Andrew Selous

Andrew Edmund Armstrong Selous (born 27 April 1962) is a Conservative Party politician in the United Kingdom who has been the Member of Parliament for South West Bedfordshire since 2001 general election.

Early life
Selous was born in Marylebone to Mary (née Casey) and Gerald Selous. He was educated at West Downs School, Eton College and the London School of Economics, receiving a BSc in Industry and Trade in 1984. Selous joined the Honourable Artillery Company in 1981 where he served as a soldier until receiving a commission in the Royal Regiment of Fusiliers in October 1989. Selous was then transferred to the London Regiment in April 1993 before being placed in the Regular Army Reserve of Officers in January 1996. From 1988 until 1994, he was a director of his family firm CNS Electronics (now CNS Farnell). From 1991 until 2001, he was an underwriter at Great Lakes Reinsurance (UK) PLC.

Parliamentary career
Selous was first elected to the House of Commons in 2001, and had previously contested Sunderland North seat in 1997. He is a director and prominent member of the Conservative Christian Fellowship.

In 2006, Selous was promoted to Shadow Minister for Work and Pensions.

In the Coalition government, he was the Parliamentary Private Secretary to Iain Duncan Smith, Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, from 28 May 2010 to 16 July 2014. On 16 July 2014, he was appointed as Parliamentary Under Secretary of State in the Ministry of Justice with responsibility for Prisons and Probation and retained this role following the 2015 general election. However he was asked to step down from the government by Theresa May after she became Prime Minister in July 2016.

He provoked ridicule by making a tweet (subsequently deleted) supporting the removal of benefit entitlement from non-English speakers: "Strongly support the loss of benefits unless claimants lean [sic] English."

He also attracted criticism in 2014 for reportedly telling a meeting that "disabled people work harder because they're grateful to have a job", following a furore over Lord Freud's claim that some disabled people were not worth the minimum wage. Selous subsequently argued that he had simply been trying to convey the message that disabled people were valued by employers, and his observation that disabled people often work harder was supported by a spokesperson for Disability Rights UK.

Selous chairs the All Party Parliamentary Group on Strengthening Couple Relationships, and argues that cross-party efforts to prevent family breakdown can relieve pressure on the care system. He was opposed to the Marriage (Same Sex Couples) Act 2013, arguing that it was directly contrary to what Jesus said.

News items

 * Concerns over housing growth BBC News, 6 November 2003
 * Swiss assisted suicide 'may be illegal' BBC News, 16 April 2003
 * MP challenges Guides' age policy BBC News, 25 January 2002