Brady served as a shadow minister under four Conservative leaders before resigning in 2007 in protest at David Cameron's opposition to grammar schools. On 1 December 2010, Brady was voted "Backbencher of the Year" by The Spectator at its annual parliamentary awards.
Brady was highly active in politics as a student. He served as Chairman of the Durham University Conservative Association (DUCA) for the 1987–1988 academic year[2] and was one of six students elected to represent Durham at the annual NUS conference.[4] He served additionally as Chairman of Northern Area Conservative Students (1987–1989) and as a member of the Conservative Party's National Union Executive Committee (1988–1989).[5]
Early career
Brady was appointed a consultant in public relations with Shandwick plc in 1989.[2] He joined the Centre for Policy Studies in 1990.[2] He was appointed director of public affairs at the Waterfront Partnership in 1992, where he remained until he was elected to the House of Commons in 1997. He was vice-chairman of the East Berkshire Conservative Association from 1993 to 1995.
Parliamentary career
Brady was selected to contest the Altrincham and Sale West, following the retirement of the Conservative MP Fergus Montgomery. Brady was elected as MP for Altrincham and Sale West at the 1997 general election with 43.2% of the vote and a majority of 1,505.[6] He was the youngest Conservative MP to be elected in 1997, having been elected just before his 30th birthday.[7] In the party leadership election that followed, Brady supported Michael Howard.[8]
Brady made his maiden speech in the House of Commons on 2 June 1997. From 1997 to 2001 he was a member of the Education and Employment Select Committee and its Employment Sub-Committee. He was joint secretary of the Conservative Party Committee for Education and Employment from 1997 to 2000.
Brady was re-elected as MP for Altrincham and Sale West at the 2001 general election with an increased vote share of 46.2% and an increased majority of 2,941.[11]
Following the election, Brady continued as an opposition spokesman on Education and Skills under the leadership of both Hague and Iain Duncan Smith. He became the parliamentary private secretary to the Leader of the Opposition, Michael Howard, in 2003, and an opposition spokesman on foreign affairs and Shadow Europe Minister in 2004.[12][13] From 2004 to 2005 he was a member of the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister Select Committee and its Urban Affairs Sub-Committee. He was vice-chair of the all-party Montserrat Group from 2006. He became a member of the Treasury Select Committee and rejoined the executive of the 1922 Committee in 2007.
At the 2005 general election, Brady was again re-elected with an increased vote share of 46.4% and an increased majority of 7,159.[14]
On 29 May 2007, Brady resigned his post as Shadow Minister for Europe in protest at Conservative leader David Cameron's opposition to grammar schools. He told the BBC that "faced with a choice between a front bench position that I have loved and doing what I believe to be right for my constituents and for the many hundreds of thousands of families who are ill-served by state education in this country, there is in conscience only one option open to me", and argued that "grammar schools in selective areas are exactly the motor that does drive social mobility more effectively than comprehensive areas".[15] Brady's own constituency has retained a selective rather than comprehensive education system.
Brady was secretary of the all-party Fluoridation Group and Infrastructure Group from 2008. From 2009 he was treasurer of the all-party Thailand Group and vice-chairman of the Cannabis and Children Group.
At the 2010 general election, Brady was again re-elected with an increased vote share of 48.9% and an increased majority of 11,595.[16]
Brady at the Conservative Party conference in 2011
In 2013, he opposed the Marriage (Same Sex Couples) Act 2013, raising concerns that the measure had not been in the Conservative manifesto and that religious freedom could be compromised.[17]
At the 2015 general election, Brady was again re-elected with an increased vote share of 53% and an increased majority of 13,290.[18][19]
At the snap 2017 general election, Brady was again re-elected, with a decreased vote share of 51% and a decreased majority of 6,426.[21]
In July 2018, it was reported that Brady served as editor of The House, the in-house Parliamentary magazine, earning a salary of £26,000 for the role.[22]
Brady was again re-elected at the 2019 general election with a decreased vote share of 48% and a decreased majority of 6,139.[23]
The committee, sometimes known as "The 22" for short, is the parliamentary group of the Conservative Party and has a central role in the election of the Leader of the Conservative Party. Since 2010 Brady oversaw the election of 4 Conservative Leaders (Theresa May in 2016, Boris Johnson in 2019, Liz Truss in 2022 and Rishi Sunak in 2022) all of whom became the Prime Minister since the Conservative Party had been in office throughout his tenure as chairman.
Brady returned to his role as Chairman the 1922 Committee on 3 September 2019.[28] He was subsequently re-elected in the next session of Parliament on 20 January 2020.[29]
Brady's role as Chairman of the 1922 gave him a high public profile, as it fell to him to announce the results of each leadership election or challenge, which was followed on live TV and streaming around the world.
In 2022, Brady became the longest-ever serving Chairman of the 1922 Committee, surpassing Edward du Cann.
Legislation
Brexit: anti-Northern Ireland backstop amendment
On 29 January 2019, the House of Commons voted 317 to 301 to approve Brady's amendment to the Brexit Next Steps motion,[30] which called for "the Northern Ireland backstop to be replaced with alternative arrangements to avoid a hard border, supports leaving the European Union with a deal and would therefore support the Withdrawal Agreement subject to this change".
COVID-19 lockdowns
In May 2020, Brady called for the removal of "arbitrary rules and limitations on freedom" brought in by the government because of the COVID-19 pandemic. He said that the British public had been "a little too willing to stay at home".[31] Speaking out against a second lockdown, he also spoke about COVID-related mental health issues, such as increased rates of suicide and domestic abuse, as well as excess deaths caused due to reduced access for care.[32] Brady is also a steering committee member of the lockdown-sceptic COVID Recovery Group, a group of Conservative MPs who oppose the UK government's December 2020 lockdown.[33] The Telegraph reported that the group was seen in Westminster as an "echo" of the Brexiteer European Research Group (ERG) of MPs, and a response by backbench Conservatives to Nigel Farage's anti-lockdown Reform UK party.[33]
In 2024 he published a memoir of his time leading the 1922 Committee, entitled Kingmaker.[38][39]
Personal life
Brady met Victoria Lowther at Durham University. The couple married in 1992, and have a daughter and a son. They divide their time between homes in London and Altrincham; his wife worked as his senior parliamentary assistant.[40]
Honours
Brady was made a Freeman of Altrincham in September 2016 for services to the community of Altrincham and its environs.[41]
↑Brady recused himself from overseeing the 2019 Conservative Party leadership election, which was won by Boris Johnson, because Brady himself considered running for the leadership before declining.
References
↑Peter Wilby, "Why would a Tory object?': crusader for grammar schools is having his moment", Guardian Newspaper 8 November 2016 [
