Who is Shaun Bailey and what did the former London mayoral candidate do?

Shaun Bailey has had a tumultuous ride through British politics and has held a variety of positions throughout his career. He may face his biggest challenge yet, however, after photos of him emerged at a Christmas party during the lockdown

Shaun Bailey during the 2021 mayoral campaign (

Image: Getty)

After a sensational picture of a Christmas party at Conservative HQ last year, the most prominent face on the line-up, Shaun Bailey, stepped down.

The event took place while London was in Tier 2 on one night when over 20,000 new Covid cases were confirmed and 232 people in the UK died from the virus.

Bailey apologized for attending his campaign team’s event, saying it was a “serious error of judgment”.

In a statement on Wednesday, he said: “I apologize unreservedly for attending a gathering of some of my staff at my campaign office last December.

“I gave a speech to my team to thank them for their efforts before I left shortly afterwards.

“It was a serious misconduct at a time when the Londoners were making immense sacrifices to protect us all and I sincerely regret it.”

Bailey ran for the Tories in London’s mayor elections in May 2021 and lost to Labor candidate Sadiq Khan after the vote was postponed by a year due to Covid.

Despite his defeat, he has remained in London politics as he has been a member of the London Assembly since 2016.

Who is Shaun Bailey and what role did the former London mayoral candidate play before he stepped down?

Shaun Bailey (white shirt, center) and Tory billionaire donor Nick Candy (gray jacket) can be seen at the HQ party

Bailey was born in North Kensington and served as Chairman of the Police and Crime Committee in the London Congregation.

He resigned from that role after being contacted by the Mirror about the party’s image – but remains a member of the committee and the London Assembly.

The 50-year-old has a background in charity but also does odd jobs, including a stint as a security guard at Wembley.

His former charity focused on addressing social issues but had to close due to financial problems.

The London Assembly’s website states that Bailey’s MyGeneration charity aims to: “The social problems affecting young people and their families, such as antisocial behavior, substance abuse, crime, pregnancy, lack of education and unemployment.

After his time in the charity, Bailey became special advisor to then Prime Minister David Cameron on Youth, Crime and Race.

However, a 2013 Guardian report claimed that Bailey was eventually ousted 10th from the old boys network there, apparently telling friends that counselors on Downing Street had little interest in social issues like the cost of living.

Extraordinary picture shows a “noisy” Christmas party thrown by Tory employees during a lockdown violation

Bailey was selected as a Conservative parliamentary candidate for the revived Hammersmith seat in 2007 but failed to win the 2010 election.

He failed to win the party nominations for Kensington, Croydon South, Uxbridge South and Ruislip in the 2015 elections before eventually battling for the seats in Lewisham West and Penge in the 2017 elections.

He has been a member of the London Assembly since 2016.

When was the Christmas party thrown?

The now infamous party that gathered 24 people in a room at Tory headquarters took place on December 14, 2020.

The party’s picture also shows Tory billionaire donor Nick Candy and a high-ranking figure in the Boris Johnson campaign. The event was described as “noisy”.

A spokesman said: “Senior CCHQ employees were at an unauthorized social gathering in the basement of. attentive [CCHQ] organized by the Bailey Campaign on the evening of December 14th.

“Formal disciplinary action has been taken against the four CCHQ employees seconded to the Bailey campaign.”

A spokesman for Mr. Candy said, “Nick Candy visited the Shaun Bailey Campaign office on December 14, 2021 for a year in review.

“He gave a quick thank-you speech to the team and spent time with Shaun Bailey discussing campaign matters before leaving shortly afterwards.”

The ongoing dispute over festive gatherings in Westminster has already led to the resignation of government advisor Allegra Stratton and increasing pressure on Boris Johnson to resolve allegations of violation of the rules last year.

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