Vicky Ford

Vicky Ford
MEP

Vicky Ford, 2010
Member of the European Parliament
for East of England
Assumed office
4 June 2009
Preceded by Christopher Beazley
Personal details
Born (1967-09-21) 21 September 1967
Omagh, County Tyrone, Northern Ireland
Nationality British
Political party Conservative
Alma mater St Paul's Girls' School
Marlborough College
Trinity College, Cambridge
Website www.vickyford.org

Victoria Grace "Vicky" Ford (born 21 September 1967) was elected as Conservative Party Member of the European Parliament for East of England in the 2009 European Parliament election.[1] She is currently Chair of the Internal Market and Consumer Protection (IMCO) Committee.[2] She is a member of the Bureau of the European Conservative and Reformist Group and a member of the Parliament's delegation for relations with China. Before entering politics, Ford spent 14 years in Finance, mostly at JP Morgan, specialising in infrastructure and project financing.

Ford has been the rapporteur for the Parliament on firearms laws, offshore oil and gas safety and the fiscal framework directive which seeks to increase transparency and accountability of public spending. She was a lead negotiator on the Horizon 2020 fund for research and on bank capital requirements, deposit guarantee schemes and residential mortgages. She campaigns to reduce bureaucracy for business, to reduce the EU budget and to end the Strasbourg two-seat circus.

Early life

Ford was born and grew up in Omagh, County Tyrone, Northern Ireland. Her parents were both English doctors.[3] As a child she joined her mother campaigning with the peace movement and her father stood in local elections in an area now dominated by Sinn Féin.[3] She attended primary school in Northern Ireland, but following her father's death she went to secondary school in England.

Marlborough College

Ford was educated at St Paul's Girls' School, Marlborough College and studied Maths and Economics at Trinity College, Cambridge, where she met her husband Hugo Ford.

Finance

Before politics, Ford had a 14-year career in banking. Between 1988 and 2000, Ford worked at JP Morgan, starting as a graduate trainee but working up to a vice president.[4] She has been involved in raising money for infrastructure, including roads, railways, telecommunications and electricity networks across Europe, the Middle East and Africa. She worked with many of Europe's largest companies as well as advising national governments and central banks.[3] In 2000 Ford moved to Bear Stearns International, where she worked as a managing director.[4]

Political career

Ford joined the Conservative Party in 1986.[4] In 2006, Ford was elected as a local councillor, representing Balsham Ward at South Cambridgeshire District Council.[4]

Ford came second[5] at the Birmingham Northfield constituency during the 2005 general election. The constituency housed the Longbridge plant, a car plant owned by MG Rover Group which collapsed one month before the election.

In 1997, she was a major contributor to the Conservative Party's review of UK taxation "The Tax Reform Commission".

Member of the European Parliament

From 2009-2014 Vicky was a member of the European Parliament Industry, Research and Energy Committee and the Economic and Monetary Affairs committee. She led the negotiations on budgetary frameworks, securing the exemption for the UK from EU fiscal rules. She was a lead negotiator on reforms to the regulation of international banking and on Europe's €80 billion Horizon fund for science and research.

Since 2014 Ford has been the Chairman the Committee on Internal Market and Consumer Protection (IMCO).

Ford is a longstanding campaigner for the need for reform in Europe focussing on the need to boost economic growth by reducing bureaucracy and increasing competitiveness. She is the lead negotiator for the ECR Group on the inter-group political discussions to set the priorities for the European Commission's annual work programme. In addition to these roles, Ford is also leading the Parliament's scrutiny of the proposals to update Europe's firearms legislation in the aftermath of the Paris attacks.

Hobbies

Ford's hobbies include fly fishing, gardening and riding. She plays the piano and clarinet as well as singing in a local choir.[3]

References

  1. ↑ "European Election 2009, UK Results, East of England". BBC News. 7 June 2009. Retrieved 16 May 2013.
  2. ↑ "Internal Market and Consumer Protection - Members". European Parliament. Retrieved 19 January 2016.
  3. 1 2 3 4 "About Vicky". VickyFord.org. Retrieved 17 March 2014.
  4. 1 2 3 4 "Business & Political Experience". vote4vicky.com. Archived from the original on 26 March 2008.
  5. ↑ "Vicky Ford". Guardian. Retrieved 11 May 2014.
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