The new minister for disabled people is facing criticism over her voting record on disability issues from a user-led organisation that provides support in her own constituency.
The Cornish MP Sarah Newton was appointed as the new minister late last week as a replacement for Penny Mordaunt, who has been promoted to international development secretary.
Newton was previously director of Age Concern England, founder and first director of the International Longevity Centre, and worked in marketing for the hotel group IBIS, the international bank Citibank and credit card giant American Express.
Her website says she has focused as an MP on “speaking up for Cornwall’s public services”, and that she has “campaigned tirelessly for local people feeling the pinch as result of the 2008 financial crash, with a focus on helping the poorest”.
In parliament, the website says, she has “carried forward her passion for helping the most vulnerable in our society, and those who look after them”, including through her former role as vice-chair of the all-party parliamentary group for social care.
Before last week’s appointment, she was a junior Home Office minister.
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