Biography
Personal
Ian was born on 18 April 1945 in Coventry.
He was educated at Whitley Abbey School, Coventry; Keele University (BA) and the LSE (reseach scholar).
He is married to Carole (nee Alport) and they have 2 grown up sons, Arthur and Ralph.
Ian's Experience
Ian is Member of Parliament for Esher and Walton (having first been elected in 1987 for Esher).
He was Minister for Science and Technology at the Department of Trade and Industry (1994-97).
He currently chairs the Conservative Party’s Policy Task-force on Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics.
In the House of Commons, he is Chairman of the Parliamentary & Scientific Committee; Co-Chairman of the Parliamentary Space Committee; Vice President of the Parliamentary and Scientific Committee; a Board Member of the Parliamentary Office of Science & Technology; Director of EURIM (European Information Society Group); Vice Chairman of PITCOM (Parliamentary Information and Technology Committee) and of the Committee on Corporate Social Responsibility.
He is Chairman of the Conservative Europe Group (formerly Conservative Group for Europe) and was Chairman of the European Movement (2000 - 2004).
He was a member of the IPPR Commission on National Security.
He also chairs the Cuba Initiative.
Pamphlets written by Ian include, 'Fair Shares for all the Workers' (Adam Smith Inst, November 1988); 'A Community of Employee Shareholders', (Bow Group, March 1992); 'Releasing the Community Spirit' (Tory Reform Group, September 1990); 'The Positive Europe' (Conservative Group for Europe, May 1993); 'Escaping the Protectionist Trap' (Social Market Foundation/DTI, February 1995); 'Networking' (CPC, May 1996); & 'The Conservative Tradition in Europe' - contributor - (Mainstream, October 1998), 'Restoring the Balance' (Tory Reform Group, October 2000). 'Full Steam Ahead: The Great National debate about Britain and Europe' (Britain in Europe, July 2001), ‘Europe: Our Case’ (Tory Europe Network, 2002) and ‘Shaping the new Europe – The British Opportunity.’ (EUW: Alison Tennant Lecture, 2002), 'Twin Towers: Europe and America' (Tory Europe Network, 2003), Corporate Social Responsibility - Should Business be Socially Aware? (Tory Reform Group, 2003).
Charitable:
Ian is a trustee of the charity 'Centre of the Cell', a new children's interactive bioscience centre to be housed within Bart's and The London, Queen Mary's Medical School www.centreofthecell.org
He is also Vice President of the The Princess Alice Hospice and a Patron of the Shooting Star Children’s Hospice.
Experience outside Parliament:
In 1969 Ian became a merchant banker and then a stockbroker. From 1975-78 he was the corporate finance director of a bank in Paris. On his return to London, he started a venture to provide corporate finance and management advice to developing companies in the UK and USA. This was sold on his entry into Parliament.
After 1987, until becoming a Minister in 1994, Ian was an advisor to Commercial Union plc. and Barclays de Zoete Wedd Investment Management.
He is an Associate of the UK Society of Investment Professionals and a Liveryman of the Worshipful Company of Information Technologists.
Since the 1997 General Election, Ian has been involved advising technology, security and investment companies. His current portfolio of business interests includes non-executive directorships of Next Fifteen Communications Group plc where he chairs the audit committee (www.nextfifteen.com); Avanti Communications plc (www.avantiplc.com); and Speed-Trap Limited (www.speed-trap.com). He has joined the advisory board of Northrop Grumman Information Technology.
Ian's hobbies and interests are wide-ranging including travel (especially in France), the opera, shooting and cigars.