Danny Kruger, a former adviser to the government on civil society, has become a Conservative MP as the party won a clear majority. The Labour Party suffered heavy losses, including the departure of figures with links to the charity sector.
A general election was held yesterday with the Tories, led by Boris Johnson, winning 364 seats out of 650, giving them a clear majority and their best electoral performance since the 1980s.
Kruger is one of several new Conservative MPs. He worked at the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport until earlier this year where he was heavily involved in developing the government’s Civil Society Strategy. He then joined Johnson’s Number Ten team as political secretary in August. Previously he set up the rehabilitation charity Only Connect.
He said on Twitter that he was “delighted, honoured (and exhausted)”.
Delighted, honoured (and exhausted). Thank you everyone who supported me. I will be the MP for everyone here and work to bring our community and our country together again after Brexit is done. https://t.co/sHnkd4USZT
— Danny Kruger (@danny__kruger) December 13, 2019
Labour losses
Meanwhile the Labour Party, under Jeremy Corbyn suffered its worst results since the the 1930s, affecting former MPs with links to the charity sector.
Susan Elan Jones, who had been the Labour MP for Clywd South in Wales since 2010 and was the co-chair of the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Charities and Volunteering, lost to the Conservative candidate, Simon Baynes. She had comfortably beaten Baynes in 2017, but yesterday lost by over 1,000 votes.
Thank you for the privilege of having represented the Clwyd South constituency for the last 9 years and huge thanks to our excellent @ClwydSouthLab campaign team. A terrible night for UK Labour though - our worst result since the 1930s @WelshLabour.
— Susan Elan Jones (@susanelanjones) December 13, 2019
Vicky Foxcroft, shadow minister for civil society, held on to her seat in Lewisham Deptford.
But former shadow charities minister Anna Turley was one of a number of Labour casualties in the North East. She lost her seat in Redcar to the Tory candidate Jacob Young, who won by more than 3,500 votes, in what had previously been a safe Labour seat.
Two-thirds of voters in the constituency had voted to leave the European Union in 2016, however Turley had continued to back a second referendum. She said on Twitter that serving as an MP had been a privilege.
Meanwhile, Lisa Nandy, another former Labour shadow minister, retained her seat in Wigan.
Former Tory ministers re-elected
Baroness Barran, the current minister for civil society, was not standing for election because she is a member of the House of Lords.
Tracey Crouch, who was the charities minister until October 2018, held her seat in Chatham and Aylesford.
Mims Davies, who was the minister until earlier this year, was elected in a different seat and is now the MP for Mid Sussex.
Johnson is expected to bring forward a Queen’s speech, with a programme for government, by the end of next week.
Some new Conservative MPs with charity links
Baynes, who has replaced Elan Jones in Clydw South, is a trustee of the Llangollen International Musical Eisteddfod and runs the charity Concertina – Music for the Elderly.
Siobhan Baillie, who has become the Conservative MP for Stroud, is a former lawyer and charity worker. She was the head of policy and communications for OnePlusOne, a national charity that aims to strengthen families and relationships.
The new Conservative MP for Ashfield, Lee Anderson, says on his Facebook page that he worked at Ashfield & Broxtowe Citizens Advice Bureau for many years and for local homeless charities. He has been criticised during the campaign for suggesting nuisance tenants live in tents and faces an investigation over alleged antisemitism.
Other results
Lucy Caldicott, a charity consultant and former chief executive of your organisation UpRising, stood as the Labour candidate in Dudley South, but lost to the Conservative candidate.
In Wealden, Angie Smith, a Labour candidate who has worked for a domestic violence charity, lost to the Conservative candidate.
Shaun Sadler, standing as an independent in Jarrow, had promised to donate all of his MP’s salary to charity if elected, but only got 614 votes, as Labour held the seat.
Leanne Murray, a former member of the Blackpool Mayors Charity Committee who was Brexit Party candidate in Lancaster and Fleetwood, was not elected, with Labour holding onto the seat.
In Putney, Sue Wixley, director of marketing and communications at the health and social care think tank Future Care Capital, was the Liberal Democrat candidate, but the Labour Party gained the seat from the Conservatives.
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