Editing Mark Field (section)

==Parliamentary career==

In December 1999 Field was selected to contest the safe Conservative seat of the [[Cities of London and Westminster (UK Parliament constituency)|Cities of London and Westminster]] following the retirement of former [[Northern Ireland Secretary]] [[Peter Brooke, Baron Brooke of Sutton Mandeville|Peter Brooke]] at the [[2001 United Kingdom general election|2001 general election]]. Field won the seat with a majority of 4,499 and was returned to Parliament with an increased majority three times since ([[2005 United Kingdom general election|2005]] – 8,095; [[2010 United Kingdom general election|2010]] – 11,076; [[2015 United Kingdom general election|2015]] – 9,671). He was re-elected with a reduced majority at the [[2017 United Kingdom general election|2017]] general election. Field made his [[maiden speech]] in the House of Commons on 27 June 2001, when he declared his great political hero to be former [[Prime Minister of the United Kingdom|Prime Minister]] [[Bonar Law]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm200102/cmhansrd/vo010627/debtext/10627-18.htm#10627-18_spnew3|title=House of Commons Hansard Debates for 27 Jun 2001 (pt 18)|publisher=Publications.parliament.uk|access-date=8 December 2014}}</ref>

He was described by ''[[The Guardian]]'' as one of the most "hardline right-wingers" up for election in 2001 after comments he made in 1991 about charities fighting the [[AIDS]] epidemic were reported. Field criticised AIDS campaigns as a waste of taxpayers' money and wanted mandatory tests for AIDS: "Many charitable trusts set up to help counter Aids in the mid-1980s became little more than a [[gay rights]] front", he wrote in ''[[Crossbow (journal)|Crossbow]]'' in 1991.<ref name="The Guardian">{{cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2001/may/02/uk.conservatives1|title=Four Conservative hardliners who could win seats at the election|work=[[The Guardian]]|date=2 May 2001|access-date=26 August 2018}}</ref>

As a parliamentarian Field, however, proved a strong supporter of equal rights. Within months of his election, in October 2001, he was one of four Tory MPs supporting a 10-minute rule bill on civil partnerships, a course he continued to support until it was on the statute books. He was also one of the Conservative MPs to vote in favour of gay marriage when this became law in May 2013. He was appointed an [[Opposition Whip]] by [[Iain Duncan Smith]] in 2003,<ref name="parl" /> becoming the [[Shadow Minister for London]] later that year. Between May and December 2005, he was Shadow Financial Secretary to HM [[Treasury]]. For 11 months, from late 2005 to late 2006, he was the Conservative Party's spokesman on Culture, Media and Sport under the new leadership of [[David Cameron]] in 2005. During his tenure he guided Opposition policy on the [[National Lottery (United Kingdom)|National Lottery Act 2006]] and promoted policy safeguarding [[Lottery Fund|lottery fund]]s for its four original causes of [[the Arts]], heritage, [[charities]] and [[sport]]. He also led opposition to Britain's [[Public library|public library service]].

In September 2010, Field was appointed by the Prime Minister to the [[Intelligence and Security Committee]], chaired by former Foreign Secretary, [[Sir Malcolm Rifkind]]. He became the youngest MP on this committee, which reports directly to [[10 Downing Street]] and oversees the [[List of intelligence agencies of the United Kingdom|UK's intelligence and security services]].<ref>{{cite web|title=About Mark|url=http://markfieldmp.com/about-mark/overview/|website=Mark Field MP|access-date=24 March 2015}}</ref>

He takes a special interest in [[Economy|economic affairs]], [[financial services]], [[foreign trade]] and [[international development]]<ref>{{cite web|title=Mark Field|url=https://www.conservatives.com/OurTeam/Members_of_Parliament/Field_Mark.aspx|website=Conservative Party|access-date=24 March 2015}}</ref> and is chairman of the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Venture Capital & Private Equity as well as vice-chairman of the [[All-Party Parliamentary Group|Groups]] on [[Association football|Football]] and [[Bangladesh]]. He previously served as chairman of the APPGs for [[Azerbaijan]] and [[Business Services]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm/cmallparty/register/small-business.htm|title=House of Commons – Register Of All-Party Groups as at 30 July 2015: Small Business|first=The Committee Office, House of|last=Commons|website=publications.parliament.uk}}</ref> He has served on the Standing Committees of several pieces of legislation, including the [[Business Rate Supplements Act 2009|Business Rates Supplements Act]] and the [[Finance Act]]s in 2008 and 2009.

As a [[backbencher]], Field introduced several high-profile debates on issues of local and national importance such as [[homelessness]], [[Politics of Northern Ireland|Northern Ireland]], [[Government debt]], [[Heathrow airport]], [[Metropolitan Police Service|policing in London]], [[social housing]], [[Homeschooling#United Kingdom|home education]] and [[Demographics of the United Kingdom|population estimates]]. He has run local campaigns on business rates, [[St Bartholomew's Hospital]], assisting the [[creative industries]], the control of [[Cycle rickshaw|rickshaws]] in the [[West End theatre|West End]], social housing rent rises, the independence of the [[City of London Police]] (including its [[fraud detection]] expertise) and, in July 2011, successfully argued in Parliament for the [[Department of Culture, Media and Sport]]'s continuing control of the [[Royal Parks]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/standard-mayor/article-23972200-boris-johnson-will-not-be-given-control-of-royal-parks.do|title=Boris will not be given control of royal parks|work=Evening Standard|access-date=8 December 2014|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110727005052/http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/standard-mayor/article-23972200-boris-johnson-will-not-be-given-control-of-royal-parks.do|archive-date=27 July 2011}}</ref>

Field expressed criticism of the previous system governing [[United Kingdom parliamentary expenses scandal|MPs' second home allowances]]:<ref>[https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/mps-expenses/6112443/MPs-expenses-MPs-who-milked-the-expenses-system-now-complain-about-attempts-to-reform-it.html MPs who milked the expenses system now complain about attempts to reform it.] ''The Daily Telegraph'', 29 August 2009</ref> ''[[The Daily Telegraph]]''{{'}}s investigation of MPs' expenses found Field to be among the lower-end claimants.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/standard/article-23709210-mps-expenses---what-your-mp-claimed---a-h.do|title=MPs' expenses – what your MP claimed – A–H|work=The Evening Standard|access-date=8 December 2014|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110606122519/http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/standard/article-23709210-mps-expenses---what-your-mp-claimed---a-h.do|archive-date=6 June 2011}}</ref>

He has been a supporter of looser rules on MPs' outside earnings and was quoted in 2001 as saying: "If you're earning several hundred thousand a year in the City, are you going to give it up for £47,000 a year in the Commons?"<ref name="The Guardian"/> In 2012, it was reported that the [[Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority]] (Ipsa) had plans to reform MPs' pay, which could lead to them facing salary cuts for taking on second jobs. Field, who had earned £90,000 in the previous year through advisory work, called the proposals "totally unacceptable", especially for MPs with London costs.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2012/oct/13/mps-pay-cut-second-jobs|title=MPs may face pay cut for taking second jobs|work=The Guardian|date=13 October 2012|access-date=26 August 2018}}</ref>

In October 2011, Field voiced opposition to [[Occupy London]] protestors camped in his [[List of United Kingdom Parliament constituencies|constituency]]. He expressed concern that their "tent city" was turning into a "semi-permanent encampment" which was disrupting [[St Paul's Cathedral]], a "key iconic tourist site" and [[place of worship]]. He suggested that [[Metropolitan Police|police]] should clear the camp at night<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/2011/10/25/occupy-london-thermal-ima_n_1029910.html|title=Occupy London: Thermal Images 'Reveal Camp Empties At Night'|work=The Huffington Post UK|access-date=8 December 2014|date=25 October 2011}}</ref> and later said: "While no one expects anti-capitalism to be a 24-hour activity, I would have hoped the protesters would show a little more respect for the sanctity of St Paul's."<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/religion/8858510/Bishop-of-London-branded-hypocrite-as-he-backs-St-Pauls-protest...-and-eviction.html|title=Bishop of London branded hypocrite as he backs St Paul's protest... and eviction|date=31 October 2011|work=Telegraph.co.uk|access-date=8 December 2014}}</ref> On 28 February 2012, after 137 days of occupation, Field's initial recommendation became reality following a [[Court order]] when the site was cleared by the [[City of London Police]] in just 137 minutes.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/standard/article-24039030-occupy-london-protesters-evicted-from-camp-at-st-pauls-cathedral.do|title=St Paul's camp: Occupied for 137 days, cleared in 137 minutes|work=Evening Standard|access-date=8 December 2014|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120301180055/http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/standard/article-24039030-occupy-london-protesters-evicted-from-camp-at-st-pauls-cathedral.do|archive-date=1 March 2012}}</ref>

In March 2014, he launched Conservatives for Managed Migration in order to spark a "calm and rational debate about [[Human migration|migration]] both within and beyond the Conservative Party" before the [[2015 United Kingdom general election|2015 General Election]]. Field asserted that the [[Coalition Government 2010–2015|Coalition Government]]'s pledge to get "annual net migration down to the tens of thousands" was undeliverable, risked potential harm to the economy and could ultimately be electorally damaging to the Conservative Party.<ref>{{cite web|last1=Field|first1=Mark|title=Conservatives for Managed Migration want a sensible immigration policy, not an open door|url=http://www.conservativehome.com/platform/2014/03/mark-field-mp-conservatives-for-managed-migration-want-a-sensible-immigration-policy-not-an-open-door.html|website=Conservative Home|date=27 March 2014 |access-date=24 March 2015}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|title=Tory MP's group wants net migration target dropped|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-26728774|access-date=24 March 2015|work=BBC News|date=25 March 2014}}</ref> In March 2015, Field was sworn into the [[Privy Council (United Kingdom)|Privy Council]], thereafter being accorded the [[Style (manner of address)|honorific prefix]] of "[[The Right Honourable]]".<ref>{{cite web|title=Privy Council appointments: March 2015|url=https://www.gov.uk/government/news/privy-council-appointments-march-2015|website=Press release|publisher=Prime Minister's Office|access-date=13 March 2015|date=12 March 2015}}</ref>

In July 2015, Field was appointed vice chairman (International) of the Conservative Party under the leadership of David Cameron and was reappointed to the role by Theresa May. The role involves chairing the Party's International and Outreach Office which builds relationships with international sister parties on the centre-right, works with the [[Westminster Foundation for Democracy]] to enhance democratic institutions and political party structures in the developing world, acts as a link between the Party and its MEP group through work with the [[Alliance of Conservatives and Reformists in Europe]] (ACRE), and engages in political outreach work with diaspora communities in the UK.

In 2016, he met [[Halbe Zijlstra]], Leader of the Dutch [[People's Party for Freedom and Democracy]] in the [[House of Representatives (Netherlands)|House of Representatives]], who had made a series of controversial comments about immigrants and political correctness. It was argued that Field's role as vice chairman of the Conservative Party also includes liaising with sister centre-right parties in Europe.<ref>{{cite web|title=Why were two Dutch MPs at 'cake and eat it' Brexit meeting?|url=https://www.dutchnews.nl/news/2016/11/dutch-mps-were-at-controversial-cake-and-eat-it-brexit-meeting/|website=Dutch News|access-date=26 August 2018|date=30 November 2016}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|first1=Jessica|last1=Elgot|first2=Jennifer|last2=Rankin|url=https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2016/nov/29/greg-clark-minister-dismisses-having-cake-and-eating-it-brexit-notes|title=Minister dismisses 'have cake and eat it' Brexit notes|work=[[The Guardian]]|date=29 November 2016|access-date=26 August 2018}}</ref>

=== Minister for Asia and Pacific ===
On 13 June 2017, he was appointed a [[Minister of State]] at the [[Foreign and Commonwealth Office]].<ref>{{cite web|title=Election 2017: ministerial appointments|url=https://www.gov.uk/government/news/election-2017-ministerial-appointments |website=www.gov.uk |date=20 June 2017 |access-date=13 June 2017}}</ref> At the FCO his formal responsibilities included: Asia, Australasia/Pacific, Communications (public diplomacy and scholarship), [[British Council]], Economic Diplomacy (including international energy strategy; climate change; [[OECD]] relationship; fintech/cyber and the illegal wildlife trade), FCO Services Overseas and the Prosperity Fund (as FCO representative on the Ministerial board). His work on climate change has included representing the UK government at December 2018's [[2018 United Nations Climate Change Conference|COP24 UN Climate Change Conference]] in Katowice, Poland as well as the [[Global Climate Action Summit|San Francisco Climate Summit]] and [[Pacific Islands Forum|PIF]] in Nauru earlier that year. He promoted UK expertise across Asia in green finance, renewables, carbon capture utilisation and storage, and electric vehicle technology.

=== Assault allegation ===
On 20 June 2019, [[Greenpeace]] accused Field of assault, after an activist who interrupted [[Chancellor of the Exchequer]] [[Philip Hammond]]'s [[Mansion House, London|Mansion House Speech]] was grabbed by the neck, pinned against a wall and then pushed out of the event by Field. Field said he reacted "instinctively" and referred himself to the Cabinet Office for an investigation. He apologised to the activist for "grabbing her" and said he was worried she might have been armed.<ref>{{cite news|date=20 June 2019|title=Climate protesters disrupt Hammond's Mansion House speech|work=[[BBC News]]|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-48713929|access-date=21 June 2019}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|date=20 June 2019|title=Tory MP Mark Field filmed removing protester amid demonstration during Philip Hammond speech|work=ITV News|url=https://www.itv.com/news/2019-06-20/protesters-disrupt-philip-hammonds-speech-at-mansion-house/|access-date=21 June 2019}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|date=21 June 2019|title=MP Mark Field accused of assaulting Greenpeace activist|work=[[BBC News]]|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-48714864|access-date=21 June 2019}}</ref> As a result of the incident, he was suspended as a minister on 21 June, while investigations took place.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Kentish|first=Benjamin|date=June 21, 2019|title=Tory minister suspended for grabbing female protester by the neck and pinning her against pillar|url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/mark-field-suspended-tory-mp-protester-video-climate-change-greenpeace-a8968621.html|access-date=June 21, 2019|language=en|newspaper=[[The Independent]]}}</ref> The [[City of London Police]] reviewed the events and declared that it would be taking no further action.<ref>{{Cite news |date=2019-12-20 |title=Mark Field breached ministerial code by grabbing activist |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-london-50870243 |access-date=2024-12-14 |work=BBC News |language=en-GB}}</ref> When Boris Johnson became prime minister in July 2019, Field was dropped from his ministerial role at the Foreign Office as part of a cabinet reshuffle. The Whitehall investigation was closed, as he felt that it was a "matter for the previous PM concerning his conduct during his time as a minister under her appointment".<ref>{{cite news|last=Mason|first=Rowena|date=29 July 2019|title=Boris Johnson drops investigation into MP who manhandled protester|work=The Guardian|url=https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2019/jul/29/boris-johnson-drops-investigation-mp-mark-field-manhandled-protester|access-date=26 September 2019}}</ref> In October 2019, he announced that he would stand down from Parliament at the next general election, citing disagreement with government policy over [[Brexit]].<ref>{{cite news|date=2019-10-17|title=Tory MP to stand down over Brexit disagreement|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-london-50091561|access-date=2019-10-18|work=[[BBC News]]}}</ref>

A Cabinet Office investigation into the assault allegation, published in December 2019, concluded that he had breached the ministerial code but that he would not receive any sanction as Field was no longer in Parliament.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2019/dec/20/mark-field-breached-ministerial-code-by-grabbing-protester|work=The Guardian|title=Mark Field found to have breached code by grabbing protester|date=20 December 2019}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-london-50870243|title=Mark Field breached ministerial code by grabbing activist|date=20 December 2019|work=[[BBC News]]}}</ref>