Women With Balls: Julia Lopez

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4.4 • 785 Ratings

🗓️ 7 March 2025

⏱️ 32 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Julia Lopez has been the Conservative MP for Hornchurch and Upminster since 2017. Her first political experience was working for the then-MP for the Cities of London and Westminster Mark Field, before she became a councillor for Tower Hamlets – working to improve the standards of an area marred in scandal and heightened community tensions. She went on to hold ministerial roles under three Prime Ministers and is now the PPS to Tory leader Kemi Badenoch.

On the podcast, Julia talks to Katy Balls about the impact Margaret Thatcher had on the politics of her family, how she gained political experience touring London’s sewers and skyscrapers, and the mixed emotions of becoming an MP in 2017 – when the party lost its majority. She also describes what it was like to fight a campaign five days after giving birth, and her connection to The Spectator – having helped to change the law to protect British media from foreign ownership.

Produced by Patrick Gibbons.

Transcript

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0:00.0	This episode of Women with Balls is sponsored by Alliance Witten Investment Trust. From the OPEC
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0:19.8	that time, every single year, without fail,
0:22.8	we've paid out an increased dividend to our shareholders. In fact, Alliance Witten's history
0:28.3	dates all the way back to 1888. And today, we manage around £5 billion in assets.
0:35.5	If you're looking for a less stressful way to invest in stocks and shares,
0:39.2	learn more about Alliance Whitten and find your comfort zone.
0:45.4	Hello and welcome to Women of Balls, where I Katie Balls speak to today's Trailblazers.
0:49.8	My guest today has been a Conservative MP since 2017, born in Harlow and raised in
0:54.4	Stansdowne in Essex.
0:55.4	She studied social and political sciences at Cambridge before working in local government,
0:59.6	as well as for the then Conservative MP Mark Field.
1:03.0	First elected as the MP for Hornchurch and Upminster, a constituency in Out to East London
1:07.8	in 2017.
1:09.3	She has successfully navigated a turbulent time in British politics
1:12.5	going on to hold ministerial roles under three pro-ministers,
1:16.0	Boris Johnson, Liz Truss and Rishi Sunak,
1:18.8	some for longer periods than others.
1:20.9	She backed Kemi Badernock during the 2024 Tory leadership election
1:24.3	and has been the PPS to the leader of the opposition ever since.
1:27.8	My guest today is Julia Lopez.
	...

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