Ann Widdecombe facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Ann Widdecombe
DSG
|
|
|---|---|
Widdecombe in 2009
|
|
| Minister of State for Prisons | |
| In office 28 February 1995 – 2 May 1997 |
|
| Prime Minister | John Major |
| Preceded by | Michael Forsyth |
| Succeeded by | Joyce Quin |
| Minister of State for Employment | |
| In office 27 May 1993 – 5 July 1995 |
|
| Prime Minister | John Major |
| Preceded by | Patrick McLoughlin |
| Succeeded by | Lord Henley |
| Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Social Security | |
| In office 30 November 1990 – 27 May 1993 |
|
| Prime Minister | John Major |
| Preceded by | Gillian Shephard |
| Succeeded by | William Hague |
| Member of the European Parliament for South West England |
|
| In office 2 July 2019 – 31 January 2020 |
|
| Preceded by | Julia Reid |
| Succeeded by | Constituency abolished |
| Member of Parliament for Maidstone and The Weald Maidstone (1987–1997) |
|
| In office 11 June 1987 – 12 April 2010 |
|
| Preceded by | John Wells |
| Succeeded by | Helen Grant |
| Shadow Cabinet offices | |
| 1998–1999 | Shadow Secretary of State for Health |
| 1999–2001 | Shadow Home Secretary |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
Ann Noreen Widdecombe
4 October 1947 Bath, Somerset, England |
| Political party | Reform UK (2023–present) |
| Other political affiliations |
Conservative (1976–2019) Brexit Party (2019–2021) Independent (2021–2023) |
| Residences | London, England Sutton Valence, Kent, England Haytor Vale, Dartmoor, Devon, England |
| Alma mater | University of Birmingham Lady Margaret Hall, Oxford |
Ann Noreen Widdecombe (born 4 October 1947) is a British politician and television personality. She is known for her long career in politics and for appearing on many popular TV shows.
Originally a member of the Conservative Party, she was a Member of Parliament (MP) for 23 years, from 1987 to 2010. She later joined the Brexit Party and was a Member of the European Parliament (MEP) from 2019 to 2020. In 2023, she rejoined the party, which is now called Reform UK.
Widdecombe served in important government roles, including Minister of State for Employment and Minister of State for Prisons. After the Conservatives lost the 1997 election, she became part of the Shadow Cabinet, which is the opposition party's team of senior politicians. She was appointed to the Privy Council in 1997, a special group of advisors to the monarch.
After retiring from Parliament in 2010, she became a familiar face on television. She is a strong supporter of Euroscepticism, which means she believes the UK should be independent from the European Union (EU).
Contents
Early Life and Education
Ann Noreen Widdecombe was born in Bath, Somerset. Her father worked for the Ministry of Defence. Because of her father's job, she went to the Royal Naval School in Singapore for a time.
She later returned to England and attended La Sainte Union Convent School in Bath. For university, she studied Latin at the University of Birmingham. After that, she went to Lady Margaret Hall, Oxford, to study philosophy, politics and economics.
Before becoming a politician, she worked for the company Unilever and then as an administrator at the University of London.
Political Career
Widdecombe's interest in politics started early. In 1974, she helped politician Michael Ancram during the general elections. She was also a local councillor in Surrey from 1976 to 1978.
She tried to get elected to Parliament twice before finally winning a seat in 1987. She became the Conservative MP for Maidstone.
Working in Government
In 1990, Prime Minister John Major made Widdecombe a junior minister for Social Security. She was later moved to the Department of Employment.
In 1995, she became the Minister of State for Prisons. In this role, she was in charge of the country's prison system. She famously visited every prison in the UK to understand the conditions better.
Shadow Cabinet and Backbenches
After the Conservative Party lost the 1997 general election, Widdecombe took on senior roles in the opposition. She was the Shadow Health Secretary and later the Shadow Home Secretary.
In 2001, she decided to step back from these senior roles and become a "backbencher." A backbencher is an MP who is not a government minister or a senior opposition spokesperson. This allowed her to speak more freely on issues she cared about.
She was known for being an independent thinker and sometimes disagreed with her party's leaders. She confirmed in 2007 that she would not run for re-election and retired from Parliament at the 2010 general election.
Return to Politics
In 2019, Widdecombe made a surprise return to politics. She joined the newly formed Brexit Party because she felt the government was not delivering Brexit quickly enough.
She was elected as a Member of the European Parliament for South West England. She served until the UK officially left the European Union on 31 January 2020.
What are Ann Widdecombe's Political Views?
Widdecombe is known for her strong, traditional beliefs. She is a social conservative, which means she believes in the importance of traditional values in society.
- Social Issues: She holds traditional views on family and social matters. She is a member of the Roman Catholic Church and her faith influences many of her opinions.
- Criminal Justice: She supports strict laws and punishments for crime. During a party conference in 2000, she called for a "zero tolerance" policy on certain offences.
- Animal Welfare: She is a dedicated animal lover. She has always opposed fox hunting and supported the ban. She also signed a letter in 2015 to protect the Hunting Act 2004.
- Environment: Widdecombe has expressed doubts about some claims related to climate change. She was one of only five MPs who voted against the Climate Change Act 2008.
Life in the Media
After leaving Parliament, Widdecombe became a well-known media personality. She has appeared on many different television and radio shows.
Television Appearances
In 2002, she was in a documentary with Louis Theroux that showed her daily life. She has also hosted her own shows, like Ann Widdecombe to the Rescue, where she gave advice to families.
She has been a guest host on the news quiz show Have I Got News for You. In 2007, she even made a cameo appearance in the popular science-fiction show Doctor Who.
One of her most famous TV appearances was on BBC One's Strictly Come Dancing in 2010. She was partnered with professional dancer Anton du Beke. Although the judges gave them low scores, viewers loved their fun and comical routines. They stayed in the competition for nine weeks.
In 2018, she took part in Celebrity Big Brother and finished in second place.
Stage Career
Widdecombe has also performed on stage. In 2011, she made her debut in a Christmas pantomime of Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. She has since appeared in several other pantomimes, often playing the villain role, which she said she always wanted to do.
She also had a small, non-singing part in the comic opera La Fille du Regiment in 2012.
Personal Life
After retiring from politics, Widdecombe moved to Dartmoor in Devon. She has never married or had children, choosing to focus on her career. She lived with her mother, Rita, until her mother's death in 2007 at the age of 95.
Widdecombe is a big fan of animals, especially cats. She is also a patron of a charity that helps donkeys in the Holy Land.
Besides her media work, she writes novels and a weekly column for the Daily Express newspaper. Her autobiography, Strictly Ann, was published in 2013.
Religious Faith
Widdecombe's religious faith is very important to her. She was an Anglican for many years but converted to the Roman Catholic Church in 1993. She explained that she disagreed with the Church of England's decision to allow women to become priests.
In 2013, Pope Benedict XVI made her a Dame of the Order of St. Gregory the Great for her service to public life.
Honours
- In 2009, she was made an Honorary Fellow of Canterbury Christ Church University.
- In 2012, she received an honorary degree from the University of Birmingham.
- In 2013, she was made a Dame of the Order of St Gregory the Great by the Holy See.
Selected Publications
Fiction
- 2000: The Clematis Tree
- 2002: An Act of Treachery
- 2005: Father Figure
- 2005: An Act of Peace
Non-fiction
- 1999: Inspired and Outspoken: the collected speeches of Ann Widdecombe
- 2004: The Mass is a Mess
