James Cleverly
Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs | |||||||||||||||
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In office 6 September 2022 – 13 November 2023 | |||||||||||||||
Prime Minister |
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Preceded by | Liz Truss | ||||||||||||||
Succeeded by | David Cameron | ||||||||||||||
Secretary of State for Education | |||||||||||||||
In office 7 July 2022 – 6 September 2022 | |||||||||||||||
Prime Minister | Boris Johnson | ||||||||||||||
Preceded by | Michelle Donelan | ||||||||||||||
Succeeded by | Kit Malthouse | ||||||||||||||
Minister without Portfolio | |||||||||||||||
In office 24 July 2019 – 13 February 2020 | |||||||||||||||
Prime Minister | Boris Johnson | ||||||||||||||
Preceded by | Brandon Lewis | ||||||||||||||
Succeeded by | Amanda Milling | ||||||||||||||
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Member of Parliament for Braintree | |||||||||||||||
Assumed office 7 May 2015 | |||||||||||||||
Preceded by | Brooks Newmark | ||||||||||||||
Majority | 24,673 (48.9%) | ||||||||||||||
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Personal details | |||||||||||||||
Born | James Spencer Cleverly 4 September 1969 Lewisham, London, England | ||||||||||||||
Political party | Conservative | ||||||||||||||
Spouse |
Susannah Sparks (m. 2000) | ||||||||||||||
Children | 2 | ||||||||||||||
Residence | Ealing College of Higher Education | ||||||||||||||
Occupation |
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Signature | |||||||||||||||
Website | cleverly4braintree | ||||||||||||||
Military service | |||||||||||||||
Allegiance | United Kingdom | ||||||||||||||
Branch/service | British Army (Reserve) | ||||||||||||||
Years of service | 1989–present | ||||||||||||||
Rank | Lieutenant colonel | ||||||||||||||
Unit | Royal Artillery | ||||||||||||||
Cleverly advocated a vote for
In September 2022, he was appointed foreign secretary by then–Prime Minister Liz Truss, making him the first British foreign secretary of African heritage. Retained as foreign secretary when Rishi Sunak became prime minister in October 2022, Cleverly was then appointed home secretary in the November 2023 cabinet reshuffle. As Home Secretary, Cleverly has committed to maintaining the Rwanda asylum plan and has introduced a plan to substantially reduce legal migration to the UK by raising the threshold for family visas.
Early life and education
James Spencer Cleverly was born on 4 September 1969 in
After graduation, Cleverly worked for publishing company
Military service
Cleverly's initial training at
Cleverly was promoted to
Political career
London Assembly
In March 2007, Cleverly was selected as the Conservative Party
In January 2009, Cleverly was appointed as the Mayor of London's youth ambassador, a newly created role which was seen as being a replacement post for the deputy mayor for young people, a post left vacant after the resignation of Ray Lewis. The creation of the role caused some controversy as it was not filled by a mayoral appointment but by a member of the Assembly whose formal role was to scrutinise the Mayor. The decision was defended because of the precedent set by the appointment of Kit Malthouse as Deputy Mayor for Policing.[14]
In February 2010, Cleverly was appointed as the chairman of the London Waste and Recycling Board, replacing Boris Johnson who had stood down.[15]
In August 2010, Cleverly posted a
In November 2010, Cleverly was re-selected to be the Conservative candidate for Bexley and Bromley at the 2012 London Assembly election, going on to win the seat with 88,482 votes (once again 52.6% of the votes) and a majority of 47,768.[18] After the defeat of Brian Coleman at the election, Cleverly was appointed to the chair of the London Fire and Emergency Planning Authority.
House of Commons
In January 2015, Cleverly was selected to be the Conservative
At the 2015 general election, Cleverly was elected to Parliament as MP for Braintree, winning 53.8% of the vote and a majority of 17,610.[21] Following the election, Cleverly did not defend his seat at the 2016 London Assembly election.[22]
In November 2015, Cleverly was criticised for pushing through the closure of 10 fire stations in London after the death of an elderly man in Camden following delays in the arrival of fire crews. In response, Cleverly said: "It is impossible for them to say that with certainty. I think it would be much wiser for the FBU to wait for the details of that fire investigation to come out before they start making these opportunistic allegations."[23]
In January 2016, the Labour Party proposed an amendment to the Housing and Planning Bill 2016[24] that would have required private landlords to make homes which they put up for rent "fit for human habitation". According to Parliament's register of interests, Cleverly was one of 72 Conservative MPs who voted against the amendment and who personally derived an income from renting out property. The Conservative Government had responded to the amendment by saying that they believed homes should be fit for human habitation but did not want to pass the new law that would explicitly require it.[25]
In March 2016, Cleverly was asked to step down as patron of Advocacy for All, a charity supporting disadvantaged people in South East England. The charity felt he was no longer a suitable person for the role, given that he had voted to cut Employment and Support Allowance (the benefit paid to disabled people who are unable to work).[26][27]
Cleverly advocated voting for
At the 2017 general election, Cleverly was re-elected with an increased vote share of 62.8% and an increased majority of 18,422.[29]
In January 2018 he was appointed as a
In October 2018, Cleverly defended Conservative
On 29 May 2019, Cleverly announced he was standing to replace Theresa May in the 2019 Conservative leadership election,[32] before withdrawing from the race on 4 June 2019.[33]
Following the appointment of
At the 2019 general election, Cleverly was again re-elected with an increased vote share of 67.5% and an increased majority of 24,673.[34][35]
In the
In September 2020, he expressed concern about a "looming"
On 7 July 2022, Cleverly succeeded Michelle Donelan as Secretary of State for Education, a post that he held for almost two months.[39]
Foreign Secretary
Cleverly was promoted to the position Foreign Secretary by incoming Prime Minister Liz Truss on 6 September 2022.
Cleverly attended the
On 20 October 2022, he announced that the United Kingdom would pursue sanctions against Iran for supplying drones to attack civilian targets in Ukraine. Cleverly stated that "Iran cannot be allowed to violate UN resolutions".[41]
Cleverly endorsed former Prime Minister Boris Johnson ahead of the October 2022 Conservative Party leadership election. As Johnson ended up not standing, Cleverly then endorsed Rishi Sunak.[42] Sunak re-appointed him to his cabinet as Foreign Secretary on 25 October 2022.
In October 2022, due to doubts raised that British homosexual football fans would be safe at the 2022
In May 2022, the country's emir, Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani, said that he believed criticism about Qatar being chosen to host the World Cup came from "people who cannot accept the idea that an Arab Muslim country would host a tournament like the World Cup".[44][47] Sunak's spokesperson distanced themselves from Cleverly's comments, saying that fans should not have to "compromise who they are", as well as that "Qatar's policies are not those of the UK Government and not ones we would endorse".[48]
Later, in November 2022, Cleverly stated that his actions were "about ensuring that the English and Welsh fans going over to enjoy the football were safe and happy and that they enjoyed themselves whilst watching the tournament."[49]
In December 2022, despite human rights concerns in Saudi Arabia, Cleverly called Saudi Arabia a strategic partner.[50] In the same month, Cleverly met his Norwegian counterpart, Anniken Huitfeldt, to discuss continued military cooperation and attended the annual Christmas tree lighting.[51]
In January 2023, Cleverly again met
Cleverly was criticised by some Conservative MPs, including Liz Truss, for refusing to reclassify China as a "threat" in response to the Chinese Government's aggressive foreign policy and its human rights abuses of the Uyghur Muslim community.[53] He called China a potential "partner for good".[54]
On 19 July 2023, Cleverly made a public statement following his being mooted as a possible successor to the departing Defence Secretary, Ben Wallace. Cleverly asked Prime Minister Sunak to leave him in his current position, because he said he really likes the job. He stated that if he was removed from his post, "you will see nail marks on the parquet floor in my office".[55]
In August 2023, Cleverly made his first visit to China as the first UK Government minister to visit the country since 2018.[56] The trip was reportedly to promote bilateral trade and climate change policy and challenge China's response to the Russo-Ukrainian War.[57][58]
On 13 September 2023, he met Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan in Ankara and stated that Turkey is an "indispensable partner" to the UK and "has truly significant commitments to NATO."[59]
Cleverly expressed support for
Home Secretary
In Sunak's cabinet reshuffle on 13 November 2023, Cleverly was appointed Home Secretary, succeeding Suella Braverman.[62][63]
On 22 November 2023, Cleverly was accused by Labour MP Alex Cunningham of calling Cunningham's Stockton North constituency a "shithole" in response to a question in the Commons; Cleverly denied the allegation, but apologised for using "unparliamentary language", which he said had instead been used to describe Cunningham himself.[64]
On 23 December 2023, Cleverly faced calls to resign for joking about
Personal life
Cleverly married Susannah Sparks in 2000; the couple have two sons.
Honours and decorations
Cleverly was awarded the Efficiency Decoration (TD) for 12 years' commissioned service in the Territorial Army in January 2012,[72][73] as well as the Queen Elizabeth II Golden Jubilee Medal in 2002, the Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal in 2012,[74] the Queen Elizabeth II Platinum Jubilee Medal in 2022 and the King Charles III Coronation Medal in 2023.
He was sworn of the
Ribbon | Description | Notes |
Queen Elizabeth II Golden Jubilee Medal |
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Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal |
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Queen Elizabeth II Platinum Jubilee Medal |
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King Charles III Coronation Medal |
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Efficiency Decoration (TD) |
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Volunteer Reserves Service Medal (VR) |
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Notes
- ^ As Minister of State for Europe; Cleverly retained responsibility for North America
- ^ As Minister of State for Europe. Rehman Chishti assumed responsibility for North America.
- ^ Jointly with the Department for International Development until September 2020; Middle East and North Africa until December 2021.
- The Lord Ahmad of Wimbledonassumed responsibility for North Africa; Cleverly retained responsibility for North America
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{{cite web}}
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Mr Cunningham had asked: "Why are 34% of children in my constituency living in poverty?" ... Making a point of order in the Commons later that day, he said: "Before the prime minister answered, the home secretary chose to add in his pennyworth. He was seen and heard to say 'because it's a shithole'.
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It turns out the Foreign Secretary, James Cleverly, is a fan. His private YouTube channel is dedicated to following expert miniatures painters. In 2012, he tweeted out a video on how to paint Astorath the Grim, high chaplain of the Blood Angels Space Marine Chapter.
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