David Campbell Bannerman (born 28 May 1960) is a British politician who served as

Member of the European Parliament A member of the European Parliament (MEP) is a person who has been Election, elected to serve as a popular representative in the European Parliament. When the European Parliament (then known as the Common Assembly of the European Coal and S ...

(MEP) for the

East of England East is one of the four cardinal directions or points of the compass. It is the opposite direction from west and is the direction from which the Sunrise, Sun rises on the Earth. Etymology As in other languages, the word is formed from the fact ...

from 2009 to 2019. He is currently Chairman of the Conservative Democratic Organisation and

The Freedom Association The Freedom Association (TFA) is a pressure group in the United Kingdom that describes itself as "a non-partisan, classically liberal campaign group", which has links to the Conservative Party and UK Independence Party (UKIP). TFA was founded ...

. A member of the Conservative Party, he previously served as Deputy Leader of

UK Independence Party The UK Independence Party (UKIP, ) is a Eurosceptic, right-wing populist political party in the United Kingdom. The party reached its greatest level of success in the mid-2010s, when it gained two members of parliament (both through defect ...

(UKIP) from 2006 until 2010, when he was replaced by

Paul Nuttall Paul Andrew Nuttall (born 30 November 1976) is a British politician who served as Leader of the UK Independence Party (UKIP) from 2016 to 2017. He was elected to the European Parliament in 2009 as a UK Independence Party (UKIP) candidate, and ...

. Before joining UKIP, he was a Conservative activist who came to prominence as Chairman of the

Bow Group The Bow Group is a UK-based think tank promoting conservative opinion. Founded in 1951, it is the oldest group of its kind, counting many senior Conservative Party MPs and peers among its members. It represents a forum for political debate with ...

. He stood for the UK Parliament as a Conservative at the 1997 election in Glasgow Rutherglen and in 2001 in

Warwick and Leamington Warwick and Leamington is a constituency represented in the House of Commons of the UK Parliament since the 2017 general election by Matt Western of the Labour Party. Boundaries 1885–1918: The existing parliamentary borough of Warwick, the ...

. Campbell Bannerman joined UKIP in 2004, and was elected to the European Parliament in

2009 2009 was designated as the International Year of Astronomy by the United Nations to coincide with the 400th anniversary of Galileo Galilei's first known astronomical studies with a telescope and the publication of Astronomia Nova by Joha ...

. In 2011, he defected back to the Conservative Party. He has been a long-term critic of the European Union, and has had many roles in eurosceptic advocacy groups. In 2015, he became co-chairman of a new eurosceptic pressure group,

Conservatives for Britain 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 civilizat ...

. In 2016, he joined the political advisory board of

Leave Means Leave Leave Means Leave was a pro-Brexit, Eurosceptic political pressure group organisation that campaigned and lobbied for the United Kingdom to leave the European Union following the 'Leave' result of the EU referendum on 23 June 2016. The campaig ...

Early life

Born in 1960 in Bombay, India (now

Mumbai Mumbai ( ; ), also known as Bombay ( ; its official name until 1995), is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra. Mumbai is the financial capital and the most populous city proper of India with an estimated population of 12 ...

), Campbell Bannerman is a distant relative of former Prime Minister

Henry Campbell-Bannerman Sir Henry Campbell-Bannerman ( né Campbell; 7 September 183622 April 1908) was a British statesman and Liberal Party politician who was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1905 to 1908 and Leader of the Liberal Party from 1899 to 1908. ...

. Campbell Bannerman was educated at

Bryanston School Bryanston School is a Public school (United Kingdom), public school (English Private schools in the United Kingdom, private boarding school, boarding and day school for pupils aged 13–18) located next to the village of Bryanston, and near the ...

, the

University of Edinburgh The University of Edinburgh (, ; abbreviated as ''Edin.'' in Post-nominal letters, post-nominals) is a Public university, public research university based in Edinburgh, Scotland. Founded by the City of Edinburgh Council, town council under th ...

, where he graduated MA in Economics and Politics, and the

Wharton School The Wharton School ( ) is the business school of the University of Pennsylvania, a private Ivy League research university in Philadelphia. Established in 1881 through a donation from Joseph Wharton, a co-founder of Bethlehem Steel, the Wharton ...

of the

University of Pennsylvania The University of Pennsylvania (Penn or UPenn) is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. One of nine colonial colleges, it was chartered in 1755 through the efforts of f ...

Jobs held

Campbell Bannerman became Head of Communications at United News & Media in 2000. He currently works for public relations firm

Burson Marsteller Burson (formerly Burson Cohn & Wolfe (BCW)) is a global public relations and communications firm, headquartered in New York City, focused on building reputation for clients. In February 2018, parent WPP Group PLC announced that it had merged it ...

Political career

Conservatives: 1992–2004

Campbell Bannerman was a member of the Conservative Party, as a borough councillor in

Royal Tunbridge Wells Royal Tunbridge Wells (formerly, until 1909, and still commonly Tunbridge Wells) is a town in Kent, England, southeast of Central London. It lies close to the border with East Sussex on the northern edge of the Weald, High Weald, whose sand ...

from 1992–1996. He was chairman of the

from 1993 to 1994 and Special Advisor to Sir

Patrick Mayhew Patrick Barnabas Burke Mayhew, Baron Mayhew of Twysden, (11 September 1929 – 25 June 2016) was a British barrister and politician. Early life Mayhew was born in Cookham, Berkshire, on 11 September 1929. His father, George Mayhew, was a dec ...

(then MP for Tunbridge Wells) from 1996 to 1997 while Mayhew was

Secretary of State for Northern Ireland The secretary of state for Northern Ireland (; ), also referred to as Northern Ireland Secretary or SoSNI, is a secretary of state in the Government of the United Kingdom, with overall responsibility for the Northern Ireland Office. The offi ...

.'CAMPBELL BANNERMAN, David', in ''Who's Who 2011'' (A. & C. Black, 2011) In 1997, he stood for the Conservatives in Glasgow Rutherglen and in 2001 in

where he obtained 37.6% of the vote in second place.

UKIP: 2004–2011

After joining UKIP in 2004, Campbell Bannerman stood as that party's candidate for

North Cornwall North Cornwall () is an area of Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. It is also the name of a former local government district, which was administered from Bodmin and Wadebridge . Other towns in the area are Launceston, Bude, Padstow, and Camel ...

in the 2005 General Election. He attracted 3063 votes. He was appointed Party Chairman in December 2005, following the resignation of Petrina Holdsworth. In 2006, he stood for the leadership of the UK Independence Party, attaining third place with 1,443 votes, after Richard Suchorzewski. After that election, he was appointed Deputy Leader by

Nigel Farage Nigel Paul Farage ( ; born 3 April 1964) is a British politician and broadcaster who has been Member of Parliament (United Kingdom), Member of Parliament (MP) for Clacton (UK Parliament constituency), Clacton and Leader of Reform UK since 20 ...

, who had won the election. During the 2007 Scottish Parliament Elections, he stood as UKIP's Holyrood Regional List candidate for the Highlands and Islands. His campaign gained UKIP 1,287 votes (0.7%), down 0.5% from UKIP's 2003 campaign. In 2009, he was elected to the European Parliament after UKIP won 19.6% of the vote in the East of England region. Bannerman was the main author of UKIP's 2010 election manifesto. Following the resignation of UKIP leader Lord Pearson, in 2010 Campbell Bannerman announced his intention to stand for the leadership of UKIP for a second time, but came third, behind

and

Tim Congdon Timothy George Congdon CBE (born 28 April 1951) is a British economist. Early life He was educated at Colchester Royal Grammar School and St. John's and Nuffield colleges at the University of Oxford. Career Over the years, he has accumulated ...

Conservative: 2011–present

Campbell Bannerman returned to the Conservative Party on 24 May 2011 and sat with the

European Conservatives and Reformists European Conservatives and Reformists may refer to: *European Conservatives and Reformists Party (ECR Party), a soft Eurosceptic European political party *European Conservatives and Reformists Group The European Conservatives and Reformists ...

group as a Conservative MEP in the European Parliament until the end of his term in 2019. From 2014 he served as chairman of the Parliament's delegation to

Iraq Iraq, officially the Republic of Iraq, is a country in West Asia. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to Iraq–Saudi Arabia border, the south, Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq border, the east, the Persian Gulf and ...

. In July 2018, while commenting on media suggestions that British fighters for the

Islamic State The Islamic State (IS), also known as the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) and Daesh, is a transnational Salafi jihadism, Salafi jihadist organization and unrecognized quasi-state. IS ...

should be tried under treason laws, he additionally suggested that treason laws should cover British citizens with "extreme loyalty" to the European Union. This comment led to widespread criticism: Labour Party MP

Virendra Sharma Virendra Kumar Sharma (Hindi: , Punjabi: ; born 5 April 1947) is a British-Indian Labour Party politician. He served as the Member of Parliament (MP) for Ealing Southall from 2007 to 2024. Early life and career Virendra Sharma was born on 5 ...

said he was "suggesting putting the knife into free speech" and European Parliament

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 ...

representative

Guy Verhofstadt Guy Maurice Marie Louise Verhofstadt (; ; born 11 April 1953) is a Belgian politician who served as the prime minister of Belgium from 1999 to 2008. He was a member of the European Parliament (MEP) from Belgium from 2009 until 2024. He was a me ...

calling his comments "insane". In 2023, it was reported that he intended to seek the Conservative nomination for

South Norfolk South Norfolk is a local government district in Norfolk, England. The largest town is Wymondham, and the district also includes the towns of Costessey, Diss, Harleston, Hingham, Loddon and Long Stratton. The council was based in Long S ...

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 ...

. As a supporter of Boris Johnson this caused controversy among the local association. Later in the year Poppy Simister-Thomas was selected as the candidate. In the general election, the seat went Labour in the landslide.

References

External links

*
UKIP seeks legal advice on jibes
{{DEFAULTSORT:Campbell Bannerman, David 1960 births Living people People educated at Bryanston School Alumni of the University of Edinburgh Wharton School alumni MEPs for England 2009–2014 MEPs for England 2014–2019 Conservative Party (UK) MEPs UK Independence Party MEPs Councillors in Kent UK Independence Party parliamentary candidates Members of the Bow Group English people of Scottish descent Conservative Party (UK) parliamentary candidates Conservative Party (UK) councillors British Eurosceptics