Will Quince

William James Quince[1] (born 27 December 1982) is a British Conservative Party politician and former lawyer. He was first elected at the 2015 general election as the Member of Parliament (MP) for Colchester, replacing the incumbent Liberal Democrat MP Sir Bob Russell.[2] From 2011 to 2016, Quince was a borough councillor for Prettygate ward in Colchester.

Will Quince

MP
Quince in 2020
Minister for Welfare Delivery
Assumed office
4 April 2019
Prime MinisterTheresa May
Boris Johnson
Preceded byJustin Tomlinson
Member of Parliament
for Colchester
Assumed office
7 May 2015
Preceded bySir Bob Russell
Majority9,423 (17.6%)
Personal details
Born (1982-12-27) 27 December 1982
Buckinghamshire, England
Political partyConservative
EducationThe Windsor Boys' School, Berkshire
Alma materAberystwyth University

Early life and education

Quince was born on 27 December 1982 in Buckinghamshire. He grew up in Berkshire and attended The Windsor Boys' School,[3] a state comprehensive school in the town of Windsor in Berkshire. He studied Law between 2001 and 2005 at Aberystwyth University.

Career

After graduating, Quince worked for Concur Technologies Ltd as a Market Development Executive and Britvic as a Customer Development Executive.[4] Based in Ware in Hertfordshire, he was elected as one of two Conservative Party councillors for Ware Christchurch ward on East Hertfordshire District Council in May 2007, but stood down in April 2009 after he had won the nomination as Conservative Party Prospective Parliamentary Candidate for Colchester.[5]

He stood unsuccessfully as the Conservative candidate at the 2010 general election for the Colchester seat, coming second behind the incumbent Liberal Democrat MP Sir Bob Russell. Following the electoral defeat, he had roles as a trainee solicitor with the law firm Asher Prior Bates, and as a solicitor with the law firm Thompson Smith and Puxon.[4] Quince was elected as a Conservative councillor for Prettygate ward on Colchester Borough Council at the 2011 local elections, and served as leader of the Conservative group on the council from 2011 to 2014, when he stepped down to focus on the then forthcoming general election.[6]

Parliamentary career

After his defeat in 2010, Quince was successful at the 2015 general election and was elected as the Member of Parliament (MP) for Colchester, replacing the incumbent Liberal Democrat MP Sir Bob Russell.[2] In May 2016, it was reported that Quince was one of a number of Conservative MPs being investigated by police in the 2015 party spending investigation, for allegedly spending more than the legal limit on constituency election campaign expenses.[7] In May 2017, the Crown Prosecution Service said that while there was evidence of inaccurate spending returns, it did not "meet the test" for further action.[8] He campaigned for the UK to leave the European Union during the 2016 referendum.[9]

On 6 September 2016, after a bet on Twitter by a local constituent, Quince auditioned for the TV show Britain's Got Talent in order to raise money for charity. £1000 was raised for local charities.[10]

In March 2017, The Daily Telegraph reported that Quince was one of nine MPs who had claimed Amazon Prime subscriptions on their parliamentary expenses. The Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority, responsible for handling expenses claims, told the paper subscriptions could be claimed but MPs must "justify the subscription is primarily used for parliamentary purposes". He responded that he had claimed the TV package in error and was repaying the cost.[11]

In August 2017, Quince was criticised after he complained on social media about having to pay a fine for parking beyond his paid time period whilst on holiday. After initially receiving criticism that his complaint was selfish and suggestions that he should just pay the fine, the MP said that his concern was not for his own parking fine, but for "those on lower incomes [who] are disproportionately affected by high parking fines." Critics questioned this after it was reported he had consistently voted for a reduction in spending on welfare benefits since becoming an MP.[12]

In December 2017, he was one of three MPs warned by the UK's data privacy regulator about sharing work computer passwords. Quince has stated that his computer is routinely left unlocked to enable staff to use it if they want to.[13][14]

In 2018, he was appointed Parliamentary Private Secretary (PPS) to the Secretary of State for Defence Gavin Williamson.[15] Quince has sat on the Commons Reference Group on Representation and Inclusion, on the Home Affairs Committee and on the Transport Committee.[16] On 23 October 2018, he resigned from the Commons Reference Group on Representation and Inclusion citing lack of confidence in Bercow's ability to tackle bullying and sexual harassment problems in Parliament.[17][18][19][20] Quince resigned as PPS on 8 December 2018, in opposition to the Brexit Withdrawal Agreement and Political Declaration.[21]

Personal life

Quince is married and has two daughters. He and his family live in Colchester.[22]

gollark: Thus, trade it in for less?
gollark: Yes.
gollark: 30kg has not been tested.
gollark: According to empirical testing, I can actually do things with 5kg objects without my bones exploding utterly.
gollark: It's 30kgish.

References
  1. "No. 61230". The London Gazette. 18 May 2015. p. 9122.
  2. "Colchester parliamentary constituency". BBC. 8 May 2015. Retrieved 8 May 2015.
  3. Francis Batt (23 June 2016). "The Windsor Boys' School students join Windsor Lions to set up new Leo club". Windsor Observer. Retrieved 16 October 2016.
  4. "Will Quince | LinkedIn". Linkedin. Retrieved 19 January 2016.
  5. "East Hertfordshire Council Election Results 1973–2011" (PDF). Plymouth University. Retrieved 6 October 2018.
  6. "Will Quince stands down as leader of the Conservative group on Colchester Council". Colchester & Clacton Gazette. Retrieved 19 January 2016.
  7. "The £70,000 question: what does the Conservative party election expenses scandal mean for the government?". New Statesman. 23 June 2016. Retrieved 5 October 2018.
  8. "No charges over 2015 Conservative battle bus cases". BBC News. Retrieved 5 October 2018.
  9. "EU vote: Where the cabinet and other MPs stand". BBC News. 22 June 2016. Retrieved 23 October 2018.
  10. "MP Quince looks set to fulfill his BGT Twitter bet". Gazette. Retrieved 6 September 2016.
  11. "Nine MPs used their parliamentary expenses to fund Amazon Prime subscriptions". The Daily Telegraph. 11 March 2017. Retrieved 5 October 2018.
  12. "Tory MP praised for receiving parking ticket, discovering empathy". joe.co.uk. 7 August 2017. Retrieved 5 October 2018.
  13. Quince, Will (3 December 2017). "Less login sharing and more that I leave my machine unlocked so they can use it if needs be. My office manager does know my login though. Ultimately I trust my team". @willquince. Retrieved 4 December 2017.
  14. "Privacy regulator warns MPs over shared passwords". BBC News. Retrieved 5 October 2018.
  16. "Will Quince". Parliament UK. Retrieved 5 October 2018.
  17. Elgot, Jessica; Perraudin, Frances; Topping, Alexandra; Elgot, Jessica; O'Carroll, Lisa (23 October 2018). "Theresa May briefs cabinet on Brexit negotiations – politics live". The Guardian. Retrieved 23 October 2018.
  18. "Pressure on John Bercow after three Tory MPs resign from Commons committee he chairs". The Independent. Retrieved 23 October 2018.
  19. Yorke, Harry (23 October 2018). "John Bercow thrust back into spotlight over Westminster bullying as three Government members quit his committee". The Telegraph. Retrieved 23 October 2018.
  20. "MPs quit group because Bercow chairs it". BBC News. 23 October 2018. Retrieved 23 October 2018.
  21. Quince, Will (24 June 2018). "I am resigning from the Government because May's Brexit deal means obeying EU rules for years to come". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 9 December 2018.
  22. "About Will". Personal website. Retrieved 5 October 2018.
Parliament of the United Kingdom
Preceded by
Bob Russell		 Member of Parliament
for Colchester
2015–present		 Incumbent
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