Daniel Leonard James Poulter (born 30 October 1978) is a British politician who served as the Member of Parliament (MP) for

Central Suffolk and North Ipswich Central Suffolk and North Ipswich is a constituency represented in the House of Commons of the UK Parliament since 2024 by Patrick Spencer of the Conservative Party, currently suspended and sitting as an Independent. Constituency profile Cen ...

from

2010 The year saw a multitude of natural and environmental disasters such as the 2010 Haiti earthquake, the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, and the 2010 Chile earthquake. The 2009 swine flu pandemic, swine flu pandemic which began the previous year ...

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 ...

. Poulter is a

psychiatrist A psychiatrist is a physician who specializes in psychiatry. Psychiatrists are physicians who evaluate patients to determine whether their symptoms are the result of a physical illness, a combination of physical and mental ailments or strictly ...

, and served as a Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State in the

Department of Health A health department or health ministry is a part of government which focuses on issues related to the general health of the citizenry. Subnational entities, such as states, counties and cities, often also operate a health department of their o ...

between September 2012 and May 2015. Initially elected as a

Conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy and ideology that seeks to promote and preserve traditional institutions, customs, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civiliza ...

, he

defected In politics, a defector is a person who gives up allegiance to one state in exchange for allegiance to another, changing sides in a way which is considered illegitimate by the first state. More broadly, defection involves abandoning a person, ca ...

to Labour in April 2024.

Early life and career

Daniel Poulter was born on 30 October 1978 in

Beckenham Beckenham () is a town in Greater London, England, within the London Borough of Bromley. Prior to 1965, it was part of Kent. It is situated north of Elmers End and Eden Park, east of Penge, south of Lower Sydenham and Bellingham, and west ...

, London. He was privately educated at

Vinehall School Vinehall School is a co-educational day, boarding school, and nursery located on Vinehall Street, in the town of Robertsbridge, East Sussex. It takes children from ages 2 to 13.http://www.vinehallschool.com Vinehall School Homepage The school ...

and

Battle Abbey School Battle Abbey School is a private coeducational day and boarding school in the small town of Battle, East Sussex, England. The senior school occupies part of the town's ruined abbey complex, and it is from here that the school derives its name. ...

before attending the

University of Bristol The University of Bristol is a public university, public research university in Bristol, England. It received its royal charter in 1909, although it can trace its roots to a Merchant Venturers' school founded in 1595 and University College, Br ...

, graduating with a law degree, before qualifying as a medical doctor at

King's College London King's College London (informally King's or KCL) is a public university, public research university in London, England. King's was established by royal charter in 1829 under the patronage of George IV of the United Kingdom, King George IV ...

. Poulter was elected as a

member of

Hastings Borough Council Hastings Borough Council is the local authority for Hastings in East Sussex, England. Hastings has had a council since medieval times, which has been reformed on numerous occasions. Since 1974, Hastings has been a non-metropolitan district with ...

in 2006, serving until 2007. He was the deputy leader of Reigate and Banstead Council between 2008 and 2010. Poulter worked as a

junior doctor In the United Kingdom, a resident doctor, previously (until 2024) known as a junior doctor, is a qualified medical practitioner who is either engaged in postgraduate training or employed in a non-training post. The period of being a resident docto ...

training in obstetrics and gynaecological medicine and has published articles in the area of women's health. At the time of meeting

David Cameron David William Donald Cameron, Baron Cameron of Chipping Norton (born 9 October 1966) is a British politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 2010 to 2016. Until 2015, he led the first coalition government in the UK s ...

in 2006, who inspired him to enter politics, he was working in

mental health Mental health is often mistakenly equated with the absence of mental illness. However, mental health refers to a person's overall emotional, psychological, and social well-being. It influences how individuals think, feel, and behave, and how t ...

. During the 2011 parliamentary summer recesses, Poulter worked at the

James Paget University Hospital James Paget University Hospital is at Gorleston-on-Sea, Great Yarmouth, Norfolk, England, on the A47 Lowestoft Road. It is managed by the James Paget University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust. History The hospital, which replaced Great Yarmouth ...

in Gorleston in Norfolk, in the

Accident and Emergency An emergency department (ED), also known as an accident and emergency department (A&E), emergency room (ER), emergency ward (EW) or casualty department, is a medical treatment facility specializing in emergency medicine, the acute care of pat ...

department. In 2018, Poulter became a Member of the

Royal College of Psychiatrists The Royal College of Psychiatrists is the main professional organisation of psychiatrists in the United Kingdom, and is responsible for representing psychiatrists, for psychiatric research and for providing public information about mental healt ...

and continues to work as an NHS mental health doctor. In June 2021, Poulter became a non-executive director for Kanabo Group Plc, a

medical cannabis Medical cannabis, medicinal cannabis or medical marijuana (MMJ) refers to cannabis products and cannabinoid molecules that are prescribed by physicians for their patients. The use of cannabis as medicine has a long history, but has not ...

company based in London.

Parliamentary career

Poulter was elected as Member of Parliament (MP) for

at the

2010 UK general election The 2010 United Kingdom general election was held on Thursday 6 May 2010, to elect 650 Members of Parliament (or MPs) to the House of Commons. The first to be held after the minimum age for candidates was reduced from 21 to 18, it resulted in ...

with 50.8% of the vote and a majority of 13,786. In 2011, he was credited with a "lifesaving" intervention in Parliament when he persuaded fellow Conservative MP

Guy Opperman Guy Thomas Opperman (born 18 May 1965) is a British former politician who served as Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Roads and Local Transport from November 2023 to July 2024. He previously served as Parliamentary Under-Secretary o ...

to seek urgent medical treatment. Opperman subsequently had a brain tumour removed. Poulter resigbed from the

British Medical Association The British Medical Association (BMA) is a registered trade union and professional body for physician, doctors in the United Kingdom. It does not regulate or certify doctors, a responsibility which lies with the General Medical Council. The BMA ...

in 2012, following an announced doctors' strike. He said he did not believe "striking as a doctor could ever be justified". In September 2012, Poulter became the Parliamentary Under Secretary of State at the

.Daniel Poulter
, parliament.uk Retrieved 30 December 2012. His primary responsibilities as a Health Minister were for workforce issues,

NHS The National Health Service (NHS) is the term for the publicly funded health care, publicly funded healthcare systems of the United Kingdom: the National Health Service (England), NHS Scotland, NHS Wales, and Health and Social Care (Northern ...

estates and IT systems. At the

2015 UK general election The 2015 United Kingdom general election was held on Thursday, 7 May 2015 to elect 650 members of Parliament (MPs) to the House of Commons. The Conservative Party, led by Prime Minister David Cameron, won an unexpected majority victory of ten ...

, Poulter was re-elected as MP for Central Suffolk and North Ipswich, with an increased vote share of 56.1% and an increased majority of 20,144. After the election, Poulter returned to the back benches, and restarted work part-time as a doctor. In October 2015, Poulter expressed his support for protests by doctors and others against the Conservative government's proposed changes to the junior doctors' contract. In April 2016, Poulter widened his criticism of the Conservative government, in a ''

Guardian Guardian usually refers to: * Legal guardian, a person with the authority and duty to care for the interests of another * ''The Guardian'', a British daily newspaper (The) Guardian(s) may also refer to: Places * Guardian, West Virginia, Unit ...

'' article. Poulter was opposed to

Brexit Brexit (, a portmanteau of "Britain" and "Exit") was the Withdrawal from the European Union, withdrawal of the United Kingdom (UK) from the European Union (EU). Brexit officially took place at 23:00 GMT on 31 January 2020 (00:00 1 February ...

prior to the 2016 EU membership referendum. He later voted along party lines concerning leaving the EU. At the snap

2017 UK general election The 2017 United Kingdom general election was held on Thursday 8 June 2017, two years after the 2015 United Kingdom general election, previous general election in 2015; it was the first since 1992 United Kingdom general election, 1992 to be held ...

, Poulter was again re-elected, with an increased vote share of 60.1% and a decreased majority of 17,185. He was re-elected at the

2019 UK general election The 2019 United Kingdom general election was held on Thursday 12 December 2019, with 47,074,800 registered voters entitled to vote to elect 650 Members of Parliament (MPs) to the House of Commons. The governing Conservative Party, led by Prim ...

, with an increased vote share of 62.7%, and an increased majority of 23,391. In a March 2022 article penned by Poulter for the ''

East Anglian Daily Times The ''East Anglian Daily Times'' is a British local newspaper for Suffolk and Essex, based in Ipswich. History The newspaper began publication on 13 October 1874, incorporating the ''Ipswich Express'', which had been published since 13 August ...

'', he said "studies of healthy omnivores eating a diet rich in plant foods have failed to find consistent evidence that red meat is unhealthy". In December 2022, he wrote an article in ''The Guardian'' advocating for increasing nurses' pay during the 2022 National Health Service strikes. On 27 April 2024, Poulter defected to the Labour Party, the second Conservative MP to defect to Labour during that parliament after

Christian Wakeford Christian Wakeford (born 9 November 1984) is a British politician serving as Assistant Government Whip since 2024. He has been the Member of Parliament (MP) for Bury South since the 2019 general election. Elected in 2019 as a Conservative, he ...

crossed the floor in 2022. Poulter also declared that he would not be seeking re-election at the

2024 general election This is a list of elections that were held in 2024. The National Democratic Institute also maintains a calendar of elections around the world. * 2024 United Nations Security Council election * 2024 national electoral calendar * 2024 local electo ...

''Sunday Times'' libel case

In February 2019, ''

The Sunday Times ''The Sunday Times'' is a British Sunday newspaper whose circulation makes it the largest in Britain's quality press market category. It was founded in 1821 as ''The New Observer''. It is published by Times Newspapers Ltd, a subsidiary of N ...

'' apologised in open court to Dan Poulter for falsely alleging he had sexually assaulted three female MPs. The newspaper admitted the claims were defamatory and baseless, removed the articles from its website, and agreed not to republish them. It also paid substantial damages and covered Poulter's legal costs. The allegations had appeared in two articles published in November 2017, based on claims by

Andrew Bridgen Andrew James Bridgen (born 28 October 1964) is a British former politician who served as Member of Parliament (United Kingdom), Member of Parliament (MP) for North West Leicestershire (UK Parliament constituency), North West Leicestershire from ...

MP. A Conservative Party investigation exonerated Poulter, finding no complaints had ever been made against him and dismissing the claims as lacking "reliable evidence."

References

External links

Official website
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Poulter, Dan 1978 births Living people Alumni of King's College London Alumni of the University of Bristol Associates of King's College London Conservative Party (UK) MPs for English constituencies Councillors in East Sussex Councillors in Surrey Labour Party (UK) MPs for English constituencies People educated at Battle Abbey School People from Beckenham UK MPs 2010–2015 UK MPs 2015–2017 UK MPs 2017–2019 UK MPs 2019–2024