been Conservative Member of Parliament for West Chelmsford since the 1987 general election. He had served as a junior minister under John Major.

Simon Burns was educated at Christ the King School, Accra, Ghana; Stamford School; and Worcester College, Oxford, where he obtained a BA Honours Degree in Modern History in 1975. He also has an Honorary Doctorate of Philosophy from University of East Anglia.

Burns is interested in American Politics, collecting political books, swimming and tennis.

Political experience

From 1975 to 1980, Burns was political adviser to the Rt Hon Sally Oppenheim. From 1980–83 he was a journalist and company director of What To Buy for Business magazine, and from 1983–87 was on the Policy Executive of the Institute of Directors. He has been active in politics since 1970, when he was a founder member of the Rutland and Stamford Young Conservatives, and founder and Chairman of the Stamford School CPC.

In 1972, he worked for Senator George McGovern against Richard Nixon in his presidential election bid of that year. From 1973–75, he was a committee member, Political Action Officer and Secretary of Oxford University Conservative Association, and a member of the Oxford Union. From 1977–81, he was Treasurer, Southfields Ward, and a member of the Treasurer's and Executive Council, Putney Conservative Association. In 1983, he was Conservative candidate in Alyn and Deeside (North Wales) when he reduced Labour's majority from 6,800 to 1,368. In 1986 he was Chairman, Avonmore Ward, Fulham Conservative Association.

Parliamentary experience

Burns was Member of Parliament for Chelmsford from June 1987 to March 1997 and was elected Member of Parliament for West Chelmsford in May 1997.

Burns has been Parliamentary Private Secretary to Timothy Eggar MP, and the Rt Hon Gillian Shephard MP, at the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food until July 1994. He has also been Assistant Government Whip (1994–95), Lord Commissioner of Her Majesty's Treasury (1995–96), and Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State at the Department of Health (1996–97).

In June 1997, he was appointed Opposition Front Bench Spokesman for Social Security, a position he held until August 1998 when he was appointed Front Bench Spokesman for Environment, Housing and Planning, until June 1999. He was elected a member of the executive at the 1922 Committee in July 1999 and Treasurer of the 1922 Committee in November 1999. He was a member of the House of Commons Health Select Committee from 1999 to 2005.

In September 2001, Burns was appointed Shadow Health Minister and was reappointed to this position in May 2005.

Aside from his Shadow Ministerial duties, one of his foremost achievements in Parliament since 1997 was successfully piloting through Parliament his Private Member’s Bill — the Football (Offences and Disorder) Act 1999 — to tighten up the law on football hooligans, and pressuring the Government to strengthen legislation further in 2000 by giving the courts the power to withdraw hooligans’ passports and prevent them from causing trouble abroad.

Election result: May 2005

In the May 2005 General Election, Simon Burns gained 22,946 votes (44.9%), beating the three other candidates by a majority of 9,620 (18.8%). The number of votes cast for Burns in 2005 was an increase of 2.4% from the previous General Election in 2001. His majority also increased from 6,261 to 9,620. Turnout was 61.9%, down from 62.5% in 2001.

He married Emma Clifford in 1982, although divorced in 2000, having a son (born October 1991) and daughter (born November 1987) with his former wife.

External links

* [http://www.simonburnsmp.com] Simon Burns' official website
* [http://www.westchelmsfordconservatives.com] West Chelmsford Conservatives local party website
* [http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/shared/vote2005/html/137.stm] 2005 Election Result: West Chelmsford (Source: BBC Election 2005)
* [http://www.chelmsfordbc.gov.uk/elect/website/election_results.htm] Previous General Election Results (Source: Chelmsford Borough Council)
* [http://politics.guardian.co.uk/person/0,9290,-748,00.html] Guardian Unlimited Politics — Ask Aristotle: Simon Burns MP
* [http://www.theyworkforyou.com/mp/simon_burns/west_chelmsford] TheyWorkForYou.com — Simon Burns MP
* [http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/shared/mpdb/html/137.stm] BBC Politics page

News items

* [http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/1872577.stm Upset in 2002 over awards of five new cities]