About Nigel

A message from Nigel

"Thank you for taking an interest in my campaign.  I am honoured to have been selected as the Conservative candidate for Luton South and look forward to taking a positive message to the doorsteps of Luton over the coming weeks, months and years.

I will seek every opportunity to meet as many of you as possible, hear your views and understand your concerns. 

I will campaign locally and nationally to address these concerns and to improve the quality of life for all the people of Luton.

If elected I will be a responsive, visible and hard-working MP.  I know how the recent expenses scandals have angered people and how the actions of some current MP's has tainted all politicians and aspiring politicians.  I can promise you that I will be a very diffferent kind of MP from the one Luton South has had recently.  I will behave honourably.  In return for your trust, I will not let you down.

Personal biography

Nigel lives locally, in Wheathampstead (about ten minutes from the centre of Luton) with his wife, Melissa, his son, Tyler - who was born in 2006, and daughter, Mackenzie - who was born at Luton and Dunstable hospital in November 2008.

Nigel was born in Lincoln in 1970.  He is a Director with a major international Management Consulting Firm where he specializes in advising the entertainment and leisure industry.

Nigel was raised in the Lincoln suburb of North Hykeham where his father worked for more than 40 years in the local castings factory until his retirement last year, and his mother worked on the checkouts at the local ASDA store until her recent retirement, too.

Like his brother and his sister, Nigel attended the local Robert Pattinson Comprehensive School where he became a keen rugby player and athlete – representing Lincolnshire in Cross Country, 400metres and 1500metres in national competitions. 

After completing his ‘A’ Levels in 1989 Nigel became the first person in his family to go to University, and was the first person from his school to go to Oxford.

Nigel says “I am passionate about education as a tool for social mobility, and one of my core political motivations is to facilitate the creation of opportunities for all members of society.”

After working in London for several years, Nigel went on to study for an MBA (Masters in Business Administration) at the Anderson School at UCLA in Los Angeles, California, which is where he met his wife. 

Nigel has spent several years living and working in Los Angeles – and to this day travels extensively with his job which gives him the opportunity to interact with people from many different cultures and backgrounds.

In his spare time Nigel enjoys spending time with his family, walking in the countryside and enjoying our national and natural heritage.  Nigel studied the film industry at UCLA and is an avid movie fan.

Nigel Huddleston with his wife, Melissa, his son, Tyler, and daughter, Mackenzie:

Political biography

Nigel’s political activism spans three decades.

Inspired by the aspirational/ ‘can do’ attitude of Margaret Thatcher, he first became politically active while at Oxford University and went on to become an officer of OUCA, the Bow Group and the Tory Reform Group.  A firm supporter of the ‘One Nation’ tradition that balances the pursuit of efficiency with compassion, Nigel been a TRG member for nearly two decades and he is a member of the TRG Board.

Nigel was also a Student Union activist, first becoming an Executive Officer of Oxford University Student Union (OUSU) in 1991 and then being elected full time Vice President in charge of Welfare services for the 1992-93 academic year. 

During his period in office Nigel campaigned on issues including student finance, counselling services, student housing and access (encouraging more applications from students with State School backgrounds).  He worked with the other executives from across the political spectrum to help improve the finances of the Student Union, expanding publications, and establishing new offerings such as the ‘Oxford Student’ newspaper.  The profits from these activities were then ploughed back into enhanced student services.

More recently, Nigel has been an active member of Constituency Associations from Lincoln to London to Luton to Los Angeles where he helped the Republican Party in the special recall election in 2003 that saw Arnold Schwarzenegger elected Governor of California.

Nigel Huddleston and Luton Conservative Association members receiving pearls of wisdom from former Conservative Luton South MP, Sir Graham Bright:

Photo by Dino Pressley

Campaign information

Nigel was selected to fight Luton South in December 2007 and is working with his fellow candidate for Luton North, Jeremy Brier, and local Conservatives on a range of national and local issues including anti-social behaviour and crime, the protection of the Green Belt around Luton (an especially hot topic given the East of Luton expansion plans), the appropriate level of expansion of Luton Airport, Council Tax increases, traffic calming and road safety, the provision of decent social services and public transport, community cohesion, and economic regeneration and investment in Luton.

"Luton South is a very diverse constituency… Almost a mini Britain in just a few square miles of Bedfordshire...  Being selected as the candidate in this seat with so much complexity yet so much potential is an honour and a privilege that I take very seriously."

 Nigel Huddleston looking over Luton from the Arndale Mall Shopping Centre: