Dominic Grieve, English lawyer and politician, Attorney General for England and Wales
Dominic Charles Roberts Grieve (born 24 May 1956) is a British barrister and former politician who served as Shadow Home Secretary from 2008 to 2009 and Attorney General for England and Wales from 2010 to 2014. He served as the Member of Parliament (MP) for Beaconsfield from 1997 to 2019 and was the Chair of the Intelligence and Security Committee from 2015 to 2019.
Grieve attended the Cabinet as Attorney General for England and Wales and Advocate General for Northern Ireland from May 2010 to July 2014. He was dismissed as Attorney General by Prime Minister David Cameron as part of the 2014 Cabinet reshuffle, and was replaced by Jeremy Wright. Elected as a Conservative, Grieve had the Conservative whip removed in the September 2019 suspension of rebel Conservative MPs. He unsuccessfully stood as an independent candidate in Beaconsfield at the 2019 general election.
A liberal conservative, Grieve was a central figure on Brexit and frequently used his experience as a lawyer to propose amendments on the issue, with his interventions often being at odds with government policy. A prominent Remain supporter on Brexit, Grieve called for a second referendum on EU membership, and before being expelled had said that he and other Conservative rebels would support a vote of no confidence to bring down a Conservative government, if that were the only way to block the “catastrophic” damage from a bad Brexit. In spring 2019, Grieve was threatened with deselection by his local party after losing a confidence vote by members. In October 2019, following removal of the whip, Grieve announced that he would stand as an independent candidate in his constituency's seat at the next general election. It was announced that the Liberal Democrats would stand aside to help him, but to no avail, as he lost his seat.
Grieve is the president of the Franco-British Society. He was awarded the Legion of Honour in 2016, and broadcasts in French on French radio and television. He is a practising Anglican and was a member of the London diocesan synod of the Church of England.
1956May, 24
Dominic Grieve
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Events on 1956
- 26Jul
Suez Crisis
Following the World Bank's refusal to fund building the Aswan Dam, Egyptian leader Gamal Abdel Nasser nationalizes the Suez Canal, sparking international condemnation. - 17Oct
Bobby Fischer
Donald Byrne and Bobby Fischer play a famous chess game called The Game of the Century. Fischer beat Byrne and wins a Brilliancy prize. - 23Oct
Hungarian Revolution of 1956
Thousands of Hungarians protest against the government and Soviet occupation. (The Hungarian Revolution is crushed on November 4). - 4Nov
Hungarian Revolution of 1956
Soviet troops enter Hungary to end the Hungarian revolution against the Soviet Union, that started on October 23. Thousands are killed, more are wounded, and nearly a quarter million leave the country. - 12Nov
Sudan
Morocco, Sudan and Tunisia join the United Nations.