Sarah Louise Newton, FRSA (née Hick; born 19 July 1961) is a British retired politician who served as the Member of Parliament (MP) for Truro and Falmouth from 2010 to 2019. A member of the Conservative Party, she served as Minister of State for Disabled People, Work and Health from 2017 to 2019.

Sarah Newton
Official portrait, 2017
Minister of State for Disabled People, Work and Health
In office
9 November 2017 – 13 March 2019
Prime MinisterTheresa May
Preceded byPenny Mordaunt
Succeeded byJustin Tomlinson
Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Crime, Safeguarding and Vulnerability
In office
17 July 2016 – 9 November 2017
Prime MinisterTheresa May
Preceded byKaren Bradley[a]
Succeeded byVictoria Atkins
Deputy Chairman of the Conservative Party
In office
10 September 2012 – 11 May 2015
LeaderDavid Cameron
Preceded byMichael Fallon
Succeeded byRobert Halfon
Member of Parliament
for Truro and Falmouth
In office
6 May 2010 – 6 November 2019
Preceded byConstituency created
Succeeded byCherilyn Mackrory
Personal details
Born
Sarah Louise Hick

(1961-07-19) 19 July 1961 (age 63)
Gloucestershire, England
Political partyConservative
SpouseAlan Newton[1]
Children3
Residence(s)Mylor, Cornwall
Alma materKing's College London
OccupationPolitician
WebsiteSarah Newton MP

Early life

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Born in Gloucestershire, Newton moved to Cornwall at an early age, and attended Marlborough Infants, Clare Terrace Primary School and Falmouth School, where she was elected Head Girl.[2]

Newton read history at King's College London. She completed a master's degree in the United States, studying as a Rotary International Scholar.[3]

Professional career

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Newton began her career as a marketing officer for businesses including Citibank and American Express. During her six years working for American Express, Newton was responsible for strategic planning, marketing and promotion of the card in the United Kingdom. In the early 1990s, Newton served as the director of Age Concern England.[4] After leaving this post, Newton served as a founder and the initial director of The International Longevity Centre.[5]

Political career

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Newton was previously a councillor on Merton Council, and served as both chairman and vice-chairman of Wimbledon Conservatives. During her time in Wimbledon, Newton served as the head of Friends of Cannizaro Park.[6]

Newton was first elected to the House of Commons in the 2010 general election. She beat the Liberal Democrat candidate by 435 votes. In 2015 she won re-election with 44% of the overall vote.[7] After both elections, Newton was one of four MPs sworn into office after taking their oaths in Cornish.[8][9]

During the 2016 EU membership referendum, Newton was one of several figures from the South West region who signed a statement backing the Britain Stronger in Europe campaign.[10]

She became Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Crime, Safeguarding and Vulnerability in July 2016.[11] In November 2017, she became the Minister of State for Disabled People, Work and Health.[6] In March 2019, she resigned from this role to vote against the government whip on a motion to prevent the United Kingdom from ever leaving the EU without a deal.[12][13]

Newton did not seek re-election as an MP at the December 2019 general election.[14][15]

Later career

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Newton was appointed Chair of the Health and Safety Executive from 1 August 2020.[16]

Notes

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References

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  1. ^ "Sarah Newton". M.conservatives.com. 12 May 2011. Archived from the original on 24 March 2012. Retrieved 30 July 2016.
  2. ^ "Sarah Newton". cornwallconservatives.com. Cornwall Conservatives. 11 May 2010. [dead link]
  3. ^ "Sarah Newton MP - GOV.UK". www.gov.uk. Retrieved 18 January 2019.
  4. ^ "Sarah Newton appointed as new Chair of HSE | Cornish Stuff". 31 July 2020. Retrieved 9 February 2022.
  5. ^ "About". sarahnewton.org.uk. Sarah Newton. Archived from the original on 17 June 2016. Retrieved 30 July 2016.
  6. ^ a b "Sarah Newton MP - GOV.UK". www.gov.uk. Retrieved 19 February 2018.
  7. ^ "Truro and Falmouth". Election 2015. BBC. Archived from the original on 10 May 2015. Retrieved 21 May 2015.
  8. ^ "Sarah Newton sworn in". magakernow.org.uk. MAGA - Sodhva an Taves Kernewek / Cornish Language Office. 24 July 2010. [dead link]
  9. ^ Tredhek (3 February 2015). "MPs Dan Rogerson, Andrew George, Stephen Gilbert & Sarah Newton swore their Oath of Allegiance in Cornish. Will they continue to support it?". Twitter. Archived from the original on 31 January 2016. Retrieved 30 July 2016.
  10. ^ Gayle, W. B. (9 June 2016). "Rick Stein, Sarah Newton and Eden Project co-founder Tim Smit say Cornwall is better off in the EU". The West Briton. Local World. Retrieved 11 June 2016.[permanent dead link]
  11. ^ "Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Minister for Safeguarding) - GOV.UK". www.gov.uk. Retrieved 9 February 2022.
  12. ^ Timms, Katie (13 March 2019). "Sarah Newton reportedly resigns after no-deal Brexit vote - updates". Cornwall Live. Retrieved 13 March 2019.
  13. ^ "Last Cornish minister resigns over Brexit vote | |". Cornish Stuff. 13 March 2019. Retrieved 14 March 2019.
  14. ^ Trewhela, Lee (28 October 2019). "Truro and Falmouth MP to stand down after nine years". cornwalllive. Retrieved 13 December 2019.
  15. ^ Eyriey, Nick (29 October 2019). "Sarah Newton MP to stand down". Business Cornwall. Retrieved 13 December 2019.
  16. ^ "Sarah Newton appointed as new Chair of HSE". thisgov.uk.
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Parliament of the United Kingdom
New constituency Member of Parliament for Truro and Falmouth
20102019
Succeeded by