Shaun Stephen Bailey (born 22 July 1992) is a British Conservative Party politician who served as the member of Parliament (MP) for West Bromwich West from

2019 This was the year in which the first known human case of COVID-19 was documented, preceding COVID-19 pandemic, the pandemic which was declared by the World Health Organization the following year. Up to that point, 2019 had been described as ...

until

2024 The year saw the list of ongoing armed conflicts, continuation of major armed conflicts, including the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the Myanmar civil war (2021–present), Myanmar civil war, the Sudanese civil war (2023–present), Sudane ...

Early life and career

Bailey grew up in

Telford Telford () is a town in the Telford and Wrekin borough status in the United Kingdom, borough in Shropshire, England. The wider borough covers the town, its suburbs and surrounding towns and villages. The town is close to the county's eastern b ...

and Newport in

Shropshire Shropshire (; abbreviated SalopAlso used officially as the name of the county from 1974–1980. The demonym for inhabitants of the county "Salopian" derives from this name.) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the West M ...

where he and his sister were raised by their mother. He attended Burton Borough School in Newport and studied for his A-Levels at Idsall School in

Shifnal Shifnal () is a market town and civil parish in Shropshire, England, about east of Telford, 17 miles (27 km) east of Shrewsbury and 13 miles (20 km) west-northwest of Wolverhampton. It is near the M54 motorway and A5 (road), A5 road ...

. He joined the Conservative Party when he was 15. Bailey studied Law and French at

Aberystwyth University Aberystwyth University () is a Public university, public Research university, research university in Aberystwyth, Wales. Aberystwyth was a founding member institution of the former federal University of Wales. The university has over 8,000 stude ...

, graduating with an LLB and later obtained a master's degree in Legal Practice at the

University of the West of England The University of the West of England (also known as UWE Bristol) is a Public university, public research university, located in and around Bristol, England, UK. With more than 39,912 students and 4,300 staff, it is the largest provider of hi ...

Bristol Bristol () is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city, unitary authority area and ceremonial county in South West England, the most populous city in the region. Built around the River Avon, Bristol, River Avon, it is bordered by t ...

. After graduating he worked as a

paralegal A paralegal, also known as a legal assistant or paralegal specialist, is a legal professional who performs tasks that require knowledge of legal concepts but not the full expertise of a lawyer with an admission to practice law. The market for p ...

before becoming a trainee solicitor for

Barclays Barclays PLC (, occasionally ) is a British multinational universal bank, headquartered in London, England. Barclays operates as two divisions, Barclays UK and Barclays International, supported by a service company, Barclays Execution Services ...

in 2019.

Political career

In the 2012 Ceredigion County Council election, he was the Conservative candidate for Borth ward and finished in last place. Bailey contested as the Conservative candidate for the Hesters Way and Springbank ward of the

Gloucestershire County Council Gloucestershire County Council is the upper-tier local authority for the non-metropolitan county of Gloucestershire, in England. The council was created in 1889. The council's principal functions are county roads and rights of way, social servi ...

in the 2017 election where he finished in second place. He was selected as the Conservative candidate for West Bromwich West on 9 November 2019. Bailey was elected as MP in the 2019 general election with a majority of 3,799 (11.0%). The seat had previously been held by

Labour and Co-operative Labour and Co-operative Party (often abbreviated to Labour Co-op; ) is a description used by candidates in United Kingdom elections who stand on behalf of both the Labour Party and the Co-operative Party. Candidates contest elections under an e ...

Adrian Bailey Adrian Edward Bailey (born 11 December 1945) is a retired British Labour and Co-operative politician. He was the Member of Parliament (MP) for West Bromwich West from 2000, when he won the seat at a by-election in November 2000 until he sto ...

since the 2000 by-election and had been previously held by the former Speaker of the House of Commons

Betty Boothroyd Betty Boothroyd, Baroness Boothroyd (8 October 1929 – 26 February 2023), was a British politician who served as a Member of Parliament (United Kingdom), member of Parliament (MP) for West Bromwich (UK Parliament constituency), West Bromwich an ...

before that. Adrian Bailey had chosen to stand down in October 2019 prior to the general election. Bailey made his maiden speech on 30 January 2020 where he paid tribute to his mother who he called a "fighter" who inspired him to become a politician and his predecessors Bailey and Boothroyd. He has been a member of the Work and Pensions Select Committee since March 2020 and was a member of the Public Accounts Committee between November 2020 and October 2022. Bailey is a supporter of Blue Collar Conservatism. He was a Parliamentary Private Secretary in the

Cabinet Office The Cabinet Office is a Departments of the Government of the United Kingdom, ministerial department of the Government of the United Kingdom. It is responsible for supporting the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, prime minister and Cabinet ...

between July and September 2022. From September 2022 to June 2024, Bailey was a Parliamentary Private Secretary to the Home Office. After

Liz Truss Mary Elizabeth Truss (born 26 July 1975) is a British politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Conservative Party (UK), Leader of the Conservative Party from September to October 2022. On her fiftieth da ...

resigned as Prime Minister in October 2022, he supported former PM

Boris Johnson Alexander Boris de Pfeffel Johnson (born 19 June 1964) is a British politician and writer who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Conservative Party (UK), Leader of the Conservative Party from 2019 to 2022. He wa ...

's bid in the October 2022 Conservative Party leadership election who had resigned in July 2022. He had previously backed Truss in the July–September 2022 Conservative Party leadership election and had withdrawn his support for Johnson as PM in July after the July 2022 United Kingdom government crisis. Following the abolition of the West Bromwich West constituency, Bailey stood as a candidate in Tipton and Wednesbury for the 2024 general election, but lost his seat to Labour's Antonia Bance.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Bailey, Shaun Living people Alumni of Aberystwyth University Alumni of the University of the West of England, Bristol Conservative Party (UK) MPs for English constituencies UK MPs 2019–2024 People from Telford 1992 births Politicians from Shropshire People from West Bromwich