Chris Ward | |
|---|---|
 Official portrait, 2024 | |
| Parliamentary Secretary for the Cabinet Office | |
| Assumed office 6 September 2025 | |
| Prime Minister | Keir Starmer |
| Preceded by | Hon. Georgia Gould Abena Oppong-Asare |
| Parliamentary Private Secretary to the Prime Minister | |
| In office 17 July 2024 – 6 September 2025 Serving with Liz Twist | |
| Prime Minister | Keir Starmer |
| Preceded by | Craig Williams |
| Succeeded by | Liz Twist |
| Member of Parliament forBrighton Kemptown and Peacehaven | |
| Assumed office 4 July 2024 | |
| Preceded by | Lloyd Russell-Moyle |
| Majority | 9,609 (23.8%) |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Christopher David Ward 1982 (age 42–43) West Sussex, England |
| Political party | Labour |
| Alma mater | Warwick University (BA) New College, Oxford (MPhil) |
Christopher David Ward (born 1982)[1][2] is a British politician who serves asMember of Parliament forBrighton Kemptown and Peacehaven since 2024.[3]
A member of theLabour Party, Ward was appointedParliamentary Secretary for the Cabinet Office in 2025.[4]
Ward was born in 1982[5] and grew up atSouthwick, West Sussex, to parents hailing fromPeacehaven,East Sussex.
A supporter ofBrighton & Hove Albion FC,[6] Ward joined theLabour Party at the age of 18.[6] He read History & Politics at theUniversity of Warwick, graduatingBA,[7] before pursuing postgraduate studies in Political Theory atNew College, Oxford (MPhil).[8]
Ward became aparliamentary researcher after graduating fromOxford and spent 6 years working forSir Keir Starmer.[5] From 2015, Ward was employed as Starmer's speechwriter and political advisor. Following Starmer's victory in the2020 Labour Party leadership election, Ward became one of Starmer's closest advisors as part of a group branded bybackbencher Labour MPs the "gang of five" which includedMorgan McSweeney andJenny Chapman. Ward went on to become the Deputy Chief of Staff to Starmer before leaving his advisory role in July 2021.[9][10]
After leaving his advisory role, Ward worked for Hanbury Strategy as a director[11] starting in January 2022.[12] Hanbury Strategy is a registered lobbying firm and political and public affairs consultancy agency,[12][13] where he led the section dedicated to the Labour Party.[14] During his time at the company,[15] Hanbury advised clients includingAmazon,Deliveroo,Flutter,UBS,Blackstone andRockhopper[13] among others.[12] During this time, Ward wrote an article for a Conservative political publicationThe Spectator.[16]
Ward was selected as prospective parliamentary candidate forBrighton Kemptown and Peacehaven[17] following the suspension ofLloyd Russell-Moyle from the Labour Party regarding allegations dating back to 2016. According to left-wing political commentatorOwen Jones, Ward had expressed an interest in becoming a Member of Parliament in theBrighton area many years previously.[13] The suspension of Russell-Moyle triggered an emergency meeting the next day,[18] immediately following which Ward was announced as Labour's new candidate. More than 200 members of the local Labour Party protested against the method of Ward's selection,[19] and Nancy Platts[20] formerLeader ofBrighton and Hove City Council questioned the fairness of the process.[21] His Labour general election campaign launch was interrupted bypro-Palestinian activists protesting against theIsraeli invasion of the Gaza Strip,[22] with Ward accused of being aparachute candidate.[19]
Considered to be on the right of the Labour Party, Ward is a supporter of "Starmerism".[7]
| Parliament of the United Kingdom | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Member of Parliament forBrighton Kemptown and Peacehaven 2024–present | Incumbent |
