Meet the people

Red Cell contributors past and present

Tim Philpott

Research Coordinator
Tim is a market intelligence specialist with several years’ experience working with various centre-right campaigning groups and assists the Red Cell in coordinating research and maintaining its online library. He has a master’s degree in History from King’s College London. Currently working for a market intelligence company based in Westminster, he consults with public and private sector clients on economic development and government investment strategy. Prior to this, he spent two years as a policy analyst for prominent Eurosceptic campaign group Business for Britain., contributing research towards Change, or Go, Business for Britain’s flagship publication.
 
Most recently, he campaigned during the EU Referendum with Veterans For Britain and co-hosts the Footnotes of History.com podcast.
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Urs Christen

RED CELL CONTRIBUTOR
Urs Christen was born in 1957 and comes from Bern. He joined the Swiss Customs aged 20, and has served in Geneva, Basel and at the HQ in Bern. His work has seen him take part in many international talks. 
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wiLLIAM NORTON

RED CELL CONTRIBUTOR
William Norton is a non-practising solicitor who has worked in the City of London as a tax adviser and as a policy adviser in Westminster. He was a core member of the James Review on Taxpayer Value and the Conservative Party Policy Unit (2004-5), working on plans for public sector reform, deregulation and expenditure control. He worked for the victorious designated lead campaigns in the North East referendum (2004), the AV referendum (2011) and the EU referendum (2016). Among numerous articles, papers and books, William is the author of Monument and Bank: Capitalism and the Anglo-Saxon Mind (SAU, 2011) and Mitigating the impact of tariffs on UK-EU trade (Civitas, 2017). He was also one of the core secretariat responsible for Change or Go: How Britain would gain influence and prosper outside an unreformed EU (Business for Britain, 2015). William has been a local councillor and a parliamentary candidate, and is currently Research Director for an MEP.

lave broch

RED CELL CONTRIBUTOR​
LAVE KNUD BROCH IS THE FIRST ALTERNATE MEMBER OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT FOR THE PEOPLE'S MOVEMENT AGAINST THE EU, HAVING BEEN AN ACTIVE SUPPORTER OF THE CAMPAIGN SINCE MAASTRICHT. HE IS ONE OF THE FOUNDERS OF THE RADICAL EU CRITICAL NETWORK; BOARD MEMBER OF THE THINK TANK NYAGENDA; AND ONE OF TWO PRESIDENTS OF EU RESISTANCE FROM THE CENTER. IN ADDITION, HE IS THE CHAIRMAN OF THE UN FEDERATION'S PEACE AND CONFLICT RESOLUTION COMMITTEE, AND A MEMBER OF THE BOARD OF THE UNITED NATIONS ASSOCIATION.

kathrine kleveland​ 

​RED CELL CONTRIBUTOR​
KATHRINE KLEVELAND IS THE LEADER OF NEI TIL EU (NO TO EU IN NORWAY) AND A PROMINENT CRITIC OF BOTH EEA AND EU MEMBERSHIP. NEI TIL EU HAS A GRASSROOTS MEMBERSHIP OF 27,000 SUPPORTERS OPERATING FROM 19 REGIONAL TEAMS
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​JIŘÍ PAYNE, mep 

RED CELL CONTRIBUTOR
​JIŘÍ PAYNE IS AN MEP. HE IS A FORMER CHAIRMAN OF THE CZECH PARLIAMENT FOREIGN AFFAIRS COMMITTEE, A FORMER DEPUTY FOREIGN MINISTER, AND AN ADVISER TO PRESIDENT KLAUS.
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SENATOR ERIC ABETZ 

RED CELL/CANZUK CONTRIBUTOR
​SENATOR ERIC ABETZ IS A LIBERAL SENATOR FOR TASMANIA IN THE AUSTRALIAN PARLIAMENT, AND A FORMER LEADER OF THE GOVERNMENT IN THE AUSTRALIAN SENATE. HE IS CHAIR OF THE SENATE FOREIGN AFFAIRS, DEFENCE AND TRADE COMMITTEE.
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DAVID SEYMOUR, MP

RED CELL/CANZUK CONTRIBUTOR
DAVID SEYMOUR IS THE MEMBER OF PARLIAMENT FOR EPSOM IN NEW ZEALAND, AND THE LEADER OF THE ACT PARTY.

AUSTIN MITCHELL

RED CELL CONTRIBUTOR
​AUSTIN MITCHELL REPORTED ON THE COD WARS WITH ICELAND FOR BOTH YORKSHIRE TELEVISION AND THE BBC’S 24 HOURS. HE WAS ELECTED AS LABOUR MP FOR GRIMSBY IMMEDIATELY AFTER BRITAIN’S PREMIER FISHING PORT LOST FISHING IN ICELANDIC WATERS, SOLD OFF MOST OF ITS DISTANT WATER FISHING FLEET AND LAID VESSELS UP FOR SCRAP. WITH THE BRITISH FISHERMEN’S ASSOCIATION, FOUNDED IN GRIMSBY, HE LED THE FIGHT FIRST FOR REDUNDANCY AND THEN FOR COMPENSATION FOR THE FISHERMEN LAID OFF BY THE DISASTER. IN PARLIAMENT HE BECAME CHAIR OF THE ALL PARTY FISHERIES GROUP WORKING CLOSELY WITH THE NATIONAL FEDERATION OF FISHERMEN’S ORGANISATIONS, AND LED AN ENQUIRY INTO THE INDUSTRY BY A SUB-COMMITTEE OF THE ENVIRONMENT SELECT COMMITTEE. IN THE COURSE OF HIS WORK FOR GRIMSBY AND FISHING HE HAS VISITED MOST BRITISH FISHING PORTS AS WELL AS PORTS IN DENMARK, SPAIN, NEW ZEALAND AND ICELAND. HE WAS AWARDED THE ICELANDIC ORDER OF THE FALCON FOR HIS WORK FOR FISHING AND FISHERMEN. HE RETIRED FROM PARLIAMENT IN 2015 AND SINCE THEN HAS DEVOTED HIMSELF TO FIGHTING FOR BREXIT, WRITING BOOKS ABOUT POLITICS AND HIS FELLOW YORKSHIREMAN, J.B.PRIESTLEY, AND GRUMBLING AT LARGE.

JOHN ASHWORTH

RED CELL CONTRIBUTOR
JOHN ASHWORTH WAS ONE OF THE DRIVING FORCES BEHIND SAVE BRITAIN’S FISH, THE CAMPAIGN THAT PUT AND KEPT THE CFP ON THE POLITICAL AGENDA. HIS HISTORY OF EU FISHERIES POLICY REMAINS THE DEFINITIVE REFERENCE DOCUMENT. BEFORE RETIREMENT, HE USED TO WORK IN THE INDUSTRY SUPPLYING BRITISH TRAWLERS, AND AT SEA.
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lucy harris

RED CELL CONTRIBUTOR
​LUCY HARRIS FOUNDED LEAVERS OF lONDON, AN ORGANISATION WHICH BRINGS TOGETHER AND GIVES A VOICE TO BREXIT VOTERS IN THE CAPITAL, AND SUBSEQUENTLY ESTABLISHED LEAVERS OF BRITAIN. SHE WAS ELECTED AN MEP FOR YORKSHIRE AND THE HUMBER AT THE 2019 EUROPEAN ELECTION AS PART OF THE UK’S FINAL DELEGATION.
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tim aker

RED CELL CONTRIBUTOR​
TIM AKER WAS MEMBER OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT FOR THE EASTERN COUNTIES FROM 2014-19, AND ALSO A COUNCILLOR FOR AVELEY AND UPLANDS ON THURROCK COUNCIL. HE IS A LONGSTANDING CAMPAIGNER FOR GOOD GOVERNMENT.

ADRIAN HILL

Red cell contributor
Adrian Hill is a former soldier who then pursued a career with the Diplomatic Service for almost 30 years. Following retirement he became an author, then Chief Executive of a major industry association and Member of the CBI Council, before he retired again. He subsequently took the London Tourist Board examinations as a tour guide and later became a member of the Institute of Tourist Guiding. 
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Lembit Öpik 

RED CELL CONTRIBUTOR
Lembit Öpik was born in Northern Ireland and, after attending Bristol University to study Philosophy, worked in multinational corporation Procter & Gamble. In 1997 he was elected as the Liberal Democrat Member of Parliament where he served for 13 years, quickly rising to the position of Party Leader in the Wales. During his leadership the party doubled its Parliamentary seats in the nation and became the Official Welsh Opposition Party in the Commons. Lembit also served as Shadow Secretary of State for Northern Ireland for a decade. Lembit was elected Senior Vice President and served on the Federal Executive Committee for 17 years. In 2012, he correctly predicted the Liberal Democrats faced electoral disaster unless they changed leader and refocussed on a more authentic liberal narrative. Now Lembit works in public affairs and broadcasting, as a presenter and as a commentator.
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PROF. Toomas Alatalu 

RED CELL CONTRIBUTOR
Toomas Alatalu received his PhD on “Revolutionary situation and its peculiarities in Latin America”, AND HAS TAUGHT AT Universities in Estonia, CENTRAL AMERICA, AND THE Czech Republic. In 1992-2007 he was three times elected to the parliament of Estonia, working in its Constitutional Law, Foreign Relations and European Union affairs committees. Over 1993-99 he was a member of the Presidium of the Baltic Assembly. He was a delegatE to the Council of Europe Parliamentary Assembly, to the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly, and the Inter-Parliamentary Union. In 2007-12 he was Dean of Faculty at IR Eurouniversity, Tallinn. He has written numerous academic articles, is a longstanding columnist since student years, and is a TV commentator on foreign and security policy issues. 
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prof. anthony coughlan 

RED CELL CONTRIBUTOR​

PROFESSOR ANTHONY COUGHLAN IS AN ECONOMIST AND SENIOR LECTURER EMERITUS IN SOCIAL POLICY, TRINITY COLLEGE DUBLIN. HE IS DIRECTOR OF THE NATIONAL PLATFORM EU RESEARCH AND INFORMATION CENTRE, A VOLUNTARY RESEARCH AND INFORMATION BODY ON EU AFFAIRS. HE HAS BEEN AT THE FOREFRONT OF THE IRISH DEBATE ON EUROPEAN INTEGRATION SINCE THE EARLY 1970S; A KEY ANALYST OF TREATIES SINCE THE SINGLE EUROPEAN ACT; AND AN IMPORTANT FIGURE IN IRISH REFERENDA AND CONSTITUTIONAL CHALLENGES ARISING FROM THEM.
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​Dimitri de Vismes 

RED CELL CONTRIBUTOR
DIMITRI DE VISMES IS THE DELEGATE FOR THE FRENCH UPR (UNION POPULAIRE RÉPUBLICAINE) PARTY COVERING THE UK AND NORTHERN EUROPE. HE STOOD ON THE UPR’S LIST AT THE 2019 EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT ELECTIONS. HIS BACKGROUND IS IN MANAGEMENT AND ENGINEERING. 
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​DR. ALEXANDRA NOGAWA 

RED CELL CONTRIBUTOR
​DR. ALEXANDRA NOGAWA HAS BEEN A MEMBER OF THE BASEL CANTON PARLIAMENT. SHE IS A BIOCHEMIST AND WITH HER HUSBAND, CREATED THEIR OWN COMPANY TRADING MEDICAL PRODUCTS.
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BRENT H. CAMERON 

​RED CELL CONTRIBUTOR
BRENT H. CAMERON IS THE AUTHOR OF THE CASE FOR COMMONWEALTH FREE TRADE: OPTIONS FOR A NEW GLOBALIZATION. A FORMER ASSISTANT TO A MEMBER OF THE ONTARIO LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY, HE CURRENTLY SERVES AS A MEMBER OF COUNCIL FOR THE TOWNSHIP OF CENTRAL FRONTENAC, IN EASTERN ONTARIO, CANADA.

PATRICK NICHOLLS

RED CELL CONTRIBUTOR
​PATRICK NICHOLLS WAS THE MEMBER OF PARLIAMENT FOR TEIGNBRIDGE IN THE SOUTH WEST OF ENGLAND FROM 1983 TO 2001. HE SERVED PRIME MINISTER MARGARET THATCHER AS AN EMPLOYMENT MINISTER AND AN ENVIRONMENT MINISTER. HE WAS A VICE-CHAIRMAN OF THE CONSERVATIVE PARTY UNDER PRIME MINISTER JOHN MAJOR AND SERVED AS A SHADOW MINISTER UNDER THE LEADER OF THE OPPOSITION, WILLIAM HAGUE. PATRICK WRITES AND LECTURES EXTENSIVELY IN THE UK, EUROPE AND THE USA. HE IS A FREEMAN OF THE CITY OF LONDON AND A MEMBER OF THE CHARTERED INSTITUTE OF JOURNALISTS. HIS WIFE BRIDGET IS ALSO A LAWYER. THEY HAVE THREE CHILDREN.
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Rear Admiral Roger Lane Nott, CB

RED CELL CONTRIBUTOR
​REAR ADMIRAL ROGER LANE NOTT, CB WAS EDUCATED AT PANGBOURNE COLLEGE AND BRITANNIA ROYAL NAVAL COLLEGE. HE WAS APPOINTED COMMANDING OFFICER OF THE SUBMARINE HMS WALRUS, OF HMS SWIFTSURE, AND HMS SPLENDID DURING THE FALKLANDS WAR. HE WENT ON TO BE COMMANDER OF THE 3RD SUBMARINE SQUADRON, ASSISTANT DIRECTOR OF DEFENCE CONCEPTS AT THE MINISTRY OF DEFENCE, AND COMMANDING OFFICER OF THE FRIGATE HMS COVENTRY AS WELL AS CAPTAIN OF THE 1ST FRIGATE SQUADRON IN 1990. HE SUBSEQUENTLY BECAME CHIEF OF STAFF, SUBMARINES AND COMMANDER OPERATIONS AND FLAG OFFICER SUBMARINES BEFORE RETIRING. HE SUBSEQUENTLY WORKED IN FORMULA ONE AND THE BRITISH RACING DRIVERS' CLUB, AS WELL AS IN OTHER AREAS OF BUSINESS MANAGEMENT; AND IS CHAIRMAN OF THE GOVERNORS AT PANGBOURNE COLLEGE.

RUPERT MATTHEWS

RED CELL CONTRIBUTOR
RUPERT MATTHEWS BECAME MEP FOR THE EAST MIDLANDS IN JULY 2017, FOLLOWING MANY YEARS OF CAMPAIGNING ON BEHALF OF LOCAL PEOPLE ACROSS THE REGION. PRIOR TO HIS ELECTION, RUPERT WORKED IN PUBLISHING WRITING A WIDE VARIETY OF CHILDREN'S AND HISTORY BOOKS. HE IS NOW THE CONSERVATIVE CANDIDATE FOR POLICE AND CRIME COMMISSIONER IN LEICESTERSHIRE AND RUTLAND.
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roger helmer

RED CELL CONTRIBUTOR​
ROGER HELMER GRADUATED FROM CHURCHILL COLLEGE, CAMBRIDGE, WITH A DEGREE IN MATHEMATICS. HE SPENT THE FIRST THIRTY-THREE YEARS OF HIS CAREER WORKING IN MARKETING AND GENERAL MANAGEMENT, MOSTLY WITH LARGE MULTINATIONAL COMPANIES, INCLUDING A TOTAL OF TWELVE YEARS AS AN EX-PAT IN EAST AND SOUTH EAST ASIA. IN 1999 HE WAS ELECTED (HEAD OF LIST) AS CONSERVATIVE MEP FOR THE EAST MIDLANDS. RE-ELECTED IN 2004 AND 2009, HE BECAME DISILLUSIONED WITH THE CONSERVATIVE PARTY’S EUROPEAN POLICIES AND IN 2012 CROSSED THE FLOOR TO JOIN UKIP. IN 2014 HE STOOD (AGAIN HEAD OF LIST) FOR UKIP, AND WAS ELECTED FOR THE FOURTH TIME.  
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Kieran Holmes 

RED CELL CONTRIBUTOR
Kieran Holmes is a tax adviser who has successfully managed significant reforms in the international arena since 1984. Born in the UK and reared in Ireland, Kieran graduated from Trinity College, Dublin with a degree in Economics. After 7 years with the Irish Revenue as a fully trained Inspector of Taxes he moved overseas, working in the Pacific, Africa and the Middle East. He has latterly worked in Ethiopia and South Sudan and now lives in Kent.

Hjörtur J. Guðmundsson ​

RED CELL CONTRIBUTOR
Hjörtur J. Guðmundsson has studied Iceland's relations with the European Union for almost two decades. He has written AND SPOKEN extensively on these subjects. Currently he works as a journalist and on various research projects. previous to that he was active in the SJÁLFSTÆÐISFLOKKURINN (conservative Independence Party), SITTING on the foreign affairs committee. He holds a bachelor‘s degree in modern political history from the University of Iceland and a master‘s degree in international relations with focus on European studies and defence and security studies.
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Helle HagenaU 

RED CELL CONTRIBUTOR
Helle Hagenau is Head of  THE International SECTION, Board member, and former Secretary General of No to EU in Norway. She has been the Secretary General of TEAM – The European Alliance of EU-Critical Movements – and of the British organisation Trade Unions Against the Single Currency. In the late 1990s, she worked for six years in the European Parliament. Hagenau works as Secretary General of the Norwegian Association of Dental Technicians, and has a degree in History

prof. igor grazin 

RED CELL CONTRIBUTOR​​PROFESSOR IGOR GRAZIN (SEEN HERE ARGUING WITH PRESIDENT GORBACHEV) WAS A PROFESSOR WHEN ELECTED TO THE SUPREME SOVIET AS PART OF THE ESTONIAN INDEPENDENCE WAVE. HE IS A MEMBER OF PARLIAMENT, TV PRESENTER, LECTURES IN ECONOMICS AND POLITICAL PHILOSOPHY, AND WAS THE ONLY PARLIAMENTARIAN TO VOTE AGAINST RATIFYING THE EU CONSTITUTION.
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BLAŽ BABIČ

RED CELL CONTRIBUTOR​
BLAŽ BABIČ HAS BEEN CAMPAIGNING AGAINST THE EU IN SLOVENIA FOR TWENTY YEARS, INCLUDING TRANSLATING KEY ENGLISH LANGUAGE MATERIAL FOR WIDER AWARENESS. HE WAS SECRETARY GENERAL OF NOVA STRANKA (THE NEW PARTY) OVER 1996-2004, AND SECRETARY GENERAL OF TEAM (THE EUROPEAN ALLIANCE OF EU-CRITICAL MOVEMENTS) FOR 2007-2010. BLAŽ WRITES AND CAMPAIGNS ON THE DECLINE OF DIRECT DEMOCRACY BOTH WITHIN THE EU AND NATIONALLY. 
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DR. GEORGE SIDIROUNTIOS

RED CELL CONTRIBUTOR
​DR GEORGE SIDIROUNTIOS IS AN HISTORIAN AND AUTHOR. HE IS THE FOUNDER OF NEW THINK TANK THE INTERNATIONAL CENTRE FOR CULTURAL AND GEOPOLITICAL COOPERATION. HE WAS AN ACTIVE PARTICIPANT IN THE 2015 NO CAMPAIGN IN GREECE. HIS LATEST PUBLICATION, THE SIX FORBIDDEN HISTORIES AGAINST THE PROFESSORS,  CHALLENGES ESTABLISHED THINKING IN AREAS OF HISTORICAL STUDY.

DANIEL PAWŁOWIEC 

RED CELL CONTRIBUTOR
​DANIEL PAWŁOWIEC WAS A JOURNALIST WHO SUBSEQUENTLY ENTERED POLISH POLITICS. HE SERVED ON WARSAW CITY COUNCIL, BEFORE BECOMING AN MP. HE WAS VICE-CHAIR OF THE OFFICE OF THE COMMITTEE FOR EUROPEAN INTEGRATION.
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​MARTIN DAVISON

​RED CELL CONTRIBUTOR
​MARTIN DAVISON IS A RETIRED INTERNATIONAL TAX CONSULTANT WHO NOW WRITES ON A NUMBER OF TOPICS. HE HAS PREVIOUSLY PUBLISHED EXTENSIVELY ON THE NORTHERN IRISH ASPECTS OF BREXIT, AS WELL AS THE RESPONSE TO IT
​OF THE LIBERAL MEDIA.

PROF. PETER ÖREBECH

RED CELL CONTRIBUTOR
PROFESSOR PETER ÖREBECH IS PROFESSOR OF JURISPRUDENCE AT THE UIT ARCTIC UNIVERSITY OF NORWAY IN TROMSÖ. HE HAS BEEN A VISITING PROFESSOR AT THE UNIVERSITY OF AKUREYRI, ICELAND; VISITING SCHOLAR AT HARVARD LAW SCHOOL; DIRECTOR OF THE INSTITUTE FOR MARINE RESOURCES MANAGEMENT, TROMSØ; AND VISITING PROFESSOR RESPECTIVELY AT THE UNIVERSITY OF ZAGREB, AT CHICAGO-KENT COLLEGE OF LAW, AND AT THE UNIVERSITY OF NAMIBIA, WINDHOEK. ADDITIONALLY, HE HAS BEEN READER IN LAW AT THE TECHNICAL UNIVERSITY OF NORWAY, TRONDHEIM; VISITING SCHOLAR FOR THE WORKSHOP IN POLITICAL THEORY AND POLICY ANALYSIS AT THE UNIVERSITY OF INDIANA; AND PROFESSOR OF LAW AT THE UNIVERSITY OF TROMSÖ. HIS EXPERTISE SAW HIM SERVE AS ADVISOR TO THE STANDING COMMITTEE ON SCRUTINY AND CONSTITUTIONAL AFFAIRS AT THE NORWEGIAN STORTING, OSLO.
 

AARON BROWN

RED CELL CONTRIBUTOR
AARON BROWN IS THE FOUNDER AND HEAD OF FISHING FOR LEAVE, THE SUCCESSOR CAMPAIGN TO SAVE BRITAIN’S FISH. IT HAS CONTINUED TO PLAY A CORE ROLE IN POLITICAL OPPOSITION TO THE COMMON FISHERIES POLICY, IN THE CONTEXT NOW OF DELIVERING ON THE BREXIT REFERENDUM. HE WORKS IN THE FISHING INDUSTRY.
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DAVID CAMPBELL BANNERMAN 

RED CELL CONTRIBUTOR
DAVID CAMPBELL BANNERMAN WAS AN MEP FOR THE EAST OF ENGLAND 2009-19. A KEEN BREXITEER, DAVID WAS DEPUTY LEADER AND CHAIRMAN OF UKIP, ELECTED FOR THEM IN 2009, THEN RETURNED TO THE CONSERVATIVES IN 2011 TO ARGUE THE CASE FOR A REFERENDUM; AND WAS RE-ELECTED IN 2014. HE BECAME CO-CHAIRMAN OF CONSERVATIVES FOR BRITAIN WITH STEVE BAKER MP AND CHAIRED VOTE LEAVE’S CONTACT GROUP OF EUROSCEPTIC GROUPS DURING THE REFERENDUM, CONTRIBUTING AN EARLY STRATEGY PAPER. HE SERVED IN GOVERNMENT AS SPECIAL ADVISER ON THE NORTHERN IRELAND PEACE PROCESS 1996-97 AND BOW GROUP CHAIRMAN. HE STOOD DOWN BEFORE THE 2019 ELECTION AS HE DID NOT BELIEVE THEY SHOULD HAVE BEEN HELD.
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