Phil Hope
|
This article is part of the Revolving Door project of Spinwatch. |
Phil Hope was the Labour member of parliament between 1997 and 2010 for Corby.
After losing his seat in the Conservative swing at the 2010 general election, Hope moved to become an independent consultant and a consultant at Age UK and Apetito. He is currently a director at Improving Care.
Career
Before joining parliament, Hope was a partner at Framework, a consultancy providing management training and support to public and third sector organisations, for twelve years.[1]
Hope was the Labour MP for Corby between 1997 and 2010. In the 1997 general election he won 55.4 percent of the vote, 49.3 percent in 2001, 43.1 percent in 2005 and 38.7 percent in 2010, losing out to the Conservative's Louise Bagshawe.[2] Whilst in parliament he was parliamentary under secretary to the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister and Department for Education and Skills, parliamentary secretary to the Cabinet Office and Minister of State to the Department of Health and Regional Affairs.[3]
In May 2009 questions were raised after it was revealed Hope had claimed more than £37,000 in expenses in just over four years. He also broke the rules after claiming £120 for a new barbecue and £61 for gardening materials, despite only being able to claim for the cost of maintaining a garden, land registry plans also revealed Hope's flat has access to a communal garden which was empty with no plants or sign of a barbecue. It was not the first time Hope's claims had been questioned, in 2006 he had a claim for £190 worth of indoor pot plants rejected and in 2007 his claim for a £98 electric razor had the same result and in 2007 he recieved a letter from the fees office asking if he could claim for actual amounts and not nominal sums.[4] Later that month Hope announced he would write a cheque for £41,709 to cover the cost of the furniture and fittings he claimed for the property in question.[5]
Post government
- Consultant, Age UK, September 2010. Approved by ACOBA who saw "no reason why he should not take up the appointment subject to a waiting period of 3 months from his last day in office and the condition that, for 12 months from the same date, he should not become personally involved in lobbying UK Government Ministers or Crown servants, including Special Advisers, on behalf of the firm".[6]
- Consultant, Apetito, September 2010. Approved by [[ACOBA] who saw "no reason why he should not take up the appointment forthwith, subject to the condition that, for 12 months from his last day in office, he should not become personally involved in lobbying UK Government Ministers or Crown servants, including Special Advisers, on behalf of the firm".[6]
- Independent consultant providing advice to public, private and charitable bodies on a range of policies including social welfare reform, housing services, skills strategies, criminal justice and reoffending, and organisational development processes, September 2010. Approved by ACOBA who saw "no reason why he should not set up the consultancy as described, forthwith, on the basis that he would exclude organisations with which he had dealings while at the Department of Health, subject to the condition that, for 12 months from his last day in office, he should not become personally involved in lobbying UK Government Ministers or Crown servants, including Special Advisers, on his clients’ behalf".[6]
- Director, Improving Care.[1]
Education
- B.Ed, Exeter University[1]
Resources
Notes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 About Us Improving Care, accessed 4 December 2014
- ↑ Corby The Guardian, accessed 4 December 2014
- ↑ Phil Hope They Work For You, accessed 4 December 2014
- ↑ Christopher Hope and John Bingham Phil Hope: How did he fit all this into one tiny flat? The Telegraph, 09 May 2009, accessed 4 December 2014
- ↑ Matthew Moore Phil Hope agrees to return £41,000 as MPs retreat on expenses The Telegraph, 13 May 2009, accessed 4 December 2014
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 Twelfth Report 2010-2011 Advisory Committee on Business Appointments, accessed 4 December 2014
