Tom Pursglove was the Member of Parliament for Corby & East Northamptonshire between May 2015 and July 2024, winning three General Elections in a tough perennial ‘bell-weather seat’, and prior to that, served for eight years in local government and is now leading several start-up business ventures in executive roles.
In Parliament, Tom was as an active constituency MP and served in various challenging ministerial roles in Government continuously, under successive Prime Ministers, including as Minister of State for Legal Migration and the Border, Minister of State for Disabled People, Health and Work, Minister of State for Immigration, Minister of State for Crime, Policing, Victims and Violence Against Women and Girls (VAWG), Minister for Justice & Tackling Illegal Migration, and as an Assistant Government Whip.
Amongst his achievements at the Home Office was advancing the biggest package of measures ever to cut legal migration flows, delivering a sharp halving of visa numbers; announcing the world-first ‘Migration & Economic Development Partnership’ with Rwanda, aimed at breaking the business model of the evil criminal gangs responsible for illegal migration in the Channel; closed over 150 hotels for asylum accommodation purposes; and saw through the delivery of 20,000 extra police officers on our streets, as well as improving the support available for victims of crime and ensuring tougher sentences for perpetrators.
At the Department for Work & Pensions, he oversaw for a time the successful efforts to help and support over two million more disabled people into work and designed new initiatives to build on that progress, including to address people falling out of work owing to health conditions and keeping them closer to the labour market; developed and announced the most significant package of structural welfare reforms since the introduction of Universal Credit, much of which is being implemented by the new government; as well as promoted various flagship initiatives to enhance inclusion and widen opportunity in our society, representing the United Kingdom at the UN in New York on this agenda.
Having (involuntarily!) left Parliament at the last General Election, Tom hopes to return to the green benches at some point in the future. He remains active in Conservative politics, is a regular media contributor on GB News, Sky News and Times Radio, sits on the Advisory Board of Special Olympics Great Britain, leading their efforts to land the 2031 Special Olympics World Games, and amongst other business endeavours is a Founding Director of Ascalane Partners Ltd. There, he helps businesses and their leaders to deliver on their goals and best navigate complex operational and reputational challenges, drawing on his extensive knowledge of the UK political scene, the workings of Whitehall and Parliament, and his problem solving experience.
- Does your organisation have to grapple with high-stakes operational challenges under the glare of the media and with weighty customer expectations? With that in mind, would hearing from a former Minister who worked at the very heart of the UK’s immigration system and its increasingly topical complexities be of interest to you?
- Would you and your colleagues benefit from hearing real insights about employment, accessibility and inclusion and how your organisation could do more to unlock great talent, improve accessibility for customers and staff, and support people into work?
- Would you be interested to hear from someone who was at the heart of a seismic period in British politics and saw all of its twists and turns up close, and with a firm handle on where the current political tides will lead us and what you ought to be thinking about now to succeed in the future?
If so, contact us now to secure this well-connected and highly sought after keynote speaker.