CEF Forum Executive Officers and Patrons come from a broad spectrum of backgrounds including individuals with experience of politics, business and law.
We have always enjoyed significant support from members of both Houses of Parliament.
Amber Rudd
President
After a career in business Amber Rudd became the Member of Parliament for Hastings and Rye from 2010 to 2019. She held three cabinet roles over 4 years and under 3 Prime Ministers, first in Energy & Climate Change, then the Home Office as Home Secretary
David Lidington
Chair
The Rt Hon Sir David Lidington KCB CBE was the Member of Parliament for Aylesbury from 1992 until 2019. Sir David served in a number of front bench roles, including as the UK’s longest serving Minister for European Affairs, Leader of the House of Commons,
John Bowis
Vice President
John Bowis OBE served as a Member of the European Parliament for London from 1999 until stepping down in 2009. Before his election to the European Parliament, John was the MP for Battersea and a Minister in John Major's Government.
Dirk Hazell
Vice President
A barrister, Dirk drafted the EU single market plan then pursued by Margaret Thatcher. Having been General Counsel of an investment bank, he led the euro-capital market through its first EU sectoral legislation. He is a former Conservative parliamentary c
Alistair Burt
Vice President
Alistair entered Parliament for the first time in 1983 for Bury North and between 2001 and 2019 he served as the Member of Parliament for North East Bedfordshire.
Antonio Lopez Isturiz
Vice President
Antonio López-Istúriz White is a Member of the European Parliament (MEP), representing the Spanish centre-right People’s Party (Partido Popular). He is also Secretary Treasurer of the Wilfried Martens Centre for European Studies (WMCES)
Liz Sugg CBE
Vice President
Baroness Sugg has been involved with the Conservative Party for most of her career. She worked for the Conservative Group in the European Parliament and in CCHQ before spending 6 years in Downing Street as a Special Advisor to David Cameron. She joined th
Stephen Hammond MP
Deputy Chair
Stephen Hammond is the Member of Parliament for Wimbledon and was first elected in 2005. He previously served in Government as Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Transport (2012-14) and Minister of State at the Department of Health and Social Care
Liz Spencer
Vice Chair
In the first European Referendum Liz was National Chair of Students for a United Europe. She co-founded and ran the largest, independent, European public policy company with offices in 20 countries.
The Rt Hon Vicky Ford MP has served as the MP for Chelmsford since 2017. From 2021-2022 she was Minister for Africa, Latin America and Caribbean in the Foreign Commonwealth and Development Office, and Minister for Development attending Cabinet.
Ian Berridge
Treasurer
After service in the British Army Ian Berridge became a management consultant working in strategy and risk for international logistics and telecommunications companies. He now runs a rural enterprise and supports pro-European politics.
Peter Wilde
Membership Secretary
Peter Wilde has been actively involved nationally and locally in the Conservative Party since he was a student at the LSE, including working for a number of years at Conservative Central Office and serving as a Constituency chair.
Tim Skeet
Secretary
Tim Skeet has been a long-standing pro-European member of the Conservative Party. He works in the City specialising in debt markets, a job that has taken him around most of Europe and North America.
Mark Leverton has been active in Conservative Party and European politics since he was a student. As a long standing member, he became more active in the group at the time of the 2016 EU Referendum. He held senior executive positions in a leading consumer
Dominic Grieve
Executive
The Rt. Hon Dominic Grieve QC is a barrister and was the MP for Beaconsfield from 1997 to 2019. He was the Shadow Attorney General from 2003-09, Shadow Home Secretary from 2008-09, Shadow Justice Secretary from 2009-10 and Attorney-General from 2010–2014.
Michael Cluff
Executive
Michael Cluff is a consultant with worldwide experience in marketing communications. He has had a long term belief in international co-operation going back to the 1975 referendum campaign.
Denzil Davidson has served former Conservative Prime Ministers and Foreign Secretaries as an adviser on British/EU relations and European politics for over a decade, including as a special adviser to former PM Theresa May
Member European Parliament for North West 2004-2019 where held several senior positions. Vice-President Ribble Valley Cons Association. CEO Haider Global bvba.
David Westover is a communications consultant, focusing on financial communications for international companies. He has been involved in the Conservative Party for over forty years, as an activist and Constituency Association officer.
Patrons:
- Rt Hon Lord Clarke of Nottingham CH QC
- Rt Hon John Gummer, Lord Deben
- Rt Hon Damian Green MP
- Rt Hon Lord Heseltine of Thenford CH
- Rt Hon Lord Hunt of Wirral MBE
- Rt Hon Lord Hurd of Westwell CH CBE
- Lord Kirkhope of Harrogate
- Rt Hon Sir John Major KG CH ACIB
- Rt Hon Lord Patten of Barnes CH
- Ian Taylor MBE
- Robert Walter
- Rt Hon Sir Richard Needham