Gavin Laurence Barwell, Baron Barwell (born 23 January 1972) is a British politician and former

Downing Street Chief of Staff The Downing Street chief of staff is the most senior Special adviser (UK), political appointee in the 10 Downing Street#Office of the Prime Minister, Office of the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, acting as a senior aide to the Prime Minist ...

to Prime Minister

Theresa May Theresa Mary May, Baroness May of Maidenhead (; ; born 1 October 1956), is a British politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Conservative Party from 2016 to 2019. She previously served as Home Secretar ...

. A member of the Conservative Party, he was Member of Parliament for

Croydon Central Croydon Central was a constituency created in 1974 and represented in the House of Commons of the UK Parliament from 2017 until its abolition for the 2024 general election by Labour MP Sarah Jones. The seat bucked the trend in national result ...

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 ...

until

2017 2017 was designated as the International Year of Sustainable Tourism for Development by the United Nations General Assembly. Events January * January 1 – Istanbul nightclub shooting: A gunman dressed as Santa Claus opens fire at the ...

. Barwell worked for the Conservative Party headquarters from 1993 until his election in 2010 and was – between 2003 and 2006 – the party's

chief operating officer A chief operating officer (COO), also called chief operations officer, is an executive in charge of the daily operations of an organization (i.e. personnel, resources, and logistics). COOs are usually second-in-command immediately after the C ...

, sitting on the party board and working closely with the party leaders

Michael Howard Michael Howard, Baron Howard of Lympne (born Michael Hecht; 7 July 1941) is a British politician who was Leader of the Conservative Party (UK), Leader of the Conservative Party and Leader of the Opposition (United Kingdom), Leader of the Opposi ...

and

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 ...

. He was a

councillor A councillor, alternatively councilman, councilwoman, councilperson, or council member, is someone who sits on, votes in, or is a member of, a council. This is typically an elected representative of an electoral district in a municipal or re ...

in the

London Borough of Croydon The London Borough of Croydon () is a London borough, borough in South London, part of Outer London. It covers an area of and had a population of 397,741 as of mid-2023, making it the most populous London borough. It is London's southernmost ...

between 1998 and 2010. He served as

Minister of State for Housing and Planning The Minister of State for Housing and Planning is a mid-level position in the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government in the British government. The position has been held by Matthew Pennycook since 6 July 2024. The position was f ...

in the

First May ministry Theresa May formed the first May ministry in the United Kingdom on 13 July 2016, after having been invited by Queen Elizabeth II to form a new government. Then the Home Secretary, May's appointment followed the resignation of then Prime Minist ...

. Barwell was sworn into the Privy Council on 14 June 2017, alongside fellow Conservative minister

Mel Stride Sir Melvyn John Stride (born 30 September 1961) is a British politician who has served as Shadow Chancellor of the Exchequer in Kemi Badenoch's Shadow Cabinet since November 2024. A member of the Conservative Party, he has been the Member of ...

. Shortly after losing his Parliamentary seat, he was appointed

, following the resignations of Fiona Hill and

Nick Timothy Nicholas James Timothy (born March 1980) is a British politician and former special adviser who has served as Member of Parliament (MP) for West Suffolk since 2024. A member of the Conservative Party, he previously served as joint Downing ...

on 10 June 2017. He was awarded a life peerage in 2019.

Early life and career

Gavin Laurence Barwell was born in January 1972 in

Cuckfield Cuckfield ( ) is a village and civil parishes in England, civil parish in the Mid Sussex District, Mid Sussex District of West Sussex, England, on the southern slopes of the Weald. It lies south of London, north of Brighton, and east northea ...

West Sussex West Sussex is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Surrey to the north, East Sussex to the east, the English Channel to the south, and Hampshire to the west. The largest settlement is Cr ...

, and subsequently moved to

Croydon Croydon is a large town in South London, England, south of Charing Cross. Part of the London Borough of Croydon, a Districts of England, local government district of Greater London; it is one of the largest commercial districts in Greater Lond ...

, South London, where he was educated at the

Trinity School of John Whitgift The Trinity School of John Whitgift, also known as Trinity School, is a independent boys' day school with a co-educational sixth form, located in Shirley Park, Croydon. Part of the Whitgift Foundation, it was established in 1882 as Whitgift ...

.‘BARWELL, Gavin Laurence’
Who's Who 2013, A & C Black, an imprint of Bloomsbury Publishing, 2013; online edition He read for a degree in

Natural Sciences Natural science or empirical science is one of the branches of science concerned with the description, understanding and prediction of natural phenomena, based on empirical evidence from observation and experimentation. Mechanisms such as peer ...

Trinity College, Cambridge Trinity College is a Colleges of the University of Cambridge, constituent college of the University of Cambridge. Founded in 1546 by King Henry VIII, Trinity is one of the largest Cambridge colleges, with the largest financial endowment of any ...

, where he was

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Film and television *'' Præsident ...

of the

Cambridge Union The Cambridge Union Society, also known as the Cambridge Union, is a historic debating and free speech society in Cambridge, England, and the largest society in the University of Cambridge. The society was founded in 1815 making it the oldest ...

, and graduated from the

University of Cambridge The University of Cambridge is a Public university, public collegiate university, collegiate research university in Cambridge, England. Founded in 1209, the University of Cambridge is the List of oldest universities in continuous operation, wo ...

in 1993.

Party worker and councillor (1993–2010)

After graduating, Barwell was employed by the

Conservative Central Office The Conservative Campaign Headquarters (CCHQ), formerly known as Conservative Central Office (CCO), is the headquarters of the British Conservative Party, housing its central staff and committee members, including campaign coordinators and man ...

in a number of roles between 1993 and 2010. He worked at the

Conservative Research Department The Conservative Research Department (CRD) is part of the central organisation of the Conservative Party in the United Kingdom. It operates alongside other departments of Conservative Campaign Headquarters in Westminster. The CRD has been descri ...

from 1993 to 1995 as a desk officer in the home affairs section responsible for housing, local government, the environment and inner cities. He replaced James Gray as

Special Adviser Special adviser may refer to: *Special adviser (Norway), a high-ranking civil servant *Special adviser (UK) A Special Adviser, also known as a SpAd, is a temporary civil servant who advises and assists UK government ministers or ministers in th ...

to the

Secretary of State for the Environment The secretary of state for the environment was a UK cabinet position, responsible for the Department of the Environment (DoE). Today, its responsibilities are carried out by the secretary of state for environment, food and rural affairs and the ...

John Gummer John Selwyn Gummer, Baron Deben, FRASE (born 26 November 1939) is a British Conservative Party politician, formerly the Member of Parliament (MP) for Suffolk Coastal and Lewisham West, now a member of the House of Lords. He was Chairman of th ...

from 1995 to 1997, and was the Head of Local Government from 1998 to 2003. He served as the Chief Operating Officer in the Campaigns Headquarters between 2003 and 2006 before being employed as a "consultant" until 2010. He worked with Deputy Party Chairman

Michael Ashcroft Michael Anthony Ashcroft, Baron Ashcroft, (born 4 March 1946) is a British-Belizean businessman, pollster and politician. He is a former deputy chairman of the Conservative Party. Ashcroft founded Michael A. Ashcroft Associates in 1972 and wa ...

's target seat scheme, and significantly contributed to the Conservatives' 2010 general election plan. In May 1998, Barwell was elected to

Croydon Council Croydon London Borough Council, which styles itself Croydon Council, is the local authority for the London Borough of Croydon in Greater London, England. It is a London borough council, one of 32 in London. Croydon is divided into 28 wards, elect ...

representing the Woodcote and

Coulsdon Coulsdon (, traditionally pronounced ) is a town in south London, England, within the London Borough of Croydon. Coulsdon was an ancient parish in the county of Surrey that included the settlements of Purley and Kenley. It was merged with Sand ...

West ward. In May 2006, when the Conservatives took control of the Council, he was appointed Chief Whip of the Conservative Group and he subsequently served as the Cabinet member for resources and customer services and the Cabinet member for community safety and cohesion before standing down from the Council in May 2010.

Parliamentary career (2010–2017)

Backbencher

Barwell was chosen as the

parliamentary candidate In British politics, a prospective parliamentary candidate (PPC) is a candidate selected by political parties to contest under individual Westminster constituencies in advance of a general election. The term originally came into use because of t ...

for the Conservative Party in

. At the 2010 general election he defeated the sitting Independent MP,

Andrew Pelling Andrew John Pelling (born 20 August 1959) is a British politician. He was Member of Parliament for Croydon Central from 2005 to 2010, first as a Conservative, then from 2007 as an independent. He contested the seat as an independent at the 201 ...

, who had previously been elected as a Conservative. Barwell gained 39.5% of the vote; his majority was 2,969 votes, the Labour candidate came second.Election 2010 – Croydon Central
BBC News, 7 May 2010; Retrieved 28 December 2012 His main subject interests are

education Education is the transmission of knowledge and skills and the development of character traits. Formal education occurs within a structured institutional framework, such as public schools, following a curriculum. Non-formal education als ...

urban policy Urban planning (also called city planning in some contexts) is the process of developing and designing land use and the built environment, including air, water, and the infrastructure passing into and out of urban areas, such as transportatio ...

policing The police are a constituted body of people empowered by a state with the aim of enforcing the law and protecting the public order as well as the public itself. This commonly includes ensuring the safety, health, and possessions of citizen ...

, the

criminal justice system Criminal justice is the delivery of justice to those who have been accused of committing crimes. The criminal justice system is a series of government agencies and institutions. Goals include the rehabilitation of offenders, preventing other ...

immigration Immigration is the international movement of people to a destination country of which they are not usual residents or where they do not possess nationality in order to settle as Permanent residency, permanent residents. Commuting, Commuter ...

and asylum rights. He was a member of the House of Commons

Science and Technology Select Committee The Science, Innovation and Technology Select Committee is a select committee of the House of Commons in the Parliament of the United Kingdom. The original Science and Technology Committee was abolished upon the creation of the Innovation, Univ ...

(2010–2012) and the Draft Lords Reform Bill Joint Committee (2011–2012) and, until October 2013, Barwell was Secretary of the All-Party Parliamentary Group for

Tamils The Tamils ( ), also known by their endonym Tamilar, are a Dravidian peoples, Dravidian ethnic group who natively speak the Tamil language and trace their ancestry mainly to the southern part of the Indian subcontinent. The Tamil language is o ...

Mental Health (Discrimination) (No. 2) Bill (2012–13)

On 14 June 2012, Barwell announced that, having come fourth in the

Private Members Bill A private member's bill is a bill (proposed law) introduced into a legislature by a legislator who is not acting on behalf of the executive branch. The designation "private member's bill" is used in most Westminster system jurisdictions, in whi ...

ballot,Bill-by-bill: Guide to MPs' private members' bills
, BBC News, 25 June 2012; Retrieved 28 December 2012 he would introduce the Mental Health (Discrimination) Bill.
, UK Parliament, 28 February 2013; Retrieved 28 December 2012Deborah Or
Good to hear MPs talking about their mental health issues
, ''Guardian'', 16 June 2012; Retrieved 28 December 2012'Discriminatory' ban on MPs with mental health issues to be axed
, BBC News, 14 September 2012; Retrieved 28 December 2012 The legislation is designed to remove automatic bans from people who have received treatment for mental illness from undertaking jury service, being removed as directors of companies and as MPs. The Bill was introduced in June 2012 and passed its

Second Reading A reading of a bill is a stage of debate on the bill held by a general body of a legislature. In the Westminster system, developed in the United Kingdom, there are generally three readings of a bill as it passes through the stages of becoming ...

on 14 September 2012,Bill stages — Mental Health (Discrimination) (No. 2) Bill 2012–13
, UK Parliament; Retrieved 28 December 2012 supported by all political parties before passing its

committee stage An act of Parliament in the United Kingdom is primary legislation passed by the UK Parliament in Westminster, London. An act of Parliament can be enforced in all four of the UK constituent countries (England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ire ...

in October 2012 with the full support of all committee members. The

Report stage An act of Parliament in the United Kingdom is primary legislation passed by the UK Parliament in Westminster, London. An act of Parliament can be enforced in all four of the UK constituent countries (England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ire ...

and

Third Reading A reading of a bill is a stage of debate on the bill held by a general body of a legislature. In the Westminster system, developed in the United Kingdom, there are generally three readings of a bill as it passes through the stages of becoming ...

of the Bill passed the Commons on 30 November 2012 before the Bill moved to the

House of Lords The House of Lords is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Like the lower house, the House of Commons of the United Kingdom, House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminster in London, England. One of the oldest ext ...

where it was sponsored by Lord Stevenson of Coddenham. The bill passed its first reading in the Lords on 3 December 2012 and its third reading on 11 February 2013. The Bill became an Act of Parliament after receiving

Royal Assent Royal assent is the method by which a monarch formally approves an act of the legislature, either directly or through an official acting on the monarch's behalf. In some jurisdictions, royal assent is equivalent to promulgation, while in othe ...

on 28 February 2013.

Lillian's Law

Lillian's Law is a law-reform campaign named after Lillian Groves, a 14-year-old constituent of Barwell's who was killed outside her home in

New Addington New Addington is an area of South London, England, within the London Borough of Croydon. It is located 5 miles south east of Croydon and is adjacent to the Greater London boundary with Surrey. History Until the 1930s, the area now known as New ...

by a driver under the influence of drugs. He was sentenced to eight months' imprisonment, reduced to four months by entering a plea of guilty at the earliest opportunity. Barwell successfully lobbied the Prime Minister,

to introduce legislation to make driving under the influence of drugs a similar offence to driving under the influence of alcohol. Cameron met the Groves family and legislation was included in the 2012 Queen's Speech. The legislation created a new offence under the

Crime and Courts Act 2013 The Crime and Courts Act 2013 (c. 22) is an Act of Parliament of the Parliament of the United Kingdom introduced to the House of Lords in May 2012. Its main purpose is to create the United Kingdom National Crime Agency which replaced the Serious ...

PPS and junior minister

Barwell was appointed Parliamentary Private Secretary to

Greg Clark Gregory David Clark (born 28 August 1967) is a British politician who served as Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy from 2016 to 2019. He also was Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government from 2015 t ...

, Minister for Cities and Decentralisation. In September 2012, he was appointed as Parliamentary Private Secretary to

Michael Gove Michael Andrew Gove, Baron Gove (; born Graeme Andrew Logan, 26 August 1967) is a British politician and journalist who served in various Cabinet of the United Kingdom, Cabinet positions under David Cameron, Theresa May, Boris Johnson and Rish ...

, the

Secretary of State for Education The secretary of state for education, also referred to as the education secretary, is a Secretary of State (United Kingdom), secretary of state in the Government of the United Kingdom, responsible for the work of the Department for Education. ...

.Croydon Central MP Gavin Barwell nets new job with Michael Gove
Croydon Advertiser, 12 September 2012; Retrieved 28 December 2012 On 7 October 2013 the

Prime Minister A prime minister or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. A prime minister is not the head of state, but r ...

appointed Barwell to the position of Assistant Government Whip. On 15 July 2014, Cameron promoted Barwell to the position of Government Whip, Lord Commissioner.Gavin Barwell
, GOV.UK; Retrieved 21 August 2014 At the 2015 election, Barwell retained his seat with a majority of just 165.
''The Independent'', 10 June 2017 Barwell's book, ''How to Win a Marginal Seat: My Year Fighting for my Political Life'', was published in March 2016. At the 2017 general election held just 15 months later, Barwell lost his marginal seat. He was

and

Minister for London The Minister for London is a United Kingdom Government ministerial post in His Majesty's Government. The officeholder is responsible for policy relating to London including informing Members of Parliament in the House of Commons on the activit ...

from July 2016 to June 2017.

Deletion of material from Wikipedia

In December 2014, the local paper '' The Croydon Advertiser'' called on Barwell to "stop launching campaigns" and "persistent attempts at headline-grabbing" saying "Gavin, we get it, there's an election on." The page on Wikipedia was one of a number edited ahead of the 2015 general election by computers inside parliament; an act which ''

The Daily Telegraph ''The Daily Telegraph'', known online and elsewhere as ''The Telegraph'', is a British daily broadsheet conservative newspaper published in London by Telegraph Media Group and distributed in the United Kingdom and internationally. It was found ...

'' said "appears to be a deliberate attempt to hide embarrassing information from the electorate".

Allegations of electoral fraud

In May 2016, a member of the public complained to the Metropolitan Police Service over possible electoral fraud in Barwell's 2015 election campaign. The claims relate to the number of leaflets Barwell delivered in his constituency, as undelivered election material does not fall under the election spending limit. Barwell denied the claims, saying he followed 'proper process' when filing the election expenses. Barwell was found in a separate investigation to be in breach of the Code of Conduct by Kathryn Hudson, the

Parliamentary Commissioner for Standards The Parliamentary Commissioner for Standards is an officer of the British House of Commons. The work of the officer is overseen by the Commons Select Committee on Standards. The current commissioner is Daniel Greenberg. Duties The commissio ...

. However, the Police investigation concluded in October 2016 that there was no case to answer.

Fire safety at Grenfell

In the run up to the Grenfell disaster, Barwell was contacted seven times by the Fire Safety and Rescue All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG), chaired by David Amess MP. Their warnings of the potentially deadly consequences of Class 0 fire rated materials had gone largely unanswered, with the last letter being sent 26 days ahead of the tower fire. At a similar time, a letter of concern about the use of these materials in residential buildings, particularly blocks of flats, was issued by the London Fire Brigade Commissioner, which had also gone unanswered. In June 2021, Barwell was invited to give evidence at the Grenfell Tower Inquiry along with 4 other MPs.

2017 defeat

In the snap general election of 2017, Barwell lost his seat to Labour's Sarah Jones by 5,652 votes. When he lost his seat he was awarded a "loss of office" (redundancy) grant of £8,802 in line with his age and length of parliamentary service. He returned the full amount to IPSA upon his appointment as Downing Street chief of staff. In December 2018 it was announced that he would not be the Conservative candidate in the next election in Croydon Central.

Downing Street Chief of staff (2017–2019)

On 10 June 2017, Theresa May appointed Barwell

. Following the

Grenfell Tower fire On 14 June 2017, a List of fires in high-rise buildings, high-rise fire broke out in the 24-storey Grenfell Tower block of Public housing in the United Kingdom, flats in North Kensington, West London, England, at 00:54 British Summer Time, BST ...

of 14 June 2017, he was criticised by ''

The Independent ''The Independent'' is a British online newspaper. It was established in 1986 as a national morning printed paper. Nicknamed the ''Indy'', it began as a broadsheet and changed to tabloid format in 2003. The last printed edition was publis ...

'' for adding to delays in publishing a report into fire safety which followed the 2009

Lakanal House fire The Lakanal House fire occurred in a tower block on 3 July 2009 in Camberwell, London. Six people were killed, and at least 20 injured, when a high-rise fire, caused by a faulty television set, developed and spread through a number of flats in t ...

. The day following the fire, he walked past journalists but refused to answer any questions. Following the departure of Theresa May as Prime Minister in July 2019, Barwell stepped down as Chief of Staff and was replaced by

Dominic Cummings Dominic Mckenzie Cummings (born 25 November 1971) is a British political strategist who served as Chief Adviser to British Prime Minister Boris Johnson from 24 July 2019 until he resigned on 13 November 2020. From 2007 to 2014, he was a speci ...

and Sir Eddie Lister. In November 2020

Atlantic Books Atlantic Books is an independent British publishing house, with its headquarters in Ormond House in Bloomsbury, in the London Borough of Camden. It is perhaps best known for publishing Aravind Adiga's debut novel '' The White Tiger'', which re ...

acquired the rights to Barwell's book, ''Chief of Staff: My Time as the Prime Minister's Right-Hand Man'', that was published in September 2021.

House of Lords

Barwell was nominated for a

life peer In the United Kingdom, life peers are appointed members of the peerage whose titles cannot be inherited, in contrast to hereditary peers. Life peers are appointed by the monarch on the advice of the prime minister. With the exception of the D ...

age in Theresa May's Resignation Honours List in September 2019. He was created Baron Barwell, ''of

in the

'', on 7 October 2019.

Personal life

Barwell married Karen McKenzie in 2001. His wife, a speech and language therapist, previously worked at Applegarth School in

. The couple have three sons. He had cancer as a child.

Honours

* He was sworn in as a member of

Her Majesty's Most Honourable Privy Council The Privy Council, formally His Majesty's Most Honourable Privy Council, is a privy council, formal body of advisers to the sovereign of the United Kingdom. Its members, known as privy counsellors, are mainly senior politicians who are curre ...

in 14 June 2017 at

Buckingham Palace Buckingham Palace () is a royal official residence, residence in London, and the administrative headquarters of the monarch of the United Kingdom. Located in the City of Westminster, the palace is often at the centre of state occasions and r ...

. This gave him the honorific title "

The Right Honourable ''The Right Honourable'' (abbreviation: The Rt Hon. or variations) is an honorific Style (form of address), style traditionally applied to certain persons and collective bodies in the United Kingdom, the former British Empire, and the Commonwealt ...

" and after

Ennoblement Ennoblement is the conferring of nobility—the induction of an individual into the noble class. Currently only a few kingdoms still grant nobility to people; among them Spain, the United Kingdom, Belgium and the Vatican. Depending on time and reg ...

the post nominal letters "PC" for life.

References

External links

, - , - , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Barwell, Gavin 1972 births Alumni of Trinity College, Cambridge British chief operating officers Conservative Party (UK) councillors Conservative Party (UK) life peers Conservative Party (UK) MPs for English constituencies Councillors in the London Borough of Croydon Living people Life peers created by Elizabeth II People educated at Trinity School of John Whitgift People from Cuckfield Presidents of the Cambridge Union UK MPs 2010–2015 UK MPs 2015–2017 Members of the Privy Council of the United Kingdom Ministers of state for housing of the United Kingdom Downing Street chiefs of staff