Chris Grayling

Christopher Stephen Grayling (born 1 April 1962) is a British politician and author who served as Secretary of State for Justice from 2012 to 2015, Leader of the House of Commons from 2015 to 2016 and Secretary of State for Transport from 2016 until 2019.

He then went to Sidney Sussex College, Cambridge, where he graduated with an upper-second class Bachelor of Arts degree in history in 1984.

Grayling joined BBC News in 1985 as a trainee, becoming a producer in 1986.

A member of the Social Democratic Party until 1988, he then joined the Conservatives.

He left the BBC in 1988 to join Channel 4 as an editor on its Business Daily television programme.

He rejoined the BBC in 1991 as a business development manager on BBC Select.

On leaving the BBC again in 1993, he briefly joined Charterhouse Productions as managing director before leaving several months later as it was wound up for failing to pay VAT.

He ran several television production companies from late 1993, including managing the corporate communications division of Workhouse Ltd from 1992 to 1995 and SSVC Group in Gerrards Cross from 1995 to 1997.

Grayling became a public relations consultant in 1997 with Burson Marsteller, where he remained until his election to Parliament.

Prior to joining the Conservative Party, Grayling was a member of the Social Democratic Party (SDP).

Grayling was selected to contest the Labour-held marginal seat of Warrington South at the 1997 general election, but was defeated by Labour candidate Helen Southworth by 10,807 votes.

He was elected as a councillor for the Hillside ward in the London Borough of Merton in 1998 and remained on the council until 2002.

A member of the Conservative Party, he has been the Member of Parliament (MP) for Epsom and Ewell since 2001.

Grayling previously worked in the television and film industry.

Grayling was born in London and studied History at Cambridge University.

He wrote a number of books as well as working for the BBC and Channel 4 before going into politics.

First elected to Parliament in the 2001 general election for Epsom and Ewell, he was appointed to the Shadow Cabinet of David Cameron in 2005 as Shadow Secretary of State for Transport.

Grayling was elected to the House of Commons to represent the Surrey seat of Epsom and Ewell at the 2001 general election following the retirement of the veteran Tory MP Archie Hamilton.

Grayling held the seat with a majority of 10,080 and has been returned as MP there since.

He made his maiden speech on 25 June 2001.

Grayling served on the Environment, Transport and the Regions Select committee from 2001 until he was promoted to the Opposition Whips' Office by Iain Duncan Smith in 2002, moving to become a Spokesman for Health later in the year.

He became a Spokesman for Education and Skills by Michael Howard in 2003.

Following the 2005 general election, he became a member of Howard's Shadow Cabinet as Shadow Leader of the House of Commons and, after the election of David Cameron as the leader of the Conservative Party, in December 2005, he served as the Shadow Secretary of State for Transport.

He was heavily involved in the questioning of David Blunkett, the then Work and Pensions Secretary, over his business affairs, which led to Blunkett's resignation in 2005.

Grayling challenged Tony Blair and his wife Cherie over the money they made from lectures while Blair was Prime Minister.

In 2007, he became the Shadow Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, and in 2009 he was appointed Shadow Home Secretary.

In June 2007, he was made Shadow Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, a post he held until January 2009 when he became Shadow Home Secretary.

Grayling became known as a national politician through his "attack dog" pressure on leading Labour politicians.

Following the 2010 general election and the formation of the Cameron–Clegg coalition, Grayling was made Minister of State for Employment.

In September 2012, he was appointed to the Cabinet as Lord Chancellor and Secretary of State for Justice and served until 2015.

He was the first non-lawyer to have served as Lord Chancellor for at least 440 years.

He was Leader of the House of Commons and the Lord President of the Council from 2015 to 2016.

In the majority and minority May governments, Grayling served as Secretary of State for Transport.

Grayling stood down from the Cabinet when Boris Johnson became Prime Minister in July 2019.

Johnson hoped for Grayling to become Chair of the Intelligence and Security Committee by being voted in by the Conservative majority on the committee.

However, fellow Conservative Julian Lewis defeated Grayling in the ballot by using opposition votes to secure a majority, in what was seen as a blow to Johnson and his adviser Dominic Cummings.

Six weeks later, Grayling resigned from the committee apparently due to his failure to become chair.

He announced he would not seek re-election at the next general election.

Grayling was born in London and grew up in Buckinghamshire, where he was educated at the Royal Grammar School, High Wycombe.

In 2019, Grayling announced that Stoneleigh train station was to be given step-free access.