Paul Howell (born 10 January 1960) is a British Conservative Party politician who was the Member of Parliament (MP) for

Sedgefield Sedgefield is a market town and civil parish in County Durham, England. It had a population of 4,986 in the 2021 census. It has the only operating racecourse in County Durham. Etymology The name ''Sedgefield'' is of Old English origin. It ...

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. Prior to his political career, he was an accountant.

Early life and career

Paul Howell was born on 10 January 1960 in Bishop Auckland Hospital in

County Durham County Durham, officially simply Durham, is a ceremonial county in North East England.UK General Acts 1997 c. 23Lieutenancies Act 1997 Schedule 1(3). From legislation.gov.uk, retrieved 6 April 2022. The county borders Northumberland and Tyne an ...

. He was raised in

Ferryhill Ferryhill is a towns in England, town and civil parish in County Durham (district), County Durham, England, with an estimated population in 2018 of 9,362. The town grew in the 1900s around the coal mining industry. The last mine officially clo ...

and

Newton Aycliffe Newton Aycliffe is a town in County Durham (district), County Durham, England. Founded in 1947 under the New Towns Act 1946, New Towns Act of 1946, the town is to the north of Darlington and to the south of Durham, England, Durham. It is the ...

and attended Dean Bank and Sugar Hill primary schools and The Avenue Comprehensive School. His father was a divisional fire officer. He has a

Master of Business Administration A Master of Business Administration (MBA) is a professional degree focused on business administration. The core courses in an MBA program cover various areas of business administration; elective courses may allow further study in a particular ...

degree from

Durham University Durham University (legally the University of Durham) is a collegiate university, collegiate public university, public research university in Durham, England, founded by an Act of Parliament (UK), Act of Parliament in 1832 and incorporated by r ...

. After leaving school, he worked as a chartered accountant for firms such as Darchem,

Blue Circle Industries Blue Circle Industries was a British public company manufacturing cement. It was founded in 1900 as the Associated Portland Cement Manufacturers Ltd. through the fusion of 24 cement works, mostly around on the Thames and Medway estuaries, toge ...

, and Wilsonart.

Political career

Howell joined the Conservative Party in 2010. He was a councillor for Hummersknott ward on the Darlington Borough Council between 2019 and 2021. He was also a councillor for Aycliffe North and Middridge on the

Durham County Council Durham County Council is the Local government in England, local authority for the non-metropolitan county of County Durham (district), County Durham in North East England. The council is a Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority, bein ...

between 2017 and 2021. Howell unsuccessfully contested

Houghton and Sunderland South Houghton and Sunderland South () is a constituency in Tyne and Wear represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Since its creation in 2010, the seat has been represented by Bridget Phillipson of the Labour Party ...

at the 2017 general election, coming second with 29.7% of the vote behind the incumbent Labour MP

Bridget Phillipson Bridget Maeve Phillipson (born 19 December 1983) is a British politician who has served as Secretary of State for Education and Minister for Women and Equalities since July 2024. A member of the Labour Party, she has been the Member of Parli ...

. At the 2019 general election, Howell was elected as MP for

with 47.2% of the vote and a majority of 4,513 over incumbent Labour MP Phil Wilson. The area of the constituency had been represented by Labour Party MPs since the 1935 general election. Wilson's immediate predecessor in representing the constituency, former

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 ...

Tony Blair Sir Anthony Charles Lynton Blair (born 6 May 1953) is a British politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1997 to 2007 and Leader of the Labour Party (UK), Leader of the Labour Party from 1994 to 2007. He was Leader ...

, did so between 1983 and 2007. Howell was a member of the

Transport Select Committee The Transport Select Committee is a select committee of the House of Commons in the Parliament of the United Kingdom. The remit of the committee is to examine the expenditure, administration and policy of the Department for Transport The D ...

from November 2022 and was a member of the

Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy Committee The Business and Trade Select Committee is a select committee of the House of Commons in the Parliament of the United Kingdom. The remit of the committee is to examine the expenditure, administration and policy of the Department for Business an ...

between March 2020 and October 2022. On 14 June 2022, Howell became a Parliamentary private secretary in the

Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) is a Departments of the Government of the United Kingdom, ministerial department of the government of the United Kingdom. It is responsible for environmental quality, environmenta ...

Personal life

Howell owns a property portfolio consisting of nine houses in

Darlington Darlington is a market town in the Borough of Darlington, County Durham, England. It lies on the River Skerne, west of Middlesbrough and south of Durham. Darlington had a population of 107,800 at the 2021 Census, making it a "large town" ...

, five houses in

Durham Durham most commonly refers to: *Durham, England, a cathedral city in north east England **County Durham, a ceremonial county which includes Durham *Durham, North Carolina, a city in North Carolina, United States Durham may also refer to: Places ...

, and two flats in

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Howell, Paul (politician) 1960 births Living people UK MPs 2019–2024 Conservative Party (UK) MPs for English constituencies People from Sedgefield Alumni of Durham University Politicians from County Durham