Maria Miller

Maria Miller MP
Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport
Incumbent
Assumed office 4 September 2012
Prime Minister	David Cameron
Preceded by	Jeremy Hunt
Minister for Women and Equalities
Incumbent
Assumed office 4 September 2012
Prime Minister	David Cameron
Preceded by	Theresa May
Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Work and Pensions
In office 12 May 2010 – 04 Sept 2012
Prime Minister	David Cameron
Member of Parliament for Basingstoke
Incumbent
Assumed office 5 May 2005
Preceded by	Andrew Hunter
Majority	13,176 (26%)
Personal details
Born	(1964-03-26) 26 March 1964 Wolverhampton, West Midlands, England
Political party	Conservative
Alma mater	London School of Economics
Profession	Politician and Marketing consultant
Website	mariamiller.co.uk

Maria Frances Lewis Miller (born 26 March 1964 in Wolverhampton) is a British Conservative Party politician who has been the Member of Parliament (MP) for Basingstoke since the 2005 general election. Miller is currently Secretary of State for Culture.

Early life

Born in Wolverhampton but brought up in Bridgend, South Wales, and was educated at the Brynteg Comprehensive School in Bridgend before studying for a BSc in Economics at the London School of Economics, In 1985, she joined Greys Advertising Ltd as an advertising executive and in 1990 she left to become a marketing manager with Texaco. She rejoined Greys in 1994 and served for five years as a director. She became a director for the Rowland Group (became Publicis Consultants) for four years from 1999.

Parliamentary career

She joined the Conservative Party in 1983 and she contested Wolverhampton North East at the 2001 general election but was defeated by the sitting Labour MP Ken Purchase. She has served as the Patron of the Wolverhampton North East Conservative Association since 2001. She was chairman of the Wimbledon Conservative Association for a year from 2002.

She was first elected to the Commons at the 2005 general election following the retirement of the former Conservative MP, Andrew Hunter, who had defected to the Northern Ireland Democratic Unionist Party before he stepped down. In Parliament she served for a year from 2005 as a member of the Trade and Industry select committee. Later in 2005 David Cameron appointed her a spokesperson in the Shadow Education and Skills team. She was appointed Shadow Minister for the Family in 2007. Following the 2010 General Election she was appointed parliamentary Under-Secretary of State and Minister for Disabled People at the Department for Work and Pensions.

On 11 May 2011, thousands of severely disabled people marched (or went in wheelchairs) to protest at Westminster against the deficit-reduction plans implemented by the coalition government of which Maria Miller is a member and Minister for the Disabled.

On 17 May 2012, Miller appeared on BBC Question Time with David Dimbleby, from Cardiff.

On 4 September 2012, Miller was appointed Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport and Minister for Women and Equality in David Cameron's cabinet reshuffle.

Personal life

Maria Miller has been married to Iain Miller since 1990 and they have two sons and a daughter.

External links

• Maria Miller, MP for Basingstoke official site
• Conservatives.com - Maria Miller MP official biography
• Maria Miller, Basingstoke Basingstoke Conservative Association biography
• Guardian Unlimited Politics - Ask Aristotle: Maria Miller MP
• TheyWorkForYou.com - Maria Miller MP
• Appearing on Woman's Hour in 2005
• BBC Politics page