Natascha Engel
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Natascha Engel (born 9 April 1967) is a British former politician. She served as Labour Party Member of Parliament (MP) for
North East Derbyshire North East Derbyshire is a Non-metropolitan district, local government district in Derbyshire, England. The council is based in the large village of Wingerworth. The district also includes the towns of Dronfield and Clay Cross as well as numerou ...
from
2005 2005 was designated as the International Year for Sport and Physical Education and the International Year of Microcredit. The beginning of 2005 also marked the end of the International Decade of the World's Indigenous Peoples, Internationa ...
until her defeat at the 2017 general election. During her final two years in Parliament, Engel was Deputy Speaker ( Second Deputy Chair of Ways and Means). She established and was the inaugural chair of the
Backbench Business Committee The Backbench Business Committee of the British House of Commons was created on 15 June 2010 through the adoption of a new standing order. It was created soon after 2010 general election, but had been proposed during the previous Parliament by the ...
(2010–2015) for which she was awarded Parliamentarian of the Year in 2013 by the
Political Studies Association The Political Studies Association (PSA) is a learned society in the United Kingdom which exists to develop and promote the study of politics. It is the leading association in its field in the United Kingdom, with an international membership includi ...
and the Spectator's Backbencher of the Year in 2015. Engel is now CEO of cross-party policy and research institute, Palace Yard.


Early life and education

Engel was born in
Berlin Berlin ( ; ) is the Capital of Germany, capital and largest city of Germany, by both area and List of cities in Germany by population, population. With 3.7 million inhabitants, it has the List of cities in the European Union by population withi ...
,
Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...
, to a German father and an English mother. After her parents' divorce she moved with her mother to
Kent Kent is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Essex across the Thames Estuary to the north, the Strait of Dover to the south-east, East Sussex to the south-west, Surrey to the west, and Gr ...
and was educated at Kent College and
The King's School, Canterbury The King's School is a public school in Canterbury, Kent, England. It is a member of the Headmasters' and Headmistresses' Conference and the Eton Group. It is Britain's oldest public school and is considered to be the oldest continuously op ...
. She later trained as a
linguist Linguistics is the scientific study of language. The areas of linguistic analysis are syntax (rules governing the structure of sentences), semantics (meaning), Morphology (linguistics), morphology (structure of words), phonetics (speech sounds ...
in German and Portuguese 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 ...
and at the
University of Westminster The University of Westminster is a public university, public university based in London, United Kingdom. Founded in 1838 as the Royal Polytechnic Institution, it was the first Polytechnic (United Kingdom), polytechnic to open in London. The Po ...
where she obtained a
Master's degree A master's degree (from Latin ) is a postgraduate academic degree awarded by universities or colleges upon completion of a course of study demonstrating mastery or a high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional prac ...
in Technical and Specialised Translation (German, Dutch, Spanish and Portuguese).


Early career

While living in
Madrid Madrid ( ; ) is the capital and List of largest cities in Spain, most populous municipality of Spain. It has almost 3.5 million inhabitants and a Madrid metropolitan area, metropolitan area population of approximately 7 million. It i ...
,
Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...
, Engel worked as a volunteer for two years in the local office of
Amnesty International Amnesty International (also referred to as Amnesty or AI) is an international non-governmental organization focused on human rights, with its headquarters in the United Kingdom. The organization says that it has more than ten million members a ...
while earning a living as an English and German teacher. After returning to Britain to work as a
Teletext Teletext, or broadcast teletext, is a standard for displaying text and rudimentary graphics on suitably equipped television sets. Teletext sends data in the broadcast signal, hidden in the invisible vertical blanking interval area at the to ...
subtitler, Engel learned
British Sign Language British Sign Language (BSL) is a sign language used in the United Kingdom and is the first or preferred language among the Deafness in the United Kingdom, deaf community in the UK. While private correspondence from William Stokoe hinted at a f ...
and volunteered as a communication support worker. She was among the first to join the Organising Academy of the
Trade Union Congress The Trades Union Congress (TUC) is a national trade union centre, a federation of trade unions that collectively represent most unionised workers in England and Wales. There are 48 affiliated unions with a total of about 5.5 million members. P ...
, serving with the Graphical, Paper and Media Union. In 2001 she co-ordinated the political fund ballots to help trade unions to maintain their political funds. Engel joined the Labour Party staff as a Trade Union Liaison Officer in 1997 organising marginal seats campaigning and co-ordinating trade union policy with the Labour Party. In 2001 she became programme director at the think tank, the
Smith Institute The Smith Institute is a left-wing think tank in the United Kingdom. It was founded in memory of John Smith (Labour Party leader), John Smith Queen's Counsel, QC Member of Parliament, MP, former leader of the Labour Party (UK), Labour Party. His ...
.


Parliamentary career


House of Commons

After her election in 2005, Engel was appointed to the Work and Pensions Select Committee. She served as Parliamentary Private Secretary to
Peter Hain Peter Gerald Hain, Baron Hain, (born 16 February 1950), is a British politician who served as Secretary of State for Northern Ireland from 2005 to 2007, Secretary of State for Work and Pensions from 2007 to 2008 and twice as Secretary of State ...
when he was Secretary of State for Work and Pensions. She performed the same role for
Liam Byrne Liam Dominic Byrne (born 2 October 1970) is a British Labour Party (UK), Labour Party politician who has been the Member of Parliament (United Kingdom), Member of Parliament for Birmingham Hodge Hill and Solihull North, previously Birmingham Ho ...
in 2008 when he was at the Cabinet Office, and then for John Denham when he was
Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government The secretary of state for housing, communities and local government is a secretary of state in the Government of the United Kingdom and is the Cabinet minister responsible for the overall leadership and strategic direction of the Ministry of Ho ...
in 2009. In July 2009, she was elected to the Select Committee on Reform of the House of Commons, chaired by Tony Wright MP. On 15 June 2010, the House of Commons voted to create a
Backbench Business Committee The Backbench Business Committee of the British House of Commons was created on 15 June 2010 through the adoption of a new standing order. It was created soon after 2010 general election, but had been proposed during the previous Parliament by the ...
, and one week later, Engel defeated Sir Alan Haselhurst 202 to 173 in a secret ballot of MPs to become its first chair. On 6 July 2011 she was named "Backbencher of the Year" for her work with the committee. Engel's role was to allocate roughly one day a week parliamentary debating time between competing backbenchers by a process described by
Quentin Letts Quentin Richard Stephen Letts (born 6 February 1963) is an English journalist and theatre critic. He has written for ''The Daily Telegraph'', ''Daily Mail'', ''Mail on Sunday'', and ''The Oldie''. On 26 February 2019, it was announced that Let ...
as akin to ''
Dragons' Den ''Dragons' Den'' is a reality television program format in which entrepreneurs pitch their business ideas to a panel of venture capitalists in the hope of securing investment finance from them. The program originated in 2001 in Japan, where it ...
''. She expressed pride in the committee, which is "a powerful check on the executive". Debates are allowed on any topic and, unless they are against party policy, the
whips A whip is a blunt weapon or implement used in a striking motion to create sound or pain. Whips can be used for flagellation against humans or animals to exert control through pain compliance or fear of pain, or be used as an audible cue thro ...
don't interfere. The most contentious debate was on the EU referendum held on 24 October 2011. Engel was re-elected, unopposed, to the chair of the committee May 2012. After the 2015 General Election, Engel was elected unopposed to be Deputy Speaker (Second Chairman of Ways and Means) under
John Bercow John Simon Bercow (; born 19 January 1963) is a British former politician who served as Speaker of the House of Commons (United Kingdom), Speaker of the House of Commons from 2009 to 2019, and Member of Parliament (United Kingdom), Member of Pa ...
's speakership. Alongside her fellow Deputies, Rt Hon Sir Lindsay Hoyle and Dame
Eleanor Laing Eleanor Fulton Laing, Baroness Laing of Elderslie, (; born 1 February 1958), is a British Conservative Party (UK), Conservative Party politician who served as Member of Parliament (United Kingdom), Member of Parliament (MP) for Epping Forest ( ...
, Engel never said how she voted in the 2016 EU referendum knowing that she would later have to chair debates on the subject.


Youth campaigns

Engel was on the Board of Trustees of the
UK Youth Parliament The UK Youth Parliament (UKYP) is a youth organisation in the United Kingdom, consisting of democratically elected members aged between 11 and 18. Formed in 2000, the parliament has 395 members, who are elected to represent the views of you ...
and has worked to encourage young people to participate in democracy. Engel became chair of the All Party Parliamentary Group on Youth Affairs in 2008.Youth Affairs Group
British Youth Council The British Youth Council, known informally as BYC, was a UK charity that worked to empower young people and promote their interests. The national charity, run by young people, existed to represent the views of young people to government and de ...
.
At the ePolitix Charity Champion awards in November 2007, Engel was named "Children and Youth Champion" for her work.Charity award winners announced
28 November 2007.
''Derbyshire Times'', 13 December 2007 At the 2007–08 annual general meeting of the
British Youth Council The British Youth Council, known informally as BYC, was a UK charity that worked to empower young people and promote their interests. The national charity, run by young people, existed to represent the views of young people to government and de ...
, she was chosen as an Honorary President of the council.BYC Honorary President
.


Expenses

The ''Legg Report'' showed that 343 MPs had been asked to repay money, including several from Derbyshire. Engel repaid £1,934 of which she said £1,339 was a mortgage claim the Fees office paid twice which she repaid immediately whilst £595 was a refund of a house rental deposit.


Later elections

In the 2015 general election, Engel's majority of 1,883 was the 17th-smallest of Labour's 232 seats by percentage. She had been expected to lose but she retained her seat. At the 2017 general election, Engel lost to Conservative
Lee Rowley Lee Benjamin Rowley (born 11 September 1980) is a British politician and former management consultant who has served as chief of staff to the Leader of the Opposition since November 2024. He previously served as Minister of State for Housing, ...
by 2,861 despite increasing her share of the vote and total number votes on the previous election.


After Parliament

On 5 October 2018 the Conservative government announced Engel as the new Commissioner for Shale Gas. According to the
Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy The Department for Business, Energy, and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) was a Departments of the Government of the United Kingdom, ministerial department of the Government of the United Kingdom, United Kingdom Government, from July 2016 to Februar ...
the role was to be "a direct communication link between local communities, the shale gas industry and the industry regulators." From 2019 to 2022, Engel was partner at policy and opinion research agency
Public First
where she established the energy and infrastructure practice. From September 2022, Engel co-founded Palace Yard with former Public First associate, Tom Waterhouse, where she is now CEO. Palace Yard is a cross-party policy and research institute which specialises in making complex policy accessible to policy-makers.


Personal life

In 2012, she and her
veterinary surgeon Veterinary surgery is surgery performed on non-human animals by veterinarians, whereby the procedures fall into three broad categories: orthopaedics (bones, joints, muscles), soft tissue surgery (skin, body cavities, cardiovascular system, GI/u ...
husband divorced; they have three sons.


References


External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Engel, Natascha 1967 births Living people People educated at The King's School, Canterbury Alumni of King's College London Alumni of the University of Westminster Labour Party (UK) MPs for English constituencies Female members of the Parliament of the United Kingdom for English constituencies Politicians from Berlin German emigrants to the United Kingdom Politicians from Canterbury Members of the Parliament of the United Kingdom for constituencies in Derbyshire UK MPs 2005–2010 UK MPs 2010–2015 UK MPs 2015–2017 People educated at Kent College German people of English descent English people of German descent 21st-century British women politicians 21st-century English women 21st-century English politicians Women legislative deputy speakers