What position did David Gauke take in May 2017?
David Gauke David Michael Gauke ( ; born 8 October 1971 ) is a British political commentator and solicitor who was the Member of Parliament ( MP ) for South West Hertfordshire from 2005 to 2019 . He served in the Cabinet under Theresa May , most notably as Secretary of State for Justice and Lord Chancellor from 2018 to 2019 . First elected as a Conservative , Gauke had the Conservative whip removed on 3 September 2019 and until the dissolution sat as an independent politician . Gauke served in the Cameron Government as Exchequer Secretary to the Treasury from 2010 to 2014 and Financial Secretary to the Treasury from 2014 to 2016 . During the formation of the May Government in July 2016 , he was appointed to the Cabinet as Chief Secretary to the Treasury , where he remained until being appointed Secretary of State for Work and Pensions in 2017 . Gauke was appointed Secretary of State for Justice and Lord Chancellor in January 2018 . He resigned on 24 July 2019 following the Conservative Party leadership election . Early life and career . Gauke was educated at Northgate High School in Ipswich , Suffolk . He read Law at St Edmund Hall , Oxford and the College of Law in Chester , where he graduated in legal practice in 1995 . In 1993 , he was a researcher for Barry Legg , the Conservative MP for Milton Keynes South West . He worked as a trainee solicitor with Richards Butler from 1995 , being admitted as a solicitor in 1997 . From 1999 to 2005 , he was a solicitor in the financial services group at Macfarlanes , a corporate law firm . Gauke was elected as the vice-chairman of the Brent East Conservative Association for two years from 1998 , and contested the seat at the 2001 general election finishing in second place 13,047 votes behind the Labour MP Paul Daisley . Parliamentary career . Gauke was elected to the House of Commons at the 2005 general election for Hertfordshire South West following the retirement of Richard Page . Gauke won the seat with a majority of 8,473 , making his maiden speech on 9 June 2005 . Between 2005 and 2008 , he served as a member of the Procedure Select committee . He was a member of the Treasury Select Committee between 2006 and 2007 , before joining the Opposition front bench as Shadow Treasury Minister . Following his re-election at the 2010 general election , he was appointed Exchequer Secretary to the Treasury . In December 2013 , Gauke was reported to HM Revenue and Customs after advertising an unpaid six-month training post at his constituency office in Rickmansworth , Hertfordshire . After four years in the post of Exchequer Secretary to the Treasury , Gauke moved to become the Financial Secretary to the Treasury . On 13 July 2016 , Gauke was made a member of the Privy Council , giving him the style The Right Honourable . The following day , he was appointed Chief Secretary to the Treasury following the appointment of Theresa May to Prime Minister of the United Kingdom . On 11 June 2017 , Gauke was appointed Secretary of State for Work and Pensions , leaving the Treasury after seven years . On 8 January 2018 , Gauke succeeded David Lidington as Secretary of State for Justice and Lord Chancellor . He is the first solicitor to have held the post . On 8 June 2019 , following Gaukes refusal to enact the commitments made in the Conservative manifesto and his supporting the leadership candidacy of Rory Stewart in favour of persisting with Mays withdrawal agreement , his constituency association wrote to all members calling a special meeting for a vote of no-confidence . On 20 July 2019 , Gauke confirmed to The Sunday Times that he would resign as Secretary of State after Prime Ministers Questions on 24 July 2019 , citing that he could not serve Boris Johnson as Prime Minister and run the risk of pursuing a no-deal exit from the European Union . Gauke and other similarly minded MPs became known in the media as the Gaukeward Squad . Expenses . Gauke claimed £10,248.32 in stamp duty and fees involved in the purchase of his second home in London , a flat . A Channel 4 Dispatches programme revealed that he was claiming expenses on the flat in central London despite having a property located only one hour away on public transport . Gauke sold the flat in August 2012 , keeping £27,000 , the property price having increased by £67,000 since purchase . He paid nearly £40,000 of this to the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority ( IPSA ) as MPs only have to pay back any profit made in the previous two years . He told the British public that negotiating a price discount with tradesmen for paying in cash for the purposes of evading tax is morally wrong . Sitting as an independent . On 3 September 2019 , Gauke joined 20 other rebel Conservative MPs to vote against the Conservative government of Boris Johnson . The rebel MPs voted with the Opposition to seize control of parliamentary business from the government , allowing the subsequent passage of the Benn act . The government had declared that voting against the original motion would be viewed as a matter of confidence in the government , as voting in favour of the motion would effectively be destroying the governments negotiating position and handing control of parliament to Jeremy Corbyn . After voting against the government on a confidence-issue , all 21 were advised that they had lost the Conservative whip , expelling them as Conservative MPs and requiring them to sit as independents . If they decided to run for re-election in a future election , the party would block their selection as Conservative candidates . Gauke stood in his constituency as an independent candidate , but came second with 26% of the vote . The seat was retained by the Conservatives with a majority of 14,408 . Post-Parliament . In May 2020 , six months after leaving Parliament , it was announced that Gauke was re-joining Macfarlanes as their head of policy . Personal life . Gauke is married to Rachel ( née Rank ) , who is a professional support lawyer specialising in corporate tax at legal research provider LexisNexis . They have three sons and live in Chorleywood in Hertfordshire . He is a lifelong supporter of Ipswich Town F.C .