Bob Spink

Dr
Bob Spink
Member of Parliament
for Castle Point
In office
7 June 2001 – 12 April 2010
Preceded byChristine Butler
Succeeded byRebecca Harris
In office
9 April 1992 – 8 April 1997
Preceded bySir Bernard Braine
Succeeded byChristine Butler
Personal details
Born (1948-08-01) 1 August 1948 (age 76)
Haworth, West Riding of Yorkshire, England
Other political
affiliations		Conservative (until 2008)
UKIP (2008, 2014-)
SpouseJanet Barham (divorced)
Alma materUniversity of Manchester, Cranfield University
ProfessionMember of Parliament
WebsiteBob Spink MP

Robert Michael Spink (born 1 August 1948) is a British former politician who was a member of parliament (MP) for Castle Point in Essex (1992 to 1997, and 2001 to 2010).

Spink was elected as the Conservative Party MP for Castle Point in 1992, lost his seat in 1997, but regained it in 2001. Having resigned the Conservative whip in March 2008, in April 2008 he defected to the UK Independence Party (UKIP), becoming that party's first MP. In November 2008, he became an independent.[1] Standing as an independent, he lost his seat in the 2010 election to the Conservative candidate, Rebecca Harris.

Spink subsequently rejoined UKIP.[2] In 2017, he was convicted on four counts of electoral fraud,[3] and was given a six-month prison sentence, suspended for two years, in January 2018.[4]

  1. ^ Sarah Calkin (7 March 2009). "Tory? UKIP? Now I'm just an inde says MP Bob". Echo. Archived from the original on 13 April 2009.
  2. ^ "Former MP Bob Spink to represent UKIP for Essex Police and Crime Commissioner election". Harlow Star. 31 October 2015.
  3. ^ "Bob Spink found guilty of election fraud". BBC News. 1 December 2017. Retrieved 1 December 2017.
  4. ^ "Bob Spink handed suspended sentence over election fraud". BBC News. January 2018. Retrieved 6 January 2018.