Nicholas Clegg
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Nicholas Clegg |
Nicholas William Peter 'Nick' Clegg (born
7 January 1967) is the
British Member of Parliament for
Sheffield Hallam and home affairs spokesman for the
Liberal DemocratsClegg was educated at
Westminster School,
Gonville and Caius College,
Cambridge, and
Minnesota University, before becoming a trainee journalist and then an EU trade policy advisor. In
1999 he was elected a Liberal Democrat
member of the European Parliament for the
East Midlands constituency, standing down at the
2004 European elections.
He stood for election in Sheffield Hallam in the
2005 General Election and won the seat with a majority of 8682 votes, suffering a slight swing away from the Lib Dems of 4.3%. He succeeded
Richard Allan, also of the Lib Dems, who stepped down at the dissolution of Parliament in 2005.
A speaker of five European languages, Clegg was appointed spokesperson on foreign affairs in 2005. His ability to articulate Liberal values at a very practical level have quickly lent him prominence, with many already seeing him as a future Liberal Democrat leader.
Following the resignation of party leader
Charles Kennedy on
7 January 2006, Clegg was touted as a possible leadership contender. He was quick to rule himself out and to declare his support for
Sir Menzies Campbell, who won the ballot and appointed Clegg home affairs spokesman, replacing
Mark Oaten.[
1]
Clegg is one of the contributors to the
Orange Book (2004). Clegg has also given lectures at
Sheffield University on the topic of the
European Union.
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Nicholas Clegg MP official site
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Nick Clegg MP profile at the site of Liberal Democrats
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Sheffield Liberal Democrats*
Guardian Unlimited Politics - Ask Aristotle: Nick Clegg MP*
TheyWorkForYou.com - Nicholas Clegg MP*
The Public Whip - Nick Clegg voting record