Quick Facts
Biography
Lee Benjamin Rowley (born 1980) is a Conservative Party politician who was elected as the MP for North East Derbyshire at the 2017 general election. It was a Conservative gain as Rowley defeated the sitting Labour MP Natascha Engel in a seat which had been represented by Labour MPs since 1935.
Early life
The son of a milkman, Rowley was born in Chesterfield, which the NE Derbyshire constituency almost encircles. Born in the town's Scarsdale Hospital, he was raised in locally, and attended St Marys High School, from where he was the first member of his family to attend university. Rowley won an Exhibition to Lincoln College, Oxford in 2000.
Political activity
A business manager, Rowley was a councillor on Westminster City Council from 2006 to 2014, where he represented the Maida Vale
ward. In 2006, Rowley was elected with 1,357 votes, which subsequently increased to 1,724 at the 2010 council elections.
Personal life
Rowley has described himself as LGBT, being the first LGBT MP for North East Derbyshire since its creation.