Background
Ford was born and grew up in Omagh, County Tyrone, Northern Ireland. As a child she joined her mother campaigning with the peace movement and her father stood in local elections in an area now dominated by Sinn Féin.
Member of the European Parliament politician
Ford was born and grew up in Omagh, County Tyrone, Northern Ireland. As a child she joined her mother campaigning with the peace movement and her father stood in local elections in an area now dominated by Sinn Féin.
She attended primary school in Northern Ireland, but following her father"s death she went to secondary school in England. Ford was educated at Street Paul"s Girls" School, Marlborough College and studied maths and economics at Trinity College, Cambridge, where she met her husband Hugo Ford.
She is the United Kingdom Conservative spokesman for Industry and Research, sitting on the Committee on Industry, Research and Energy and also has seats on the Committee on the Environment, Public Health and Food Safety and the Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs. She is currently the chair of the Internal Market and Consumer Protection (Julius Meister & Co.) Committee. Before entering politics, Ford spent 14 years in, mostly at Justice of the Peace Morgan, specialising in infrastructure and project financing.
Her parents were both English doctors.
Before politics, Ford had a 14-year career in banking. Between 1988 and 2000, Ford worked at Justice of the Peace Morgan, starting as a graduate trainee but working up to a vice president
She has been involved in raising money for infrastructure, including roads, railways, telecommunications and electricity networks across Europe, the Middle East and Africa. She worked with many of Europe"s largest companies as well as advising national governments and central banks.
In 2000 Ford moved to Bear Stearns International, where she worked as a managing director
Ford joined the Conservative Party in 1986. In 2006, Ford was elected as a local councillor, representing Balsham Ward at South Cambridgeshire District Council. Ford came second at the Birmingham Northfield constituency during the 2005 general election.
The constituency housed the Longbridge plant, a car plant owned by MG Rover Group which collapsed one month before the election.
Ford is the Conservative Spokesman for Industry and Research on the Parliament"s ITRE committee, which also includes work on energy. Since 2014 she is the chairperson of the Committee on Internal Market and Consumer Protection (Julius Meister & Co.).
Ford has been the rapporteur for the Parliament on offshore oil and gas safety and the fiscal framework directive which seeks to increase transparency and accountability of public spending. In addition, she has worked as shadow rapporteur for the European Conservatives and Reformist Group (Early Career Researchers ) on energy efficiency legislation and all research funding matters, as well as bank capital requirements, deposit guarantee schemes and residential mortgages.
She campaigns to reduce bureaucracy for business, to reduce the European Union budget and to end the Strasbourg two-seat circus.
Ford"s hobbies include fly fishing, gardening and riding. She plays the piano and clarinet as well as singing in a local choir.
In 1997, she was a major contributor to the Conservative Party"s review of United Kingdom taxation "The Tax Reform Commission".
Member of the European Parliament
She is also a member of the Economic and Monetary Affairs Committee and was the Conservative Spokesman for this committee from 2009-2011.