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Profile: Grant Shapps

09/09/2023

Grant Shapps

BBC Radio 4 - Profile, Grant Shapps

Secretary of State for Defence, Grant Shapps.

The new Secretary of State for Defence, Grant Shapps, MP for Welwyn Hatfield.

The recently appointed defence secretary Grant Shapps is no stranger to getting his teeth into a new job, it’s his fifth cabinet role in less than a year.  He's widely seen as a safe pair of hands and an effective communicator but has received criticism over his latest appointment because of his lack of military experience. 

A married father of three and a cousin of The Clash guitarist Mick Jones, he survived a car crash at the age of 20, which put him in a coma for a week, and also made a full recovery after being diagnosed with Hodgkin’s Lymphoma. 

Mark Coles looks at the life and career of the cabinet veteran who is a spreadsheet whizz, enthusiastic TikToker and licensed pilot. 

Presenter: Mark Coles 
Production: Alix Pickles, Diane Richardson
Production Coordinators: Maria Ogundele
Sound Engineer: Neil Churchill 
Editor: Richard Vadon

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