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Business, Innovation and Skills Select Committee
Members
Adrian Bailey MP (Chair, BIS Select Committee)
© Labour (Co-op), West Bromwich West
e Elected 2000
e Chair, BIS Select Committee (since 2010)
e A long-serving and loyal Labour MP, Adrian Bailey has had an uneventful but steady time in
parliament, having been a serial parliamentary private secretary to several Ministers during
the Labour years.
e Librarian by profession and former county councillor
* Attended Post Office Parliament drop-in session, December 2013
¢ Attended Westminster Hall Horizon debate but did not speak
@ 12 branches in constituency
o Allurban, including 6 urban deprived
© 2™Mains, 2 Locals
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William Bain MP
e Labour, Glasgow North East
e Elected 2009
eA former law lecturer and local party activist, William ‘Willie’ Bain won Glasgow North East
for Labour in the by-election of November 2009, caused by the resignation of the ousted
Speaker Michael Martin.
¢ Opened new Post Office branch in March 2014, having taken a keen interest following
temporary closure
¢ Interest in financial inclusion
@ 12 branches in constituency
o. Allurban, including 7 urban deprived
© 2Crowns, 1 Main and 2 Locals
Brian Binley MP
¢ Conservative, Northampton South
Elected 2005
¢ Aself-made Thatcherite freemason and former county councillor with strong local and party
roots. Was involved in cleaning and publishing industries
* He has been an increasingly vocal critic of David Cameron’s leadership. In July 2013, he
announced that he would stand down from Parliament at the next general election.
Supported Royal Mail privatisation, has subsequently expressed concerns at risk to universal
service as a result of competitors being able to ‘cherry pick’ services
e Referred a case to the Scheme but neither he nor the applicant has been publicly vocal
about it. Case has been mediated and resolved.
e@ 11 branches in constituency
© Allurban, including 1 urban deprived
© 2Mains, 1 Local
Paul Blomfield
Labour, Sheffield Central
Elected 2010
Studied theology and qualified as a teacher
Active campaigner against pay-day lenders
9 branches in constituency
© Allurban, including 6 urban deprived
© 1Crown, 1 Main, 1 Local
Katy Clark
eee
Labour, North Ayrshire and Arran
Elected 2005
Solicitor
Left-wing, frequently rebels against Labour leadership,
Sponsored by CWU and chairs CWU group of MPs
Campaigned against Royal Mail privatisation
Spoke in Westminster Hall debate on Horizon: highly critical of Post Office management
accusing it of reacting to problems by blaming sub-postmasters, rather than investigating
potential causes; accused Post Office support systems and help desk of giving misleading
information; criticised the lack of a ‘fair and open’ process and called for greater
transparency from Post Office
23 branches in constituency
© 8urban (4 urban deprived), 15 rural
o 1 Crown, 3 Mains and 2 Locals
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Mike Crockart MP
e Lib Dem, Edinburgh West
e Elected 2010
e@ Was quickly given a role in government as PPS to Scottish Secretary Michael Moore, but
made much more of a mark by resigning the role just months later in protest over increased
tuition fees.
e Former police constable and IT manager
e Attended private Post Office dinner Feb 2013
* 12 branches in constituency
o 9urban (3 urban deprived), 3 rural
o 2Mains, 1 Local
Caroline Dinenage
e Conservative, Gosport (Hampshire)
e Elected 2010
@ PPS to Nicky Morgan MP, Sec of State for Education
© Founder of a marketing company and former local councillor with a famous local name
(daughter of broadcaster Fred Dineage)
Supportive of Post Office locally
e Lobbied Post Office to upgrade local branch, now modernised, aiming to have Caroline open
the new branch (28 Jan)
e 10 branches in constituency
©. 8urban, 2 rural
o 3Locals
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Rebecca Harris
* Conservative, Castle Point (Essex)
e Elected 2010
e = Ahigh-flying ‘A-list’, former businesswoman, local councillor and special adviser to the
Suffolk MP Tim Yeo
e Attended Post Office Parliament drop in December 2013
¢ Supportive of Post Office locally, has opened 2 NT branches
¢ 8branches in constituency
o Allurban
o 2 Mains
Ann McKechin
e Labour, Glasgow North
e Elected 2001
e A left-leaning Glasgow solicitor and a champion of international development, Ann
McKechin had two years’ experience as a junior Minister in the Scotland Office before she
was propelled into the post of Shadow Secretary of State by the Shadow Cabinet elections of
2010.
e Ayear later she was reshuffled to the back benches, replaced by the relative newcomer
Margaret Curran.
Attended private Post Office dinner, Feb 2013
Attended Post Office Parliament drop-in session, July 2014
Supportive of Post Office involvement in financial inclusion
Supportive of Post Office locally, opened 2 branches in last 12 months but opposes Tesco
and other supermarkets taking on branches
¢ 6 branches in constituency
o Allurban, including 3 urban deprived
o 3 Mains
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Robin Walker
® Conservative, Worcester
The son of the late Peter Walker, who was MP for Worcester for 31 years, Robin Walker had
something of a homecoming when he won back his father’s old seat from Labour after 13
years in 2010
He set up his own business after leaving university, joined the Finsbury public relations
company in 2003 and rose to be a partner for a year before his election.
PPS to Elizabeth Truss MP, Sec of State Environment, Food & Rural Affairs
@ Engaged with Post Office nationally and locally, very supportive.
e During the 2013 Debate he said:
Mr Robin Walker (Worcester) (Con): I welcome the Minister’s statement,
particularly the commitment from the Post Office to improve aspects of its
support and training for sub-postmasters. I recently visited St Johns post office
in Worcester, which is an enthusiastic early adopter of the network
transformation programme. Will she join me in celebrating the fact that the
Government are investing in the post office network, rather than running a
closure programme, as the last Government did?
Campaigner for financial inclusion and financial services reform; campaigning for reform of
the business rates regime.
Attended private Post Office dinner February 2013
e Spoke at Centre for Social Justice / Post Office fringe meeting at Conservative Party
conference 2014 on community banking
e Attended Post Office Parliament drop-in session 2014
e 13 branches in constituency
o Allurban, including 2 urban deprived
o 5 Mains, 1 Local
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Nadhim Zahawi
* Conservative, Stratford-on-Avon
e Elected 2010
@ The wealthy co-founder of the online polling company YouGov, landed the nomination for
one of the Conservatives’ safest seats in 2010.
@ Few could have predicted this comeback from a business failure ten years earlier, anda
close association with Lord Archer of Weston-Super-Mare, to achieve wealth and influence
and predictions of a future seat in the Cabinet.
Member of Conservative Party Policy Advisory Board
Chemical engineer, former local councillor and co-founder of YouGov (polling organisation)
Ina Google-hosted debate on online public services, hailed GDS success in ‘removing need
to go to the post office’ (2014)
¢ Current local consultation on re-location of a branch into Budgens store
@ 21 branches in constituency
© 2urban, 19 rural
o I Main, 1 Local