CRHnews - MEP Vicky Ford promotes Radio City vision - EXCLUSIVE

East of England MEP Victoria Grace 'Vicky' Ford took part in a constituency party rally and pep talk in the shadow of Shire Hall on Bank Holiday Monday, May 1, 2017.

Omagh-born Ford was selected two days earlier by local Tories following the retirement of Sir Simon Burns who was the Conservative MP for Chelmsford for thirty years.

Vicky found time in her busy schedule to speak exclusively to CRHnews, focussing on Radio City - Marconi's wireless legacy - but promised to elaborate at a future interview.

Vicky lives with her husband Hugo in the heart of the East of England and have three student age children.

She read Maths and Economics at Trinity College, Cambridge where she met Hugo, who is a cancer specialist at Addenbrookes Hospital.

As MEP Vicky has led negotiations on banking reform in the aftermath of the financial crisis, led reforms of European gun laws after the Paris terrorist attacks and played a leading role in establishing a €80 billion Horizon fund for science and research which as brought over £500 million into the East of England.

Prior to becoming involved in politics, Vicky was a managing director of a major international bank.

She has been involved in raising money for infrastructure, including roads, railways, telecommunications and electricity networks across Europe, the Middle East and Africa.

Vicky was elected a Member of the European Parliament in 2009 and is the leading Conservative MEP for the East of England.

Since 2014 Vicky has chaired the European Parliament Internal Market and Consumer Affairs Committee, one of the most powerful economic committees of the Parliament, focusing on digital policy, and unlocking trade opportunities for services and goods. She was re-elected unopposed to the chair in 2017.

She is a member of the Bureau of the European Conservative and Reformist Group and a member of the Parliament's delegation for relations with China.

From 2009-2014 Vicky was a member of the European Parliament Industry, Research and Energy Committee and the Economic and Monetary Affairs committee.

She led the negotiations on budgetary frameworks, securing the exemption for the UK from EU fiscal rules.

Before becoming an MEP, she was elected to Local Government in South Cambridgeshire holding portfolios for finance and community development. She led the campaign to save Milton Country Park.

Vicky is a longstanding campaigner for the need for reform in Europe focussing on the need to boost economic growth by reducing bureaucracy and increasing competitiveness.

She is the lead negotiator for the ECR Group on the inter-group political discussions to set the priorities for the European Commission's annual work programme.

Vicky also led the Parliament's scrutiny of the proposals to update Europe's firearms legislation in the aftermath of the Paris attacks.

Vicky Ford is Chairman of the European Parliament Internal Market and Consumer Affairs Committee. She was elected a Member of the European Parliament in 2009 and is the leading Conservative MEP for the East of England.

Ford's hobbies include fly fishing, gardening and riding.

She plays the piano and clarinet as well as singing in a local choir.