Who is Lucy Frazer's husband, David Leigh? Culture Secretary's personal life explored as she accuses BBC of bias

UK's Culture Secretary Lucy Frazer accused BBC of being biased in an interview with Sky News' Kay Burley on January 22, 2024. In the interview, she alleged that BBC has been biased "on occasion," as per the evidence from Ofcom, which showed a 20% increase in the number of complaints concerning impartiality.

Frazer said,

“Well, what I’ve looked at is the evidence, the evidence from Ofcom – 39% of complaints last year were in relation to impartiality, but the year before it was 19%.”

She joined Burley to discuss Ofcom's new reforms, which grant the regulatory body increased authority over BBC's online services, allowing it to oversee and enforce actions against BBC News website articles that do not meet relevant broadcast standards.

Lucy Frazer was appointed as the Secretary of State for Culture, Media, and Sport following PM Rishi Sunak's cabinet reshuffle in February 2023. Notably, she is married to David Leigh, the CEO of Alexander Mann Solutions (AMS), a recruitment company based in London.

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David Leigh, Lucy Frazer's husband, has been the CEO of AMS since 2019

According to AMS' company website, David Leigh joined the recruitment company in 2019 as the chief executive officer.

The website states,

"David is the Chief Executive Officer of AMS, leading the market in talent innovation, and keeping the company at the forefront of the next waves of talent transformation."

Before joining AMS, Leigh held the positions of CEO and Chair at Study Group, an international education business. Prior to that, he served as the CEO of SHL, a leading provider of talent assessment solutions.

According to his LinkedIn profile, Leigh was a graduate of The College of Law in London. He holds an MA in Social and Political Sciences from the University of Cambridge.

He started his career as a lawyer at Herbert Smith and climbed the ranks of corporate leadership, starting as an engagement manager at McKinsey and soon becoming the CEO at SHL Group in just eight years, as per his LinkedIn profile.

He is also a trustee for a charity organization called Action for M.E., which supports people with myalgic encephalomyelitis all across the United Kingdom.

Lucy Frazer and David Leigh met while studying law at Cambridge. The couple is married and has two children.

In November 2021, Lucy Frazer faced claims of conflict of interest after being appointed to the Treasury in September when she disclosed that her husband is the CEO of AMS, which supplied the government with temporary workers to HM Revenue & Customs in a £15 billion government contract.

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Lucy Frazer was first elected as a Tory MP in 2015

Born in Yorkshire, Lucy Frazer, aged 51, served as a barrister and was appointed as Queen's Counsel in 2013. According to her website, she was elected as the Conservative MP for South East Cambridgeshire in 2015 before being appointed as Culture Secretary in 2023.

Lucy Frazer made an appearance on Sky News to announce her mid-term review on the BBC when she accused the broadcasting giant of allegedly being biased. When asked whether she personally felt that BBC was biased, she replied that it was the public's perception.

Burley, the interviewer, retorted that "perception isn't necessarily reality," to which Frazer said:

“There are only perceptions. Perceptions are important. What’s important about the BBC is that it is funded by the public. Perceptions of the BBC by the public are important.”

After dancing around the topic for a while, Lucy Frazer finally admitted that she believed the BBC to be biased "on occasion." She also said she and BBC are in talks to discuss what can be done to improve their public score on impartiality.