UK Prime Minister David Cameron announced a cabinet reshuffle this week, resulting in several changes to Ministerial appointments. A new Minister for theOverseasTerritories, Mr Mark Simmonds, takes over from Mr Henry Bellingham, who has held the appointment for the last 18 months.
Mark Simmonds was born in Worksop in 1964 and educated at Worksop College and Trent University. He began working life as a qualified chartered surveyor, eventually setting up his own surveying practice. He was elected onto Wandsworth Borough Council for the Southfield Ward in Putney in 1990, stepping down in 1994 to pursue a parliamentary career.
Following his election as Conservative MP for Boston and Skegness in the 2001 general election he was made Parliamentary Private Secretary to the Rt. Hon. Michael Ancram MP QC, the Shadow Foreign Secretary. He was promoted soon after to the front bench as the Shadow Minister for Education. In 2004 he was appointed Shadow Foreign Office Minister where his work focused on international affairs in the Middle East, Africa, Central and South East Asia, andSouth America.
After his re-election in 2005 Mr Simmonds was appointed Shadow Minister for International Development, where his role focused on the issues of aid, trade and debt. In July 2007 he was promoted to Shadow Minister for Health.
Mr Simmonds won his seat for a third time in the 2010 general election. The recent reshuffle saw him appointed as Parliamentary Under Secretary of State in the Foreign & Commonwealth Office, with particular responsibilities for Africa, Conflict Issues, Climate Change, International Energy, Consular, Protocol, Ministerial Oversight for FCO Services, The Caribbean (not including Dominican Republic, Haiti or Cuba), and the Overseas Territories (except the Falklands, Sovereign Base Areas and Gibraltar).
He is married to Lizbeth, and has three children; Isabella, Oriana, and Oliver. His interests outside politics include his family, historical literature, watching rugby and playing tennis.
Contact for this press release:
Peter Roberts / Staff Officer to the Governor Anguilla / 497 2621 / peter.roberts@fco.gov.uk
