Voluntary Experience

Graham has spent well over half his political life working for the voluntary side of the Conservative Party where his experience includes:

Young Conservatives – forerunner to Conservative Future

Graham was founder and Chairman of the Thurrock Young Conservatives which grew to a membership of over 300. He became Eastern Area Y.C. Chairman and then National Y.C. Vice-Chairman where he worked with David (Lord) Hunt and Lynda (Baroness) Chalker.

Constituency voluntary work

Graham has served as Constituency CPC Chairman and a Constituency Treasurer.

Area and Regional voluntary work

Graham has served as an Area Chairman of the then CPC and more recently as Area Chairman of Bedfordshire and Cambridgeshire. He is currently Regional Chairman for the Eastern Region.

Local Government

Graham was a District Councillor on Thurrock Borough Council for fourteen years, becoming the Group Leader. He was a County Councillor for four years on Essex County Council. All his local Government posts were won from Labour! He was Chairman of the Area Health Committee and Chairman of Governors of a number of schools.

Parliament

Graham fought Thurrock in 1970 and1974 then Dartford in the autumn of 1974. He became Member of Parliament for Luton East in 1979 when he won the seat from the Labour Party, and where, despite adverse boundary changes, he held the seat for eighteen years until 1997. He was the longest serving Parliamentary Private Secretary in the House of Commons having served Sir Giles Shaw, Dame Virginia Bottomley, Rt. Hon Lord Waddington, Rt. Hon Lord Hurd and Rt. Hon Lord Mayhew; finally serving as Parliamentary Private Secretary to Rt. Hon Sir John Major for four years when he was Prime Minister in Number 10 Downing Street.

Vice-Chairman of the Conservative Party

Graham was a Vice-Chairman of the Conservative Party between 1994 and 1997 when he had responsibility for campaigning and marginal seats.

Chairman of One Nation Forum 1994-97

Motivated

Graham is highly motivated. He used his personal powers of persuasion to great effect as an M.P. successfully steering two Private Member’s Bills through Parliament. He is also a skilled media performer having appeared many times on the main television and radio political programmes.

The Guardian awarded Graham the title of “Most Motivated M.P.” in 1988. He was also awarded speech of the month by The Guardian in 1989.

Graham was part of the Party’s national campaign team for the successful 1992 General Election when he helped to introduce many initiatives to communicate with the electorate particularly building up databases to make direct and personal messages to the electorate.

Currently, Graham is working with the European and Prospective Parliamentary candidates and Associations preparing them for the fight ahead as well as tackling the usual difficult problems that come along from time to time.

Graham has instigated and run a number of very successful conferences and seminars for the Party with a focus on communication and training. He has also served as an assessor on a number of Parliamentary Assessment Boards which are involved in selecting candidates for the approved list.

Business Experience

Graham is Chairman of Dietary Foods Ltd, a specialist food products company, which he set up in the 1970s . Dietary Foods’ products are seen all over the world and Graham takes great pleasure in giving away those little pink Sweet’n Low sachets!

Personal Life

Graham is married to Valerie whom he met in the Young Conservatives. Valerie is a local J.P. and has also served as an assessor on a number of Parliamentary Assessment Boards. Their son, Rupert, who is 24, is studying medicine in Edinburgh having completed four years at St Andrews University.

Graham is President of Luton Mencap, Chairman of his former school which now has Technology College status and is involved in the Scouts & Guides Associations.