Controversial remarks, Nadine Dorries and championing beer all feature in our brief guide to the new community pubs minster, Kris Hopkins.
His official title is Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government and he will be responsible for local government; adult social care; planning policy and casework in relation to wind farms and solar and community pubs.
His record show he generally votes along the party line. On pub specific issues he has voted ‘very strongly for’ higher taxes on alcoholic drinks; ‘strongly for’ increasing the rate of VAT and ‘very strongly against’ requiring pub companies to offer rent-only leases.
He was elected MP for Keighley and Ilkley in 2010 after two unsuccessful attempts to become the member for Leeds West in 2001 and Halifax in 2005.
Before entering politics he was a member of the Duke of Wellington’s regiment and served in Kenya, Northern Ireland and Germany. After leaving the army he did a degree in communications and cultural studies at Leeds University before going on to lecture in media theory, communications and digital media.
He became a Bradford councillor in 1998 and was made deputy leader in 2004 before becoming leader of the council two years later – a position he held until his election to Parliament.
He describes himself as “a keen walker and runner and an able photographer”.
On his promotion to the housing brief at the Department for Communities and Local Government last year, outspoken Tory MP Nadine Dorries branded him one of Parliament's “slimiest, nastiest MPs”. She described his promotion as a "really awful decision".
He is a member of the All Party Parliamentary Beer Group and in April was awarded a Parliamentary Beer Champion accolade by the British Beer and Pub Association.
On his website he lists his campaigning priorities as backing business; building a better Britain; tackling violent crime and giving people the chance to vote in a referendum on UK membership of the EU.
He has caused controversy with some of his opinions. Earlier this month he had to clarify his comments that it was “perfectly legitimate” for a private landlords to evict tenants on housing benefit. He said his remarks were intended to support an individual’s “commercial choice about who they want to live in their accommodation”. He also hit the headlines for his comments in 2012 on the Muslim community, when he said “gangs of Muslim men were going around raping white kids”. He said he aired his views to open a debate on the issues, which he claimed mainstream politicians had failed to address.
Pubs dominated heated discussions within the House of Commons this evening as the bill containing a proposed statutory code for the sector got its second reading.
Brandon Lewis MP has promised that the pub industry will remain “well looked after”, following his promotion to Minister of State for the Department of Communities and Local Government (DCLG) today.
