At a glanceSir John Whittingdale is a Conservative MP for Maldon, and has represented the seat for 34 years, 3 months. They have cast 342 votes in Commons divisions (59% attendance), tabled 85 written questions and registered 10 financial interests.
Attendance is votes cast as a share of the 575 Commons divisions since the 2024 election; Sir John Whittingdale did not vote in 232. A rebellion is a vote against the way most of their own party voted; free votes, where no party line applies, are left out.
Party-loyalty figures are our own analysis of the official voting records (recorded votes only; they do not describe the formal whip). How we work this out.
Biography
Current roles
- Foreign Affairs Committee Committee since 21 Oct 2024
- Maldon Representation · Elected 1 time since 4 Jul 2024
- Conservative Party since 9 Apr 1992
Voting record
Voting alignment
Votes most like
-
Bradley Thomas
Conservative
100.0% · 330 of 330 shared votes
-
Rebecca Harris
Conservative
100.0% · 325 of 325 shared votes
-
Greg Smith
Conservative
100.0% · 324 of 324 shared votes
-
Sir Julian Lewis
Conservative
100.0% · 323 of 323 shared votes
-
Edward Argar
Conservative
100.0% · 320 of 320 shared votes
Votes least like
-
Michael Payne
Labour
0.4% · 1 of 267 shared votes
-
Sonia Kumar
Labour
0.7% · 2 of 272 shared votes
-
Steve Witherden
Labour
0.7% · 2 of 270 shared votes
-
Sarah Edwards
Labour
0.9% · 2 of 219 shared votes
-
Emily Thornberry
Labour
0.9% · 2 of 213 shared votes
Alignment figures are our own analysis of the official voting records (recorded votes only; they do not describe the formal whip). How we work this out.
Register of financial interests
From the official Register; shown as registered.
Family members engaged in third-party lobbying1
- Alice Whittingdale employed as Lobbyist (registered 7 Aug 2023)
Gifts, benefits and hospitality from UK sources3
- Betting & Gaming Council - £1,920.00 (registered 2 Jul 2026)
- BPI (British Recorded Music) Ltd - £3,430.00 (registered 4 Mar 2026)
- NBC Universal International - £4,400.00 (registered 3 Mar 2026)
Visits outside the UK2
- International visit to China between 24 May 2026 and 29 May 2026 (registered 9 Jun 2026)
- International visit to Qatar between 05 December 2025 and 08 December 2025 (registered 18 Dec 2025)
Gifts and benefits from sources outside the UK1
- Embassy of the State of Qatar - £1,200.00 (registered 5 Aug 2025)
Land and property (within or outside the UK)1
- Residential in London (registered 8 Oct 2012)
Miscellaneous2
- Member of the Board of the Conservative Party. This is an unpaid position. (registered 29 Nov 2025)
- A Member of the Executive Committee of the British Group of the Inter Parliamentary Union. This is an unpaid position. (registered 29 Nov 2025)
Written questions
Soft Power
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what diplomatic steps she is taking to promote UK soft power.
Answer · 16 Jun 2026
Soft power is fundamental to the UK's impact and reputation around the world. It builds relationships, promotes our values, and helps support our growth, prosperity and security.The Government is determined to make maximum use of all our soft power assets...
Artificial Intelligence: Intellectual Property
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, whether the provisions enabling AI Sandboxes in the Regulating for Growth Bill will include protections for UK Intellectual Property to ensure that it cannot be suspended to allow experimentation in re
Answer · 27 May 2026
The AI Growth Lab, enabled through the Regulating for Growth Bill, will support the safe testing of AI-enabled products and services by allowing, in limited and controlled circumstances, temporary modifications to certain regulatory requirements that may ...
Tennis: Maldon
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what assessment her Department has made of the potential merits of providing funding for covered tennis and padel facilities in Maldon constituency.
Answer · 20 Mar 2026
The Government is committed to ensuring that everyone, regardless of background, should have access to and benefit from quality sport and physical activity opportunities. That has to mean delivering a range of facilities across the country based on what e...
Tax Avoidance
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether her Department will extend the discount under Loan Charge settlement plan to schemes used before December 2010.
Answer · 10 Mar 2026
The Government commissioned an independent review of the loan charge to help bring the matter to a close for people who have not settled and paid their loan charge liabilities. The review identified affordability as a key barrier preventing those individu...
Streaming: Age
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what steps her Department is taking to encourage greater consistency in age ratings and content warnings across streaming services to help parents ensure age-appropriate viewing for their childre
Answer · 27 Jan 2026
We note the findings of Ofcom’s Review of Audience Protection Measures on On-Demand Programme Services. The Government will shortly be designating mainstream video-on-demand services, bringing them under enhanced regulation by Ofcom. Ofcom will then consu...
Streaming: Age
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what assessment she has made of the findings in Ofcom's Review of Audience Protection Measures on On-Demand Programme Services regarding public demand for greater consistency in age ratings used
Answer · 27 Jan 2026
We note the findings of Ofcom’s Review of Audience Protection Measures on On-Demand Programme Services. The Government will shortly be designating mainstream video-on-demand services, bringing them under enhanced regulation by Ofcom. Ofcom will then consu...
Highway Code: Publicity
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what plans she has to increase public awareness of changes to the Highway Code made in the last 4 years.
Answer · 16 Jan 2026
Following changes made to the Highway Code in 2022, the department ran THINK! Campaigns in 2022 and 2023 to raise awareness of the changes and encourage understanding and uptake of the new guidance, with 86% of road users having heard of the changes by Se...
Cyprus: Elections
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether her Department has made an assessment of whether the recent presidential election in the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus was conducted in a free and fair manner.
Answer · 1 Dec 2025
In accordance with the rest of the international community, with the sole exception of Turkey, the UK does not recognise the self-declared 'Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus' as an independent state.We respect the right of the Turkish Cypriot community ...
Early day motions
| 22 Nov 2013 | MUTUAL OF THE YEAR AWARD TO PROVIDE | 7 sig. |
| 27 Jun 2012 | INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY AND THE HARGREAVES REVIEW | 40 sig. |
| 8 Feb 2012 | COPYRIGHT AND CHARLES DICKENS | 41 sig. |
| 26 Apr 2011 | 25th ANNIVERSARY OF CHERNOBYL DISASTER | 11 sig. |
| 16 Feb 2011 | LIVE PERFORMANCES (No. 2) | 37 sig. |
| 19 Jul 2010 | LIVE PERFORMANCES | 46 sig. |
Speeches in the chamber
13 Jul 2026 Police Officer Numbers
The Minister has confirmed that under this Government the number of police officers has fallen. It is now proposed that in Essex they will become part of a regional force that will be more remote and less accountable to the people that the…
13 Jul 2026 Police Officer Numbers
13. What estimate her Department has made of the number of police officers in September (a) 2024 and (b) 2025.
17 Jun 2026 Steel Tariffs
Indeed. Thank you, Madam Deputy Speaker. Can Minister state what assessment he has made of the grades of steel that are simply not produced in this country? What is his message to companies such as C&M Precision Ltd in my constituency,…
15 Jun 2026 Royal Albert Hall Bill [Lords]: Revival
I think the hall’s representatives would be only too happy to talk to the hon. Gentleman and the right hon. Member for Islington South and Finsbury (Emily Thornberry); indeed, they have asked to speak to her several times, without success.…
15 Jun 2026 Royal Albert Hall Bill [Lords]: Revival
I should add that while the Government gave the hall £20 million as a loan, as it gave loans to so many institutions across the country, the seat holders—the members of the Royal Albert Hall —put in £2 million above and beyond what they ha…
15 Jun 2026 Royal Albert Hall Bill [Lords]: Revival
Will the right hon. Lady give way?
15 Jun 2026 Royal Albert Hall Bill [Lords]: Revival
We are talking about very few events where tickets are sold at a much greater price than their face value. There will be some. The problem with what the hon. Gentleman suggests is that, at the end of the day, we are talking about somebody’…
15 Jun 2026 Royal Albert Hall Bill [Lords]: Revival
I will make a couple of points to my hon. Friend. As I have said, I not only served as a trustee, but sat on what is called the conflicts committee. The conflicts committee has a majority of independent members—not of seat holders—and it i…
15 Jun 2026 Royal Albert Hall Bill [Lords]: Revival
I am pleased to support the revival motion before the House today. It is about 11 months since I moved Second Reading of the Bill last year. At that stage, it had already completed its passage through the House of Lords, and it was given a…
15 Jun 2026 Russian Shadow Fleet
I congratulate the right hon. Gentleman on his appointment and welcome the action in the channel. He will be aware that last night saw one of the biggest attacks yet on civilian buildings and people in Kyiv, and included damage to the hist…
8 Jun 2026 Digital Safety: Children
While I welcome the Government’s belated intention to act in this area, does the Minister agree that there would be no need to wait for legislation if the social media companies actually started to enforce their existing age requirements f…
4 Jun 2026 Russian Attacks on Civilian Infrastructure
I thank the Minister for her reply. She will be aware that on Tuesday night, one of the largest aerial attacks so far during this war took place against Kyiv and other cities. It left 22 dead, including two children, and 130 injured. In Dn…
4 Jun 2026 Russian Attacks on Civilian Infrastructure
(Urgent Question): To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs if she will make a statement on the recent deliberate attacks by Russia on civilian infrastructure, including residential apartment building…
1 Jun 2026 Lord Mandelson Humble Address: Government Response
Further to the question from my right hon. Friend the Member for New Forest East (Sir Julian Lewis), we have seen in the first tranche the box note that was sent from the Prime Minister’s private office to the Prime Minister setting out th…
21 May 2026 Hospitality Industry
Despite what the Minister says, hospitality businesses in my constituency, and the constituencies of my hon. Friends, are reeling from the impact of higher energy costs, and increased national insurance contributions and business rates. T…
21 May 2026 Hospitality Industry
12. What steps his Department is taking to support the hospitality industry.
21 Apr 2026 Peter Mandelson: Government Appointment
I am afraid that Madam Deputy Speaker is coughing at me, so I will not give way. I fear that there is still more to come. I hope that I can say on behalf of the Foreign Affairs Committee that we will continue to pursue this matter.
21 Apr 2026 Peter Mandelson: Government Appointment
I completely agree with the hon. Lady. It is somehow being suggested by Labour Members that this was about people advising the Prime Minister—I think one speaker earlier said that the Prime Minister had been persuaded to appoint Peter Mand…
21 Apr 2026 Peter Mandelson: Government Appointment
This morning’s Foreign Affairs Committee session lasted for two-and-a-half hours. It was certainly one of the more remarkable sessions that I have attended, and I have been involved in a number of quite controversial Select Committee heari…
20 Apr 2026 Security Vetting
The result of the Prime Minister’s terrible failure of judgment is that for over a year this country’s interests were represented in the United States by someone that our own security services deemed to be a security risk. Will he assure u…
Source: contributions on parliament.uk.
Full parliamentary career
Government posts
- Minister of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport) · Department for Culture, Media and Sport 9 May 2023 – 20 Dec 2023
- Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology) · Department for Science, Innovation and Technology 9 May 2023 – 20 Dec 2023
- Minister of State (Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport) · Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport 13 Feb 2020 – 16 Sep 2021
- Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport · Department for Culture, Media and Sport 8 May 2015 – 14 Jul 2016
Opposition posts
- Shadow Minister (Health and Social Care) · Department of Health and Social Care 19 Jul 2024 – 6 Nov 2024
- Shadow Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport · Department for Culture, Media and Sport 1 Jul 2004 – 5 May 2005
- Shadow Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs · Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs 1 Nov 2003 – 1 Jul 2004
- Shadow Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport · Department for Culture, Media and Sport 23 Jul 2002 – 15 Nov 2003
- Shadow Secretary of State (Trade and Industry) · Department of Trade and Industry 18 Sep 2001 – 23 Jul 2002
- Shadow Spokesperson (Treasury) · HM Treasury 1 Jun 1998 – 1 Jun 1999
- Opposition Whip (Commons) · Whips Office (Commons) 1 Jun 1997 – 1 Jun 1998
Other posts
- Vice-Chair, Conservative Party 1922 Committee 1 Jul 2008 – 30 Mar 2015
Committee memberships
- Strategic Litigation Against Public Participation Bill 1 May 2024 – 8 May 2024
- Zoological Society of London (Leases) Bill 21 Feb 2024 – 28 Feb 2024
- Media Bill 29 Nov 2023 – 12 Dec 2023
- Data Protection and Digital Information (No. 2) Bill 9 May 2023 – 23 May 2023
- Committee on the Future Relationship with the European Union 11 Sep 2017 – 6 Nov 2019
- Committee on the Future Relationship with the European Union 31 Oct 2016 – 3 May 2017
- Liaison Committee (Commons) 11 Jul 2005 – 30 Mar 2015
- Privacy and Injunctions (Joint Committee) · Chair 8 Sep 2011 – 12 Mar 2012
- Privacy and Injunctions (Joint Committee) 14 Jul 2011 – 12 Mar 2012
- Trade & Industry 16 Jul 2001 – 29 Oct 2001
- Health and Social Care Committee 5 Jul 1993 – 21 Mar 1997
- Consolidation etc. Bills (Joint Committee) 27 Apr 1992 – 21 Mar 1997
Previous seats
- Maldon · Elected 4 times 6 May 2010 – 30 May 2024
- Maldon and East Chelmsford · Elected 3 times 1 May 1997 – 6 May 2010
- South Colchester and Maldon · Elected 1 time 9 Apr 1992 – 1 May 1997
Expenses
Contact & offices
020 7219 3557
Parliamentary office
House of Commons, London, SW1A 0AA
Constituency office
19 High Street, Maldon, Essex, CM9 5PE
Frequently asked questions
Common questions about Sir John Whittingdale, answered from official Parliament data.
Who is Sir John Whittingdale?
Sir John Whittingdale is a Member of Parliament representing Maldon in the House of Commons. See Sir John Whittingdale's official Parliament profile.
Which party does Sir John Whittingdale represent?
Sir John Whittingdale sits as Conservative. See Sir John Whittingdale's official Parliament profile.
Which constituency does Sir John Whittingdale represent?
Sir John Whittingdale is the Member of Parliament for Maldon. See Sir John Whittingdale's official Parliament profile.
How long has Sir John Whittingdale been an MP?
Sir John Whittingdale has served in the House of Commons for 34 years, 3 months. See Sir John Whittingdale's official Parliament profile.
What registered interests are listed for Sir John Whittingdale?
Sir John Whittingdale has 10 entries in the Register of Members' Financial Interests. See Sir John Whittingdale's official Parliament profile.
Source: this MP's official Parliament profile. Last updated 27 Jul 2026.