Gay MPs Crispin Blunt and Stephen Twigg to chair Parliamentary committees
Out MPs Crispin Blunt and Stephen Twigg have been elected as the chairs of Parliament’s Foreign Affairs and International Development committees.
Select Committees provide important oversight and scrutiny on government work across a number of policy areas.
The Select Committee chairs are divided up between the parties, meaning that only MPs from certain parties can contest each role.
Conservative MP Mr Blunt, who is a strong supporter of LGBT rights and a former justice minister, bested four other Tories to be elected as Chair of the Foreign Affairs committee – besting John Baron, Richard Graham, Nadhim Zahawi and Daniel Kawczynski.
Meanwhile, Labour MP Mr Twigg, who served as Shadow Secretary of State for Education under Ed Miliband, bested Fabian Hamilton, Albert Owen and Yasmin Qureshi to chair the International Development committee.
The committee was formerly chaired by Lib Dem Malcolm Bruce – but it was handed to Labour after electoral wipeout for the Lib Dems.
The move makes the pair two of the most influential figures with respect to scrutinising the government’s foreign policy.
Maria Miller was previously announced as the chair of the new Women and Equalities committee, which the government agreed to form last month for the first time.
Ms Miller, who previously served as Minister for Women and Equalities before resigning over an expenses scandal, did not need to stand for election as there were no other Tory candidates for the role.
