Oliver Letwin Facts for Kids

Sir Oliver Letwin (born 19 May 1956) is a British politician. He was a Member of Parliament (MP) for West Dorset from 1997 to 2019. He was first elected as a member of the Conservative Party. Later, he became an independent MP in September 2019.

Sir Oliver held important roles in the government. He was the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster from 2014 to 2016. He also served as the Minister of State for Government Policy from 2010. After the 2015 general election, he joined the Cabinet. This meant he had a big role in the government.

In 2019, during the time of Prime Minister Theresa May, Sir Oliver worked with other MPs. He helped create a way for MPs to vote on different Brexit options. This was to see if any option had enough support in Parliament. He also worked to extend the time for Brexit negotiations. In August 2019, he announced he would not run for election again. In September 2019, he lost the support of the Conservative Party and became an independent MP.

Early Life and Education
Political Career
- MP for West Dorset (1997–2019)
Public Spending
Personal Life
Honours
Images for kids

Early Life and Education

Oliver Letwin was born in London on 19 May 1956. His father, William Letwin, was a professor at the London School of Economics. His mother, Shirley Robin Letwin, was also an academic. His parents were Jewish intellectuals from America.

He went to The Hall School, Hampstead and then to Eton College. After that, he studied history at Trinity College, Cambridge. He earned a PhD in philosophy from Cambridge in 1982. He also studied at the London Business School.

Political Career

Sir Oliver Letwin started his political career working for Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher. He was part of her special policy team from 1983 to 1986.

In 1988, he helped write a report about the National Health Service (NHS). This report suggested ways to improve the NHS by working more with private companies. These ideas later influenced how the NHS was changed by future governments.

Sir Oliver tried to become an MP in 1987 and 1992 but did not win.

MP for West Dorset (1997–2019)

In the 1997 general election, Sir Oliver Letwin won the seat for West Dorset. This area was usually a strong place for the Conservative Party. He won with a majority of 1,840 votes.

Working in the Shadow Cabinet (2000–2010)

When William Hague was the leader of the Conservative Party, he chose Sir Oliver to be part of his Shadow Cabinet. The Shadow Cabinet is a group of opposition MPs who watch over government departments. Sir Oliver became the Shadow Chief Secretary to the Treasury in 2000. He also worked as a Shadow Home Secretary and Shadow Chancellor of the Exchequer.

As Shadow Home Secretary, he suggested ideas for "neighbourhood policing." This meant having more police officers working directly in local communities. He also helped stop a law that would have made it a crime to cause religious hatred. He argued that such a law would be hard to define.

As Shadow Chancellor, he focused on finding ways to save money in the public sector. In the 2005 election, the Conservative Party said they could save £35 billion. This idea made the government also look for ways to cut costs. After the 2005 election, his majority in West Dorset increased.

Sir Oliver supported David Cameron to become the leader of the Conservative Party in 2005. Before the 2010 general election, he played a big part in creating the Conservative Party's plans. In the 2010 election, his majority in West Dorset grew even more.

During David Cameron's Time as Prime Minister (2010–2016)

In May 2010, Prime Minister David Cameron gave Sir Oliver a new role. He became the Minister of State for Government Policy. His job was to help create new government policies. He also attended Cabinet meetings.

On 14 July 2014, he became the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster. This is an important role in the government. He continued as Minister for Policy until 2015.

In the 2015 general election, Sir Oliver won his West Dorset seat again with a much larger majority. After this election, he stayed as Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster. He also became a full member of the Cabinet. This meant he was in charge of overseeing the Cabinet Office.

After the UK voted to leave the European Union in 2016, David Cameron made Sir Oliver "Minister for Brexit." When David Cameron resigned, Sir Oliver said he cared about the country and would make sure it prospered. David Cameron gave Sir Oliver a knighthood in 2016. This means he is now called "Sir" for life.

During Theresa May's Time as Prime Minister (2016–2019)

When Theresa May became the new Prime Minister, she changed Sir Oliver's roles. She ended his time as Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster. She also created a new job, the Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union.

In 2018, Sir Oliver led a review about how new homes were being built.

In 2019, he worked with other MPs to hold "indicative votes" on Brexit. This allowed MPs to vote on different options for leaving the EU. The goal was to find an option that most MPs would support.

Leaving the Conservative Party

In August 2019, Sir Oliver announced he would not run in the next general election. On 3 September 2019, he voted against the government led by Boris Johnson. He and 20 other Conservative MPs voted to take control of parliamentary business. This was to introduce a bill to stop the UK from leaving the EU without a deal. Because of this vote, Sir Oliver and the other 20 MPs lost the support of the Conservative Party. They then sat as independent MPs.

As an Independent MP

After leaving the Conservative Party, Sir Oliver continued as an independent MP. On 19 October 2019, he proposed an amendment to a government plan. His amendment passed, which meant the government had to delay a vote on the Brexit deal.

Sir Oliver did not run in the 2019 general election. Chris Loder became the new Conservative candidate for West Dorset and won the seat.

Public Spending

In 2017, Sir Oliver Letwin said that people might be willing to pay a bit more in taxes. He believed this extra money could help pay for better public services. He thought it was important to reduce the national debt. This would help protect Britain during future economic problems.

Personal Life

Sir Oliver Letwin married Isabel Davidson in 1984. They have two children.

Honours

He became a member of Her Majesty's Most Honourable Privy Council in 2002. This gave him the title "The Right Honourable."
He received a knighthood from Queen Elizabeth II in 2016. This gave him the title "Sir."
He is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts. This means he can use the letters "FRSA" after his name.

Images for kids

Official portrait, 2015

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Oliver Letwin facts for kids

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