Kenneth Clarke

Kenneth Clarke has been the Conservative MP for Rushcliffe in Nottinghamshire since 1970.They Work for You, They Work For You website, accessed 24 March 2010
He was Lord Chancellor and Secretary of State for Justice in the incoming coalition cabinet appointed in 2010.Her Majesty’s Government, Number10.gov.uk, accessed 12 May 2010. He was appointed Minister without Portfolio in the Cabinet in September 2012.Juliette Jowit, Shiv Malik and Haroon Siddique, Cabinet reshuffle: who has moved so far?, guardian.co.uk, 4 September 2012. he left the government in July 2014.Ken Clarke to quit government in Cabinet reshuffle, BBC News, 14 July 2014.
Kenneth Clarke entered Parliament in the June 1970 General election with a majority of 12,974 votes.They Work for You, They Work For You website, accessed 24 March 2010
==Early life==
After passing his 11+, Clarke attended Nottingham High School, one of Britain's oldest private schools on a free local authority scholarship from 1951.Chris Holt, THIS SCHOOL, WHICH ONCE TAUGHT DH LAWRENCE, HAS ALSO PRODUCED AN EXTRAORDINARY GROUP OF ECONOMIC THINKERS, LED BY OLD BOYS KENNETH CLARKE AND LABOUR'S RISING STAR ED BALLS, Mail on Sunday, 13 December 1998. 
==Bilderberger==
Clarke has been on the Steering Committee of the influential and secretive Bilderberg Group for the past decade. In June 2013 he admitted in the Commons that he may have failed fully to declare his role organising the annual Bilderberg meetings of world leaders, and that he had “forgotten” that the controversial gatherings were paid for from funds raised by the group. According to the Telegraph Clarke:
:said he was checking his records to see whether he had informed civil servants of his role, as would be expected to avoid potential suggestions of a conflict of interest. Mr Clarke made the disclosure while answering questions over the “private” meeting of 140 of the world’s most powerful executives, politicians, ministers and advisers, which took place at a hotel near Watford last week.
:The minister, who has been a member of the Bilderberg Group steering committee for 10 years, attended the annual event, along with David Cameron, George Osborne, Ed Balls and Lord Mandelson. Tim Ross, Bilderberg: Ken Clarke 'forgot' he was a trustee of funding group, The Telegraph, 5:07PM BST 10 Jun 2013, see also recording of Clarke on this issue in the Commons in same article 
==Tobacco==
Clarke, a former director of British American Tobacco, was one of 104 Tories who voted against the introduction of plain cigarette packaging in March 2015. Matt Dathan Plain cigarette packaging: One in four MPs who opposed measures have declared links to tobacco industry Independent, 11 March 2015, accessed 23 March 2015 
==Dinner with lobbyists==
A seating plan of the Conservative Party's Black and White Ball, in February 2014, was leaked to the Guardian in October 2014. The party, which guests pay between £450 and £1000 for a ticket, seats diners with the minister most relevant to them. Whilst it has not been revealed who Clarke sat with, he is the only tory to have confirmed his attendance at the ball. Simon Goodley, Melanie Newman and Nick Mathiason Tycoons mix with top Tories at fundraising ball in London The Guardian, 12 October 2014, accessed 14 October 2014 
==Donations==
In August 2001, Clarke received £10,000.00 from the late property investor Andrew Rosenfeld and £2,500.00 from the head of Meggitt Nigel Rudd. Electoral Commission, Donation Search, accessed 2 March 2015 
==Affiliations==
*European Movement - Vice-President
*The Other Club - Member
*Bilderberg
==All-Party Parliamentary Groups==
As at March 2010 Clarke sits on the following All-Party Parliamentary Groups (APPGs): Register of All-Party Groups, Register of All-Party Groups (As at 24 February 2010), accessed 24 March 2010
*All-Party Parliamentary Beer GroupAll-Party Parliamentary Beer Group, Register of All-Party Groups (As at 24 February 2010), accessed 24 March 2010
*All-Party Parliamentary Group on Boxing-Vice-ChairAll-Party Parliamentary Group on Boxing, Register of All-Party Groups (As at 24 February 2010), accessed 24 March 2010
*All-Party Parliamentary Group for Debt, Aid & TradeAll-Party Parliamentary Group for Debt, Aid & Trade, Register of All-Party Groups (As at 24 February 2010), accessed 24 March 2010
*All-Party Parliamentary Group on Extraordinary RenditionAll-Party Parliamentary Group on Extraordinary Rendition, Register of All-Party Groups (As at 24 February 2010), accessed 24 March 2010
*All-Party Parliamentary Group for Funerals and BereavementAll-Party Parliamentary Group for Funerals and Bereavement, Register of All-Party Groups (As at 24 February 2010), accessed 24 March 2010
*Global Legislators Organisation (GLOBE) UK All-Party Parliamentary GroupGlobal Legislators Organisation (GLOBE) UK All-Party Parliamentary Group, Register of All-Party Groups (As at 24 February 2010), accessed 24 March 2010
*Group on Guantanamo BayGroup on Guantanamo Bay, Register of All-Party Groups (As at 24 February 2010), accessed 24 March 2010
*All-Party Parliamentary Jazz Appreciation GroupAll-Party Parliamentary Jazz Appreciation Group, Register of All-Party Groups (As at 24 February 2010), accessed 24 March 2010
*All-Party Parliamentary Group for Parkinson's DiseaseAll-Party Parliamentary Group for Parkinson's Disease, Register of All-Party Groups (As at 24 February 2010), accessed 24 March 2010
*All-Party Parliamentary Rowing GroupAll-Party Parliamentary Rowing Group, Register of All-Party Groups (As at 24 February 2010), accessed 24 March 2010
==External Resources==
*Kenneth Clarke Conservative Party profile
*Lost leaders: Kenneth Clarke, Henry Smith, News Statesman, 5 March 2010
*Hansard Mr Kenneth Clarke
*The Guardian Kenneth Clarke: Electoral History and Profile
*Public Whip Voting Record — Kenneth Clarke MP, Rushcliffe
*TheyWorkForYou.com Kenneth Clarke
*Westminster Parliamentary Record Ken Clarke MP
==Contact Details== 
*Office address: House of Commons, London SW1A 0AAfind your MP, Parliament website, accessed 24 March 2010
*Office Email: clarkek@parliament.ukfind your MP, Parliament website, accessed 24 March 2010
==Notes==
==Category==
Clarke, KenClarke, KenClarke, KennethClarke, KennethClarke, KenClarke, Ken