remain in the European Union. On 13 December 2017, Hammond was involved in a rebellion against the government of Theresa May in which the government suffered a defeat on a key Brexit vote about granting MPs a 'meaningful vote' in Parliament. He was subsequently dismissed as the Conservative party vice-chairman over the incident. In the 2019 Conservative leadership election, Hammond endorsed Matt Hancock's bid for the party leadership. Hammond lost the party whip during the September 2019 suspension of rebel Conservative MPs. Despite this, he was selected as the Conservative candidate for the next general election. Hammond was reelected at the 2019 general election with a much reduced majority. Since January 2021, he has served as the Deputy Chair of the Conservative European Forum, which proceeded the Conservative Group for Europe. The group calls for close, strategic relationships with Europe advocating for close relationship with European institutions. In 2021 Hammond was censured by the Advisory Committee on Business Appointments (ACOBA) for an "unacceptable" breach of the ministerial code for failing to seek their advice before taking a second job with the Public Policy Projects thinktank. Following the publication of the Sue Gray report, Hammond revealed he had submitted a letter of no confidence in Prime Minister Johnson. Summer-born campaign In Parliament, Hammond has been an advocate of giving summer-born and premature children the right to start school a year later, to give them extra time for development. In October 2015 he held an adjournment debate on this issue, arguing that "summer-born children can suffer from long-term development issues and a lag in educational standards". and highlighting the inconsistent treatment of these children by Councils. In response, Nick Gibb MP, the Minister of State for Schools, set out plans in a letter to all schools to change the school admissions code to allow summer-born children to start reception class at the age of 5. In October 2016, Hammond held another adjournment debate on this topic, urging the Government to take action more quickly and to provide a timetable for the changes. Personal life Hammond has been married to Sally Hammond since 1991. The couple live in Wimbledon Park and they have one daughter. He employs his wife as his Office Manager on an annual salary of over £45,000, making her one of only six MP's assistants paid more than £40,000. Hammond used to play hockey for a National League team and