Joshua Hansen

Sir Joshua Anders Hansen (Born 24th June 1984) is a British politician and former Government Minister, who served as Leader of the Opposition, in the immediate aftermath of the Spector-Gate Scandal. He was elected as a Member of Parliament (MP) for Shrewsbury and Atcham on 5th June 2021. Sir Joshua has previously represented nine constituencies across seven regions in England; he was first elected on 27th August 2020 as the Member of Parliament for Poole.

Sir Joshua has been unaffiliated since May 2021, having run in the General Election as one of a handful of independent candidates. Previously, he was affiliated with several centre-left to centre-right parties, many of whom invited him to serve on their party board or collective leadership.

Sir Joshua is considered by many to be a well-regarded parliamentarian, often distinguished for his bipartisanship and distinct speciality in his focus areas.[?] Moreover, he is associated with being the inaugural holder of the office of the Leader of the House of Commons, which was formed in November 2020. Additionally, as it stands, he is the only person to serve as Lord President of the Privy Council.

Political observers classify Sir Joshua as a Centre-Left Social Democrat. He has advocated for principles such as the Separation of Powers between the Devolved Administrations, the Independence of the Judiciary and the rule of law.

Early Life
Joshua Anders Hansen was born in Stockholm Sweden on 24th June 1984 and grew up in Gothenburg (Swedish: Göteborg) in Västra Götaland County (Swedish: Västra Götalands län) on the western coast of Sweden. Sir Joshua however holds British citizenship by right of blood (Jus sanguinis). In 1999, aged 15, he moved to the United Kingdom where, on turning 16, he studied A-levels in Law, Psychology, Hospitality and Computer Science. In September 2001, he was excepted into the University of Cambridge whereby in August 2004 he obtained a Bachelor of Arts (BA) in law, subsequently being called to the Bar of England and Wales in 2005. While practising law, Sir Joshua acted as a Criminal Defence Barrister, specialising in non-fatal offences. He was appointed as a Queen's Counsel (QC) in 2019.

Early Career
Sir Joshua entered the House of Commons for the first time on 27th August 2020 as a Conservative Member of Parliament. For a short while, he sat on the government back-benches passing reformations in a number of areas. In early September 2020, under the premiership of Winston Lee Thatcher, Sir Joshua was appointed as Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for the Home Department. In the same month, Sir Joshua was appointed as the Principal Parliamentary Under-Secretary of the administration; fulfilling this role in combination with his duties at the Home Office.

On 11th September 2020, he followed the Conservatives into opposition, subsequent to the Democratic Socialist Party winning the election. On 12th September 2020, he was appointed as Shadow Lord Chancellor and Secretary of State for Justice under the Tress Shadow Cabinet, a position that he fulfilled until the end of the Spector Shadow Cabinet. On 19th September 2020 he was elected unanimously as Co-Chair of the Conservative Party and on 26th December 2020 under emergency protocol he was declared Leader of the Opposition subsequent to the Spector-Gate Scandal.

Political Positions
Sir Joshua is considered to be a Centre-Left Social Democrat, avidly supporting the welfare state. He supports social ownership and investment in the UK's public services, including the National Health Service, as well as supporting the abolition of university tuition fees. He, however, does not support nationalisation without fair and equitable compensation. Economically, he has emphasised that he feels no issue with capitalism, "provided adequate regulation and support for those less fortunate." He has often expressed that he would much rather live in a society, "where some are richer than others; then one where everyone is equally poor."

Pacifism and Nuclear Disarmament
Sir Joshua considers himself a pacifist, believing that nine times out of ten tensions between two parties can be resolved without the need for violence. He does not support nuclear tridents and has supported campaigns for nuclear disarmament. In early September 2020, in an unprecedented move, he supported the People First Coalition's nuclear disarmament program, despite at the time, this being strongly against his parties line.

Stance on Discrimination
Sir Joshua strongly condemns positive discrimination, observing that it only leads to further inequality between humanity by entrenching the belief that certain characteristics may not otherwise have the skills and knowledge to secure jobs. He holds that merit should be the only variable in deciding whether to employ an individual. He has affirmed that he condemns all forms of discrimination and that, despite much 'misconception', discrimination can affect everyone, even those who are not historically disadvantaged. In his opinion, discriminatory beliefs are often derived from a young age and that provisions should be established to guide young people into compassionate and non-discriminatory attitudes. He considers that our differences should be embraced as an ordinary part of life.

State Secularism and Religion
Sir Joshua holds that religious bodies should have little influence on the government, the legislature or the judiciary. He is said to consider that it is not befitting for any country to have a state religion, as it is "not the place for the government to favour or dictate faith." He considers that religion is a personal choice and thus peaceful religious beliefs should be protected. He does not support the religious viewpoint that marriage should only be between heterosexual couples, though believes that individuals should be entitled to hold their personal beliefs. Sir Joshua supports current convention rights to hold your own opinions and to express them freely without government interference. He considers that Article 10 of the European Convention on Human Rights should extend to unpopular or controversial religious beliefs, as this safeguards everyone's right to freely express their own personal opinions.

The Justice System
Sir Joshua holds that the independence of the judiciary is one of the most vitally important doctrines of democracy. He strongly supports the Constitutional Reform Act 2005, which separated the legislative and judicial branches of government through the creation of the Supreme Court. He considers judicial independence as a compulsory component in upholding a fair and impartial justice system, as it safeguards that all citizens, even the Prime Minister, will be subject to the same law of the land. Sir Joshua has advocated for the abolition of Crimes of Absolute liability, which he feels, due to the absence of a required Mens Rea, to be inequitable and unjust. Concerning incarceration, Sir Joshua is of the opinion that prison sentences are ineffective in the reduction of crime rates. He supports the nordic model of imprisonment by which there is a greater emphasis on rehabilitation as opposed to punishment. He considers that in the vast majority of cases, prison sentences should only be used as an absolute last resort.

House of Lords
Despite being an enthusiastic supporter of General Elections, Sir Joshua considers that some portions of the legislature should remain appointed based on their merits, rather than being elected. He holds that decision making bodies such as the House of Commons should indeed be elected, though bodies of scrutiny, such as the House of Lords should remain appointed. In recent decades, campaigns have called for the abolition of the House of Lords, though Sir Joshua has been a major critic on these proposals, he has voiced that members of the House of Lords would "not be capable of voicing unpopular nevertheless, important points of view, in fear of losing their seat" and that this would "lead to rocks being left unturned and foolish decisions being executed."

Furthermore, Sir Joshua considers that a fully elected legislature would "be incapable of ensuring expertise in every legislative area." and would subsequently "lead to a less effective approach to the enactment of legislation." He does however, except that reforms to the House of Lords are needed to enure that merit is the only variable applied when considering applications to the Lords, as a result he supports the concept of an unprecedented non-partisan approach to the House of Lords.

Political Influence and Impact
Sir Joshua is believed by many to have had a major impact on the political landscape of the United Kingdom. During his Parliamentary career, he has established a number of provisions that are thought to have significantly improved the quality of life of many citizens. He is often credited for the formation; of the District Nurse Service, Pastoral Care Service and State-Funded Nursing and Care Homes, which he established through Acts of Parliament. Furthermore, he is thought to have had a major impact on the education sector, having amended the British Curriculum to include life skills, environmental and ecological studies, and sexual education covering both Heterosexual and Homosexual relationships.

During the COVID-19 Pandemic, Sir Joshua played a vital role in establishing legislation for the control and prevention of diseases, this included increasing funding to the Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies and safeguarding against the plausibility of the government following other countries and retracting funding to the World Health Organisation. Moreover, he enacted legislation to establish emergency powers so regulations to prevent deaths could be enacted quickly.

Chairman of Ways and Means (April 2021)
In April 2021, Sir Joshua entered his candidacy for Chairman of Ways and Means. Out of six candidates, he came in second place, just one vote shy of being successfully elected. The winning candidate was Jacinda Ardern.

Speaker of the House of Commons (June 2021)
Upon the announcement of the resignation of Frederick Joyce on 18th June 2021, Sir Joshua launched a campaign to become Speaker of the House of Commons. It is thought Sir Joshua had long campaigned quietly to become Speaker. His campaign slogan was "speak to serve", which indicated his primary campaign promise to be "impartial, unbiased and fair." Out of eleven candidates, one of the largest numbers in modern history, Sir Joshua was the only independent to enter his candidacy.

On 20th June 2021, an initial vote commenced. Though, due to an inadvertent clerical error, the ballot was deemed null and void. On 21st June 2021, a new ballot was issued to members of the house. Despite their being some initial difficulties, which caused a slight delay in the proceedings of the election, the results were certified the next day. Out of the eleven candidates, with eighty-four votes, Sir Joshua came in second place, obtaining bipartisan support. He was just ten votes shy of being successfully elected. The winning candidate was Joseph Harrison.

Chairman of Ways and Means (June 2021)
On 25th June 2021, subsequent to his unsuccessful attempt to become Speaker of the House of Commons, Sir Joshua entered his candidacy for Chairman of Ways and Means. Sir Joshua was formerly endorsed by Sir Norman Lamb, Lucas Jonstad, Callum J. Jacobs and Leader of the Opposition Michael Gove. The ballot opened on 26th June 2021 and the results were released on 27th June 2021. Sir Joshua came in second place, the winning candidate was Helga Johnson.

Legislation
An Act of Parliament is a law, enforced in all areas of the UK where it is applicable. In some rare cases, an Act of Parliament may come into force in a British Overseas Territory. A bill becomes an Act of Parliament once it has been approved by both houses of Parliament and has been formally agreed to by the reigning monarch (known as Royal Assent).

A Bill is not an Act of Parliament. A Bill becomes an Act if it is approved by the House of Commons and the House of Lords, and is formally agreed to by the reigning monarch (known as Royal Assent). In the case of the bills below, this approval was not received.

Focus Areas

 * Social Services


 * Constitutional Affairs


 * Parliament, Government and Politics


 * Education and Specialist Provisions


 * Crime, Civil Law, Justice and Human Rights


 * Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services


 * The Environment and Horticultural Conservation

Register of Interests
The Register of Interest, is a Parliamentary record to provide information about any financial interests which a Member has, or any benefit which he or she receives, which others might reasonably consider to influence his or her actions or words as a Member of Parliament.

Donations and other Support (Category 2)

 * The Member has been known to receive personal donations from a number of sources.

Shareholdings(Category 7)

 * The Member declared an interest as a Shareholder of Hansen Air.


 * The Member declared an interest as a Shareholder of Dell Technologies.


 * The Member declared an interest as a Shareholder of Joshua Hansen Corp.


 * The Member declared an interest as a Shareholder of Baltimore Inc.

Miscellaneous (Category 8)

 * The Member declared an interest as a member of the Corporate Board of HE Funds.


 * The Member declared an interest as Chief Executive Officer of Hansen Air.


 * The Member declared an interest as Chief Executive Officer of Dell Technologies.


 * The Member declared an interest as Chief Executive Officer of Joshua Hansen Corp.


 * The Member declared an interest as Chief Operations Officer of BPL.

Commonwealth honours

 * Commonwealth honours

Scholastic

 * University degrees


 * Chancellor, visitor, governor, rector and fellowships