About Susan
Susan’s family connections to York and Yorkshire go back a very long way, to 1066 and beyond. Her great-grandfather Sir Armigel Waad, ‘The English Columbus’, was born in Kilnsey, Yorkshire and rose through Parliament to the Privy Council of Queen Elizabeth I.
Susan was recruited into the Conservative Party by David Cameron in 2005 as part of his drive to encourage more women with a wider experience of life outside politics to come forward to represent both the Party and electorate in Parliament.
She was educated at St Andrew’s University, Université de Lille and Cheltenham Ladies College and has made a successful career in advertising both as Creative Director in her own business, Wade Weeks Wong and as a freelance copywriter. She has also worked extensively in the film industry. Most importantly, she is the mother of three children, Honeysuckle, Perdita and Rollo Weeks, all of whom are now professional actors.
As a district councillor, Susan proved to be a fearsome and effective campaigner and, in only a matter of weeks, achieved a number of local improvements, campaigning to support village shops, save local post offices and fighting to retain local accident and emergency services, as well as facilitating and funding the introduction of broadband internet access. She now lives in the City of York as the Conservative Party’s parliamentary candidate for York Central
Susan has long been a passionate advocate for green issues. More controversially, she marched against the war in Iraq. As a practising Christian, this was an informed stance, with her father and brothers seeing active military service.
Amongst her many interests and activities, Susan is a keen volunteer and often involves herself with community and charity work. She is an able linguist and, when not campaigning, enjoys painting, fashion, interiors, music, history of art and riding.
‘Appealing and charismatic’, Susan has been described as ‘a formidable female force for change’ and will be campaigning on the Conservative Party’s refreshing agenda for wide-ranging state reform:
1. slashing bureaucracy and waste;
2. bringing rigour and discipline back to our schools;
3. restoring the performance and reputation of the NHS;
4. encouraging a renewed social responsibility;
5. supporting and enhancing the voluntary sector;
6. protecting and conserving the environment;
7. safeguarding the freedoms won for us by previous generations.
The future of York will depend upon attracting and retaining investment from private companies and entrepreneurs able to provide the long term employment prospects which are the bedrock of a secure society. The prosperity of the city therefore depends upon ensuring the supply of a suitably educated, qualified and skilled workforce. Susan aims to work closely with the business and educational communities to determine how best to achieve this end.
