Catherine Bearder
{{short description|British Liberal Democrat politician|bot=PearBOT 5}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=March 2018}}
{{Use British English|date=March 2018}}
{{Infobox officeholder
| honorific-prefix =
| name = Catherine Bearder
| honorific-suffix = |
| birth_name = Catherine Zena Bailey
| birth_date = {{Birth date and age|1949|1|14|df=y}}
| birth_place = Broxbourne, Hertfordshire, UK
| death_date =
| death_place =
| nationality = British
| spouse = Simon Bearder
| relations =
| children = 3
| office = Leader of the Liberal Democrats
in the European Parliament
| leader = Nick Clegg
Tim Farron
Vince Cable
Jo Swinson
| deputy = Luisa Porritt
| term_start = 2 July 2014
| term_end = 12 November 2019
| predecessor = Fiona Hall
| successor = Caroline Voaden
| office1 = Liberal Democrat Europe Spokesperson
| leader1 = Tim Farron
Sir Vince Cable
Jo Swinson
Ed Davey & Sal Brinton (acting)
| term_start1 = 28 October 2016
| term_end1 = 31 January 2020
| predecessor1 = Michael Moore
| successor1 = Christine Jardine
| office2 = Quaestor of the European Parliament
| president2 = Martin Schulz
Antonio Tajani
| term_start2 = 2 July 2014
| term_end2 = 1 July 2019
| predecessor2 = Lidia Geringer de Oedenberg
| successor2 = Monika Beňová
| party = Liberal Democrat
| image = Catherine Bearder MEP, Strasbourg - Diliff.jpg
| parliament3 = European
| constituency_MP3 = South East England
| term_start3 = 4 June 2009
| term_end3 = 31 January 2020
| predecessor3 = The Baroness Nicholson of Winterbourne
| successor3 = Constituency abolished|
| website = {{URL|http://www.bearder.eu|Constituency website}}
{{URL|http://www.europarl.europa.eu/meps/en/96955/CATHERINE_BEARDER_home.html europarl..CATHERINE_BEARDER|Parliament website}}
| footnotes =
| caption = Bearder in 2014
}}
File:Bearder, Catherine (en).webm
Catherine Zena Bearder (née Bailey;{{Cite web|url=https://www.ukwhoswho.com/view/10.1093/ww/9780199540884.001.0001/ww-9780199540884-e-250391|title=Bearder, Catherine Zena|website=WHO'S WHO & WHO WAS WHO|doi=10.1093/ww/9780199540884.013.U250391|isbn=978-0-19-954088-4 }} born 14 January 1949) is a British Liberal Democrat politician who served as Leader of the Liberal Democrats in the European Parliament between 2 July 2014 and 12 November 2019.{{cite web |title=Lib Dems elect new leader for European parliament |url=https://www.theneweuropean.co.uk/top-stories/lib-dems-elect-new-leader-for-european-parliament-1-6372274 |website=The New European}} She was a Member of the European Parliament (MEP) for South East England from 4 June 2009 to 31 January 2020.
She was elected to the European Parliament in 2009, and re-elected in 2014; and in 2019, when she was placed head of the Liberal Democrat party list: with 25.75% of the vote, it came in second behind the Brexit Party list headed by Nigel Farage.{{cite news |title=European elections 2019: Brexit Party tops South East poll |work=BBC News |date=27 May 2019 |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-48417564 }}
Personal life
Born in Hertfordshire, she was educated at the independent Hawthorne's School in Frinton on Sea and the independent St Christopher School, Letchworth.{{Cite web|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/hi/english/static/vote2001/candidates/candidates/6/66198.stm|title=BBC NEWS | VOTE 2001 | CANDIDATES|website=news.bbc.co.uk}} She is married to Professor Simon Bearder, a zoologist at Oxford Brookes University. The couple have three sons, Tim, Ian and Peter.{{Cite web|url=http://www.bearder.eu/|title=Catherine Bearder MEP|website=Catherine Bearder MEP|access-date=2 March 2017|archive-date=24 June 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150624042436/http://www.bearder.eu/|url-status=dead}} Prior to becoming an MEP, she worked as a development officer in a number of major national charities.
Political career
A former Lib Dem councillor in Cherwell and on Oxfordshire County Council, twice European candidate and parliamentary candidate for Banbury in 1997 and Henley in 2001, Bearder has been an active Liberal Democrat for many years. She is also President of the Liberal Democrat European Group (LDEG).
She was the second placed Liberal Democrat candidate for the European Parliament in the South East region of England.[https://web.archive.org/web/20080913145840/http://www.libdems.org.uk/people/liberal-democrats-select-european-parliament-candidates-for-england-62978 Liberal Democrats select European Parliament Candidates for England] Replacing Emma Nicholson MEP, she was placed behind Sharon Bowles MEP on the party list for the 2009 European elections. Bearder was elected to the European Parliament {{cite news |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/shared/bsp/hi/elections/euro/09/html/ukregion_35.stm |title=European Election 2009: South East |work=BBC News Online |date=8 June 2009 |access-date=8 June 2009 }} on 4 June 2009, and took her seat on 14 July. In 2014 she was re-elected, as the sole British Liberal Democrat MEP.{{cite news|date=26 May 2014|title=Lib Dems call for Clegg's resignation in wake of dismal election results|url=http://www.theguardian.com/politics/2014/may/26/lib-dems-european-elections-votes-nick-clegg|last1=Watt|first1=Nicholas|last2=Wintour|first2=Patrick|last3=Mason|first3=Rowena|access-date=28 August 2021|website=The Guardian|language=en}}
Bearder was a member of the European Parliament's Committee on the Environment, Public Health and Food Safety and the Committee on Women's Rights and Gender Equality, where she served as her parliamentary group's coordinator.{{Cite web|url=http://www.europarl.europa.eu/meps/en/96955/CATHERINE_BEARDER/home|title=Home | Catherine BEARDER | MEPs | European Parliament|website=www.europarl.europa.eu}} She focused on environmental issues, especially wildlife conservation and biodiversity, and has founded the cross-party "MEPs for Wildlife group" which is calling for an EU Action Plan against Wildlife Trafficking.{{Cite web|url=https://www.euractiv.com/section/sustainable-dev/opinion/it-s-time-for-the-eu-to-get-serious-about-wildlife-crime/|title=It's time for the EU to get serious about wildlife crime|date=5 March 2015}} She was appointed as one of the lead MEPs working on the revision of the National Emissions Ceiling Directive, which was to set national targets to reduce emissions of harmful pollutants. This formed part of the EU's Clean Air Package, which according to the European Commission could prevent an estimated 38,000 premature deaths a year in the EU by 2030.{{Cite web|url=https://www.consilium.europa.eu/en/policies/clean-air/|title=The clean air package: Improving Europe's air quality – Consilium|website=www.consilium.europa.eu}}
Bearder is a longtime campaigner on the issue of human trafficking and was appointed to draft a European Parliament report looking at the implementation of the EU Human Trafficking Directive 2011/36/EU.{{Cite web|url=https://oeil.secure.europarl.europa.eu/oeil/popups/ficheprocedure.do?lang=&reference=2015/2118(INI)|title=Procedure File: 2015/2118(INI) | Legislative Observatory | European Parliament|website=oeil.secure.europarl.europa.eu}}
Following the 2014 European elections, Bearder was elected as Quaestor of the European Parliament and served from 2014 to 2019. In this capacity, she was also a member of the High-level Group on Gender Equality and Diversity and chairwoman of the Artistic Committee. Her role as quaestor made her part of the Parliament's leadership under President Martin Schulz.Toby Vogel (3 July 2014), [http://www.politico.eu/article/meps-elect-five-quaestors/ MEPs elect five quaestors] European Voice. In addition to her committee assignments, Bearder was a member of the European Parliament Intergroup on SMEs.[http://www.europarl.europa.eu/pdf/intergroupes/VIII_LEG_18_SMEs_20150624.pdf Members of the European Parliament Intergroup on SMEs] European Parliament.
In 2015, the European Parliament approved an amendment introduced by Bearder demanding immediate publication of existing inquiries into member states involvement in secret flights operated by the United States Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) and linked to "enhanced interrogations" conducted outside US territory, in particular the inquiry into UK involvement led by John Chilcot.Dave Keating (11 February 2015), [http://www.politico.eu/article/meps-call-on-member-states-to-admit-cia-torture-role/ MEPs call on member states to admit CIA torture role] European Voice.
Following the 2019 European Parliament elections, Bearder was elected as leader of the Liberal Democrat group.{{Cite web|url=https://www.libdemvoice.org/28-may-2019-todays-press-releases-60964.html|title=28 May 2019 – today's press releases}}
References
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Category:Liberal Democrats (UK) MEPs
Category:MEPs for England 2009–2014
Category:MEPs for England 2014–2019
Category:MEPs for England 2019–2020
Category:21st-century women MEPs for England
Category:People educated at St Christopher School