About Andrew Stunell MP

Andrew Stunell is the Liberal Democrat Member of Parliament for Hazel Grove.

He is married to Gillian and they have five grown up children, two of whom are adopted. Gillian is a specialist primary music teacher, has taught at several local schools, and has been the musical director for several local amateur productions. Andrew and Gillian live in Romiley, in the centre of the constituency.

Andrew is a former Baptist lay preacher and he and Gillian are now active members of Romiley Methodist Church, where Andrew is in charge of the coffee rota! Having worked on aid projects overseas as a student, Andrew has a long-standing interest in Third World issues.

He stood in Hazel Grove at the 1992 General Election, cutting the Conservative majority to just a few hundred votes, before gaining the Seat from the Tories in 1997.

Andrew successfully defended his seat at the subsequent General elections in 2001 and 2005, and has been reselected as the Liberal Democrat candidate for Hazel Grove for the next election.

Local Campaigning

Andrew has led campaigns on a wide range of local issues in Hazel Grove, including policing levels, commuter transport problems and the cuts to housing benefit for tenants of private landlords. He chaired the Liberal Democrat Working Party that, in March 2000, submitted key evidence to Government Consultants on transport and traffic issues in Stockport, calling for the completion of the Hazel Grove bypass and Stepping Hill link (A555). The South East Manchester Multi Modal Study was endorsed by Ministers and a full scheme has now been drawn up and will go to Public Inquiry during next year.

Fights to save local Post Offices, to keep NHS dentists, as well as the battle to cut police paperwork and get more officers out on the beat have all featured in the last year. Andrew has also pushed for improvements in mental health care, where the take-over of services by Pennine Health Trust still has to bring dividends.

Andrew in Parliament

Andrew Standing up for Hazel Grove in Parliament

Andrew has a keen interest in sustainable energy and the environment. He was the Liberal Democrat Energy Spokesperson from 1998- May 2005 and is the author of two publications setting out Liberal Democrat energy priorities, Energy: Clean and Green by 2050 (1999) and The Nuclear Age: Cleaning Up The Mess (2001).

Andrew came top of the ballot for Private Member's Bills in autumn 2003, and successfully brought forward his Sustainable and Secure Buildings Bill, which was given Royal Assent and became an Act of Parliament in September 2004. His Act opens the way for more energy efficient and lower cost homes, and also gives the Police powers to insist that buildings have crime resistance built into them by law, just as fire resistance already is.

He also took a leading role on the Select Committee on Modernisation, updating House of Commons procedures. On the Finance and Services Committee, Andrew made a reputation for himself as a strong supporter of a clamp down on sloppy budgeting in Parliament.

After serving as the Party's Deputy Chief Whip in the 1997-2001 Parliament, he was elected Chief Whip in 2001, and again in 2005. Andrew stood down as Chief Whip in March 2006 and then became Shadow Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government. In December 2007, Andrew was asked by new Liberal Democrat Leader Nick Clegg to become Chair of the Local Elections Campaigns Team. In January 2009, Nick Clegg also appointed Andrew to be the Liberal Democrat Representative on the International Development Select Committee, allowing Andrew to return to covering one of his earliest political interests. In August 2009, Andrew was asked by Nick Clegg to take on the role of Vice Chair of the General Election Campaign.

In October 2009, after having attended the meetings as an informal observer for the International Development Committee, Andrew was appointed to be a core member of the Committee on Arms Export Controls. CAEC is comprised of members of four House of Commons Select Committees (Business, Foreign Affairs, International Development and Defence) and scrutinises the sale of Arms by the UK government.

Andrew's Council Experience

Andrew was leader of the Liberal Democrats on Cheshire County Council for 6 years, holding the balance of power, and Vice-Chair of the national all-party Association of County Councils from 1985 to 1990. He was a member of Stockport Council from 1994-2002, representing Great Moor Ward. He was elected a Vice President of the Local Government Association in 1997.

From 1989 to 1996 Andrew worked as Political Secretary of the Association of Liberal Democratic Councillors (ALDC), heading the organisation, which trains and supports the country's Liberal Democrat councillors and its large body of campaigners. One of the Liberal Democrats' leading experts on local government, he has written several booklets on council practice and procedures. During his time in charge of the ALDC, Liberal Democrat councillor numbers more than doubled across the UK.

Andrew Stunell Fact File

Date of Birth:

24.11.1942

Occupation:

Member of Parliament.

Education:

Surbiton Grammar School, Manchester University, Liverpool Polytechnic.

Experience:

Early career in architecture. Later Political Secretary of the Association of Liberal Democrat Councillors.

Council Experience:

Chester City Council 1979-90, Cheshire County Council 1981-91, Stockport Council 1994-2002. Vice President, Local Government Association.

Parliamentary Experience:

VIce-Chair of the Liberal Democrat General Election Campaign August 2009 to date; Member of the International Development Select Committee January 2009 to date ; Chair, Liberal Democrat Local Elections Campaigns Team, December 2007-to date. Shadow Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, March 2006-December 2007; Chief Whip, 2001-March 2006; Deputy Chief Whip 1997-2001; Shadow Energy Minister 1997-2005.

Marital status/children:

Married, five children.

Interests:

Third World issues, European affairs, Sustainability, Energy policy

General:

Awarded the OBE in 1993.