David Ruffley

David Ruffley was the Conservative Party Member of Parliament (MP) for Bury St Edmunds from 1997 to 2015.

Ruffley was a senior member of the influential Treasury Committee, which is appointed by the House of Commons to examine the expenditure, administration and policy of HM Treasury, HM Revenue & Customs, and associated public bodies, including the Bank of England and the Financial Services Authority.

In July 2014 Ruffley announced he would not stand in the 2015 general election after admitting assaulting his ex-girlfriend. He was replaced by Jo Churchill who held the seat.

Political career

In his own words:

On leaving grammar school I went to Cambridge University then practised as a solicitor dealing with banks and many small businesses. At the beginning of the 1990s I was headhunted by the Rt Hon Kenneth Clarke, QC MP – to be a trouble shooter in the Department of Education and Science and to keep a keen eye on his civil servants. I did this job for the same Cabinet Minister at the Home Office (1992-93) and then when he became Chancellor of the Exchequer in May 1993 until 1996. I was his Chief Special Adviser at the Treasury- a period when most acknowledge Ken Clarke got the British economy into the best shape for a generation. He left a golden economic legacy to Mr Blair's Government.

I won the 1997 General Election as the candidate for Bury St Edmunds, achieving the lowest Labour “swing” against me of any Conservative held seat in the whole of the United Kingdom - something I am proud of! Especially as many much safer Tory seats fell to Blair's Labour Party. The majority of 368 came after a recount. I increased my majority to 2,503 in 2001. In 2005, I increased it to 9,930 and in 2010 it increased again to 12,380.

I served on the Treasury Select Committee, the most influential in Parliament, from 1999 until March 2004 and got a national reputation for taking on Gordon Brown in head to head exchanges on tax and spending.

I then served on the Conservative front bench as Treasury Whip in Her Majesty’s Opposition Whips Office between March 2004 and July 2005 – this involved me managing detailed legislative scrutiny. Between December 2005 and July 2007 I was Shadow Minister for Welfare Reform. Between July 2007 and May 2010 I was Shadow Minister for Police Reform.

In October 2010 I was unanimously elected by the Conservative colleagues in the Commons to serve on the Treasury Select Committee. Our scrutiny is vital in ensuring the Government's economic and financial policy is effective. If it isn't we say so. In 2011 we are doing reports on the structure of banking and economic growth - both crucial to the success of this country.

External interests

In 2013 and 2014, Ruffley received £590 for taking part in surveys with polling companies and £500 from a financial publisher for a speech at a conference in Cambridge.

Affiliations

• Associate Parliamentary Group on Wholesale Financial Markets and Services - vice chair
• Centre for Policy Studies
• All-Party Parliamentary Group for the Cayman Islands
• Britain-Bermuda All-Party Parliamentary Group
• All-Party Parliamentary British-Qatar Group
• All-Party Parliamentary Group on Freedom of Religion or Belief
• All-Party Parliamentary Russia Group
• All-Party Parliamentary Group on Transatlantic and International Security
• All-Party Parliamentary Small Business Group
• United Kingdom-United Arab Emirates All-Party Parliamentary Group, member
• Former member of the All-Party Parliamentary Group for European Reform