Katherine Fletcher

Katherine Fletcher (born 18 February 1976) is a British Conservative Party politician serving as the Member of Parliament (MP) for South Ribble in Lancashire following the 2019 General Election.[2]

Katherine Fletcher

MP
Member of Parliament
for South Ribble
Assumed office
12 December 2019
Preceded bySeema Kennedy
Majority11,199 (20.8%)
Personal details
Born
Katherine Fletcher

(1976-02-18) 18 February 1976[1]
Wythenshawe, Manchester, England
Political partyConservative
Alma materUniversity of Nottingham

Early life and career

Katherine Fletcher was born in 1976 in Northenden, before moving to affluent Bowdon in Cheshire,England.[3]

Fletcher attended Royal Green Infants School in Northenden, St Wilfreds Junior School and then Altrincham Grammar Girls School a highly selective establishment in Bowdon, Cheshire. She studied Biology at University of Nottingham during which time she worked as a nursing assistant in an elderly care home. Before her election, Fletcher worked in Banking and assisted in the early setup of the Northern Powerhouse. At the time of the election Fletcher was a small and medium enterprise (SME) business owner [3] and a Town Councillor on Knutsford Town Council.[4] Fletcher resigned from the Town Council in April 2020. [5]

Parliamentary career

Fletcher stood as the Conservative Party's candidate in Ellesmere Port and Neston at the 2015 general election. She came second in the election to the Labour MP Justin Madders. She was elected as Member of Parliament (MP) for South Ribble in the 2019 general election.[6] Her predecessor was fellow Conservative Seema Kennedy, who retired. Fletcher has indicated that she believes that the A&E service at Chorley District General Hospital should be restored to a 24-hour service.[7]

As of March 2020, Fletcher holds Membership of two Parliamentary Committees: Science and Technology Committee (Commons) and Petitions Committee. [8]

Criticism

In October 2020 Katherine Fletcher along with other conservative MP's voted against providing free school meals to children over the school holidays.[9] This led to Paul Foster, the leader of South Ribble Borough Council, sending an open letter to her, in which he says her decision was "utterly incomprehensible". The letter also asks Mrs Fletcher to contact the council "prior to making such inappropriate decisions in the future".[10]

Personal life

Fletcher qualified as safari ranger (field guide) during a gap year in Mpumalanga in Limpopo province, South Africa, and Mozambique. Away from politics, she enjoys palaeontology and holds a season ticket at Manchester United.[3]

References
  1. "Members' Names Data Platform query". UK Parliament. Retrieved 12 December 2020.
  2. "South Ribble parliamentary constituency - Election 2019". Retrieved 15 December 2019.
  3. "Katherine Fletcher". South Ribble Conservatives. Retrieved 13 December 2019.
  4. "Knutsford Town Council Election Results May 2019". Knutsford Town Council. Retrieved 13 December 2019.
  5. "Cllr Fletcher Steps Down". Knutsford Town Council. Retrieved 16 April 2020.
  6. "South Ribble" (PDF). South Ribble District Council. Retrieved 13 December 2019.
  7. "REVEALED: The suggested shortlist of options for Chorley A&E". www.lep.co.uk. Retrieved 25 January 2020.
  8. https://members.parliament.uk/member/4834/career
  9. "Voting record". Retrieved 7 November 2020.
  10. "Srbc letter to katherine". 26 October 2020. Retrieved 7 November 2020.
Parliament of the United Kingdom
Preceded by
Seema Kennedy		 Member of Parliament
for South Ribble
2019–present		 Incumbent
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