Julian Knight
MP
Official portrait, 2019
Chair of the Digital, Culture, Media and Sport Committee
In office
29 January 2020 – 25 April 2023[lower-alpha 1]
Preceded byDamian Collins
Succeeded byDamian Green (acting)
Member of Parliament
for Solihull
Assumed office
7 May 2015
Preceded byLorely Burt
Majority21,273 (38.4%)
Personal details
Born (1972-01-05) 5 January 1972
Chester, Cheshire, England
Political partyIndependent
Other political
affiliations		Conservative (until 7 December 2022)
SpousePhilippa Harrison
Alma materUniversity of Hull
WebsiteOfficial website

Julian Knight[1] (born 5 January 1972) is a British politician and former journalist who has served as the Member of Parliament (MP) for Solihull since 2015. He was a member of the Conservative Party,[2] but sits in the House of Commons as an independent since December 2022, having had the Conservative Party whip suspended after the Metropolitan Police received a referral involving allegations of sexual assault. Knight said he was "entirely innocent of any wrongdoing whatsoever". Essex police have since begun an investigation into these allegations.[3]

Early life

Knight was born in 1972 in Chester. He grew up in a lone-parent family.[4]

Employment before Parliament

After university, Knight returned to Chester where he worked for a number of electrical retailers before moving to London to sell advertising for The Sun Newspaper. He later worked for the BBC as personal finance and consumer affairs reporter for five years until 2007, working across television, radio and online. In 2007 he became the Money and Property Editor of The Independent on Sunday.[5]

In April 2015, Knight was criticised by Danny Alexander, Chief Secretary to the Treasury,[6] for a book he authored eleven years earlier on tax avoidance. In his 2004 book, Wills, Probate and Inheritance Tax for Dummies, Knight "sets out ways that hardworking parents can pass on the graft of a lifetime" to their children. In the book, he was critical of the system of inheritance tax that existed at the point of publishing. He distinguished between personal tax avoidance, which he advised families on, and the "aggressive tax avoidance" of some multinational companies.[7]

Political career

In 2014, Knight was selected to be the Conservative candidate for Solihull,[8][9] a former Conservative safe seat which had been won by the Liberal Democrats in the 2005 General Election.[10][11] At the 2015 general election Knight won the seat back for the Conservatives with a majority of 12,902, after an 11.9 per cent swing towards the Conservatives.[12]

Prior to the 2016 UK referendum on European Union membership, Knight stated he would vote to remain in the EU.[13]

Knight defended his seat at the 2017 general election and was returned with an increased majority.[12]

In January 2018, Knight was appointed Parliamentary Private Secretary at the Ministry of Justice[14] providing support to Ministers. In September 2018 he moved to the Department for Work and Pensions before moving to HM Treasury in January 2019.

Knight also served as the Prime Ministerial Trade Envoy to Mongolia, where he formed part of a network of parliamentarians with the role of strengthening relations with foreign countries, and helping British businesses in accessing foreign markets.[15] In April 2018, Knight made his first visit to the country as Trade Envoy.[16] Knight made his final visit in September 2018, and left the post at a later date.[17]

Knight defended his seat during the 2019 General Election. He increased his majority, this time to 21,273.[18] Labour came second and the Liberal Democrats were placed third.[19]

In December 2021, Knight said there was a "real sense of palpable loss" over the death of six-year-old Arthur Labinjo-Hughes in Solihull. Knight said the sentences given to the killers of the boy were too lenient and he would be referring the sentences to the Attorney General's Office for review under the unduly lenient sentence scheme.[20]

In April 2022, following the Prime Minister Boris Johnson's apology after being given a fixed penalty notice for breaking Covid-19 regulations, Knight said that due to the Russian invasion of Ukraine it was "not the right time to change the leadership of the country."[21][22]

In July 2022, Knight backed Liz Truss to become Conservative leader, saying "Liz can re-unite our country and as your local Member of Parliament, I hope I have outlined why I believe Liz Truss will make the best Prime Minister to serve the interests of residents in Solihull."[23]

On 7 December 2022, Knight was suspended as a Conservative MP after a complaint was made to the Metropolitan Police. A Conservative Party spokeswoman did not provide further details as it was under investigation.[24] The following day, the Metropolitan Police said that it had received a report of "allegations of sexual assault against unnamed victims" on 28 October 2022 and after a further referral on 7 December 2022 had started an investigation. Knight stated he was "entirely innocent of any wrongdoing whatsoever". He said that he subsequently received "explicit threats involving blackmail as well as being at the centre of a campaign of rumour and innuendo" which was being dealt with by his lawyers.[25] Knight was never arrested or interviewed by the police; on 29 March 2023, he was cleared of any wrongdoing by the Metropolitan Police, but was not reinstated to the parliamentary Conservative Party following "further complaints".[26]

Committees

From July 2015 to April 2017, Knight served as a member of the House of Commons Communities and Local Government Committee,[27] during which time he co-sponsored the Government's Homelessness Reduction Act 2017.[28]

He was a member of the Culture, Media, and Sport Select Committee, later the Digital, Culture, Media and Sport Select Committee from December 2016 until April 2023.[27] In that role he made several interventions, including on the BBC gender pay row[29][30] and against Facebook and digital company Cambridge Analytica during the committee's inquiry into 'fake news'.[31][32] In January 2020, Knight was elected as Chair of the Digital, Culture, Media and Sport Select Committee. Knight replaced Damian Collins as chairman.[5]

Knight announced he was recusing himself from Parliament until a complaint made about him to the Metropolitan Police had been resolved; he thus temporarily stepped down as DCMS Chair from January to March 2023, with Damian Green acting in his absence.[33]

Knight announced in April 2023 that he would be resigning the Chair of the DCMS Select Committee, and would not contest the next general election.[34] Speaking of his resignation as an MP, Knight said, "I have reluctantly come to the conclusion that no job or political career is worth this."

In May 2023 one of the cases of sexual assault against Knight was referred to Essex Police and continues to be investigated at the time of writing.[35]

Other work

Knight has written books on a variety of subjects for the For Dummies series, including the Euro crisis, Retiring Wealthy and The Royal Wedding.[36]

Personal life

Knight lives in Solihull. He is married to Philippa, a former nurse.[37]

Notes

  1. ↑ Damian Green was Acting Chair from 10 January 2023 to 31 March 2023 while Knight temporarily stood aside.

References

  1. ↑ "No. 61961". The London Gazette. 19 June 2017. p. 11779.
  2. ↑ "Solihull Parliamentary constituency". BBC News. BBC. Retrieved 9 May 2015.
  3. ↑ "Essex Police investigate Solihull MP Julian Knight accused of serious sexual assault". 16 May 2023.
  4. ↑ Knight, Julian. "About". Julian Knight. Retrieved 20 September 2015.
  5. 1 2 Tobitt, Charlotte (30 January 2020). "Former BBC journalist who backs licence fee reform elected DCMS Committee chairman". Press Gazette.
  6. ↑ "Tory candidate for Solihull under fire over book on tax avoidance". The Guardian. 23 April 2015. Retrieved 21 April 2022.
  7. ↑ "Tory candidate for Solihull under fire over book on tax avoidance". The Guardian. 23 April 2015. Retrieved 20 November 2019.
  8. ↑ "Solihull Conservatives select Julian Knight as our Parliamentary Candidate". Solihull Borough. 20 March 2013. Retrieved 9 September 2018.
  9. ↑ "Julian Knight selected for Solihull". West Midlands. Retrieved 9 September 2018.
  10. ↑ "Electoral Commission | Solihull". www.electoralcommission.org.uk. Retrieved 9 September 2018.
  11. ↑ "Lib Dems hold inquest after their 'decapitation strategy' misses". The Independent. Retrieved 9 September 2018.
  12. 1 2 "Solihull parliamentary constituency - Election 2017". BBC News. Retrieved 9 September 2018.
  13. ↑ "Solihull's Conservative MP Julian Knight will vote to stay in Europe". Solihull Observer. 24 February 2016. Retrieved 9 September 2018.
  14. ↑ "List of PPS's". Conservative Home. Retrieved 9 September 2018.
  15. ↑ "Trade envoys". GOV.UK. Retrieved 9 September 2018.
  16. ↑ "PRESIDENT RECEIVES UK TRADE ENVOY JULIAN KNIGHT - President of Mongolia". President of Mongolia. 6 April 2018. Retrieved 9 September 2018.
  17. ↑ "Trade Mission to Mongolia 16th – 21st September 2018 - CEA: Construction Equipment Association". CEA: Construction Equipment Association. 15 August 2018. Retrieved 9 September 2018.
  18. ↑ "Solihull parliamentary constituency - Election 2019". BBC News.
  19. ↑ "General Election 2019: Solihull result". Coventry Telegraph. 12 December 2019.
  20. ↑ "Arthur Labinjo-Hughes: Jail terms of boy's killers to be reviewed". BBC News. 4 December 2021.
  21. ↑ Lyons, Izzy; Saunt, Raven (20 April 2022). "How much Boris Johnson was fined and what the law says about Covid fixed penalty notices". The Telegraph. ISSN 0307-1235. Retrieved 21 April 2022.
  22. ↑ "Statement from Julian Knight MP". Julian Knight MP. 13 April 2022. Retrieved 21 April 2022.
  23. ↑ "Julian Knight MP backs Liz Truss in the Conservative Party leadership election". Julian Knight MP. 13 July 2022. Retrieved 22 June 2023.
  24. ↑ "Senior Tory MP suspended after complaint to police". BBC News. 7 December 2022.
  25. ↑ "Tory MP Julian Knight suspended after sex assault allegation made to police". BBC News. 8 December 2022.
  26. ↑ "Julian Knight: Met Police drop sexual assault investigation into Tory MP". BBC News. 29 March 2023. Retrieved 10 April 2023.
  27. 1 2 "Julian Knight MP". UK Parliament. Retrieved 9 September 2018.
  28. ↑ "Solihull MP Julian Knight has pledged to support Solihull Council in its new effort to tackle homelessness in the borough". Solihull Observer. 18 January 2017. Retrieved 9 September 2018.
  29. ↑ Singh, Anita (1 February 2018). "Sarah Montague: I was gobsmacked by BBC gender pay report". The Telegraph. ISSN 0307-1235. Retrieved 9 September 2018.
  30. ↑ Tsang, Amie (31 January 2018). "BBC Managers Face Barrage of Criticism in Gender Pay Dispute". The New York Times. Retrieved 9 September 2018.
  31. ↑ Waterson, Jim (26 April 2018). "'Facebook is a morality-free zone': tech chief lambasted by MP". The Guardian. Retrieved 9 September 2018.
  32. ↑ "MPs laugh at Facebook boss during intense grilling in parliament". The Independent. Retrieved 9 September 2018.
  33. ↑ "Damian Green MP chosen as acting Chair of DCMS Committee - Committees - UK Parliament".
  34. ↑ "MP Julian Knight to stand down at next election". BBC News. 21 April 2023. Retrieved 21 April 2023.
  35. ↑ "Julian Knight: Essex Police to investigate MP accused of serious sexual assault". Sky News. Retrieved 22 June 2023.
  36. ↑ "Who is Julian Knight". Birmingham Mail. 8 May 2015. Retrieved 20 September 2015.
  37. ↑ "Julian Knight MP". West Midlands Conservatives. Retrieved 11 December 2022.
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