Lee was appointedParliamentary Under-Secretary of State responsible for youth justice, victims, female offenders and offender health at theMinistry of Justice in July 2016.[3] He resigned from the government in June 2018 in response to its handling ofBrexit.[4] On 3 September 2019, he resigned from the Conservative Party to join the Liberal Democrats; and between October and December 2019 he served as theirSpokesperson for Justice.[5]
Supporters of Lee's resignation stand at the 2018People's Vote march.
Lee's political career began in local politics. He joined theConservatives inBeaconsfield in 1992, becoming a member of its executive board in 1997 and its deputy chairman in 2005. Lee ran for thelocal council in 2001. In the2005 general election, he campaigned as the party's candidate for what was the safestLabour seat in Wales ofBlaenau Gwent in SouthWales. He polled just 816 votes - all other parties had been put by the wayside when there was a prominent and bitter campaign between Labour, who had imposed an all-women shortlist on the constituency, and the Independent candidatePeter Law, who took the seat. After being appointed a priority national candidate on the party's firstA-List in 2006,[8] Lee was selected in anopen primary in 2009 to be the candidate to fight the local seat ofBracknell in Berkshire at the2010 general election. The seven-person short-list also included prominent Conservative commentatorIain Dale, andRory Stewart.[7][9] At the 2010 general election, Lee retained the seat for his party with a majority of 15,704 votes.[10]
Lee's parliamentary interests include:
Energy
He served as a member of theEnergy and Climate Change Select Committee and was at the forefront of questioning UK energy companies' price hikes.[11] Lee has called for energy efficiency to be the primary target of theUK Government's policy and supports increasing energy security with morenuclear power and aninterconnector withNorway. He drew attention to the limited potential of free markets in the energy sector and called for cooperative ways of retailing and distributing electricity and gas.[12]
Health
Lee warned in 2011 that theNational Health Service as then configured would not meet future demand for healthcare and campaigned for healthcare services in the United Kingdom and funding to be reconfigured.[13] His 2012 publication "The Royal Thames Valley Hospital – a Vision of a Sustainable Healthcare Plan" is a proposal for improving clinical outcomes while building capacity to meet future healthcare demand across theThames Valley.[14] The thenHome Secretary,Theresa May, also aThames ValleyMP, gave the plan her support at a public meeting in January 2013.[15] Lee sparked controversy in 2013 when he suggested that provision of free medicine by the NHS would need to be restricted because Britons are less willing than previous generations to tolerate discomfort,[16] and again in 2014 when he called for migrants with HIV andhepatitis B to be banned from entering the UK.[17] He proposed introducing individual healthcare statements in aTen Minute Rule Bill in 2012.[18] In 2014, Lee stood for election as Chairman of theHealth Select Committee.
At theSocial Market Foundation fringe meeting at the 2017 Conservative party conference, he referred to pensions, health and social care as aPonzi scheme which was about to collapse.[19]
Foreign affairs
Lee served as vice chair of theConservative Middle East Council from 2010. He argued for a comprehensive approach to foreign policy, pointing out that energy policy should be an important element in foreign and defence policies.[20] In 2012, he warned of rising threats from China's domestic vulnerabilities.[21] He regularly participated in theKonrad-Adenauer-Stiftung's exchange programme with members of the GermanBundestag and has called for a closer relationship with Germany.[22] He voted against military action inSyria in 2013 as he believed there needed to be a more thought-through strategy towards Syria and the wider region before the United Kingdom involved itself.[23] In July 2014, he argued for a strong response to the shooting down ofMalaysia Airlines Flight 17 on Europe's border and for Britain's role in the world to be redefined saying, "I fear that because of our level of debt and of dependence, and our complete absence of any vision or leadership, we are being less of a country than we should be and most certainly less of a country than the globe desperately needs".[20]
Science, technology and space
Lee was vice chair of the Parliamentary Space Committee. Lee was also a member of the Parliamentary Office of Science and Technology in the 2010–2015 Parliament. He has long campaigned for a British space port and supported Reaction Engines' breakthrough in aerospace technology with itsSABRE. His 2011Adjournment debate onmicrogravity spurred £60m state investment into theEuropean Space Agency's ELIPS programme.[24] This funding played a significant part in theEuropean Space Agency's decision to grantTimothy Peake a place in space. Lee was a Member of the Administration Committee from July 2010 to December 2012 and sits on the Parliamentary Medical Panel. He has driven improvements to mental health services for parliamentarians.[citation needed] Lee served as Chairman of the All Party Parliamentary Environment Group (2010–2013).
Lee's voting record was loyal. He rarely rebelled against the Conservativewhip and did not vote against anything in the Conservative's manifesto.[25] However, he did not support theUK Government'sHigh Speed 2 project which he said is of the past and not of the future, profligate and not a priority for infrastructure investment.[26] Neither did he support the Government's proposals forHouse of Lords reform or military action inSyria in 2013.[23] Lee abstained overSame-sex marriage legislation, noting that Parliament's role should be limited to legislating for equalcivil union while calling on theChurch to find a way to recognise same-sex relationships.[27][28]
In his constituency ofBracknell, Lee campaigned for better services and facilities. He called for improved health service outcomes and in 2012 launched a plan to achieve this which would consolidate acute healthcare in a new, regional centre of excellence and deliver a greater proportion of care in the community – including through the recently opened Bracknell Urgent Care Centre.[14] He lobbied for better transport links into, and across, the region andSouth West Trains is now increasing passenger rail capacity fromBracknell.[29] Lee supports expandingLondon Heathrow Airport and has endorsed theHeathrow Hub proposal to extend capacity[30] alongside the extension ofCrossrail toReading. Lee lobbiedBT Group to improve the delivery of superfast broadband and coverage across the constituency in 2012 was almost 90%.[31]
Lee was opposed to Brexit prior to the2016 referendum.[32] He resigned as a minister on 12 June 2018. In a widely reported resignation statement, he said that his reason was so he could "better speak up for my constituents and country over how Brexit is currently being delivered". He went on to warn that the current approach to Brexit would damage businesses in his constituency, and that he could not support the government's opposition to Parliament deciding what happens if it rejects the final deal "because doing so breaches such fundamental principles of human rights and Parliamentary sovereignty".[1] In early 2019 he became chair ofRight to Vote,[33] having already joined thePeople's Vote campaign for apublic vote on the final Brexit deal between the UK and the European Union.[34] On 1 June 2019 Bracknell Conservative Association passed amotion of no confidence in Lee, partly due to clashes over Lee's stance on Brexit, and partly due to dissatisfaction with his performance as the local MP.[35]
On 3 September 2019, Leecrossed the floor to join theLiberal Democrats during a speech by the Prime Minister over disagreements with the Conservative Party's handling of Brexit.[5][36] His resignation left the Conservative government with noworking majority in the House of Commons.[37] In his letter of resignation to the Prime Minister, Lee stated that he had "reached the conclusion that it [was] no longer possible to serve [his] constituents' and country's best interests as a Conservative Member of Parliament."[38] He went on to state: "Sadly, the Brexit process has helped to transform this once great [Conservative] Party in to something more akin to a narrow faction, where an individual's 'conservatism' is measured by how recklessly one wishes to leave the European Union. Perhaps most disappointingly, it has increasingly become infected with the twin diseases of populism and English nationalism."[39] In the letter, Lee described the Liberal Democrats as being "best placed to build the unifying and inspiring political force needed to heal our divisions, unleash our talents, equip us to take the opportunities and overcome the challenges that we face as a society — and leave our country and our world in a better place for the next generations."[40]
Lee's admission to the Lib Dems caused a number of LGBT+ members to quit the party, due to their perception of his voting record onLGBT+ rights. Lee responded saying that his record on LGBT+ rights had been misrepresented.[41][42]
Lee is a keen sportsman. He has played competitive football, and followedQueens Park Rangers F.C. since the age of six. He has played competitiverugby union forMarlow Rugby Union Football Club and was a member ofOxford University RFC and has also played cricket for the Old Grumblers. Lee played for the Conservative Party's Parliamentary football team and is a member of the All Party Parliamentary Group on Boxing.[citation needed]
