At a glanceSir Bernard Jenkin is a Conservative MP for Harwich and North Essex, and has represented the seat for 34 years, 3 months. They have cast 381 votes in Commons divisions (66% attendance), tabled 114 written questions and registered 11 financial interests.
Attendance is votes cast as a share of the 575 Commons divisions since the 2024 election; Sir Bernard Jenkin did not vote in 194. 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
- Liaison Sub-Committee on Core Tasks of Select Committees Committee since 23 Jun 2026
- Liaison Sub-Committee on National Policy Statements Committee since 11 Jun 2025
- Liaison Committee (Commons) Committee since 4 Dec 2024
- Statutory Instruments (Joint Committee) Committee · Chair since 16 Oct 2024
- Statutory Instruments (Select Committee) Committee · Chair since 16 Oct 2024
- Statutory Instruments (Joint Committee) Committee since 14 Oct 2024
- Statutory Instruments (Select Committee) Committee since 14 Oct 2024
- Harwich and North Essex 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% · 366 of 366 shared votes
-
Rebecca Harris
Conservative
100.0% · 365 of 365 shared votes
-
Greg Smith
Conservative
100.0% · 362 of 362 shared votes
-
Dr Kieran Mullan
Conservative
100.0% · 355 of 355 shared votes
-
Edward Argar
Conservative
100.0% · 354 of 354 shared votes
Votes least like
-
Michael Payne
Labour
1.0% · 3 of 300 shared votes
-
Emily Thornberry
Labour
1.0% · 2 of 195 shared votes
-
Ms Julie Minns
Labour
1.2% · 4 of 328 shared votes
-
Kerry McCarthy
Labour
1.2% · 4 of 326 shared votes
-
Bambos Charalambous
Labour
1.3% · 4 of 302 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.
Employment and earnings2
- Writing articles - Mace Publishing Limited Company number 15121315 (registered 3 Jun 2026)
- Speaking engagement - El Espaniol, (registered 6 May 2026)
Employment and earnings - Ad hoc payments2
- Payment received on 28 May 2026 - £300.00 (registered 3 Jun 2026)
- Payment received on 29 April 2026 - £1,264.76 (registered 6 May 2026)
Gifts, benefits and hospitality from UK sources1
- Richard Matthews - £300.00 (registered 11 Jan 2026)
Visits outside the UK2
- International visit to Spain between 14 April 2026 and 15 April 2026 (registered 6 May 2026)
- International visit to Moldova between 19 February 2026 and 25 February 2026 (registered 20 Mar 2026)
Land and property (within or outside the UK)1
- Property in Essex (registered 30 Oct 2025)
Miscellaneous3
- I am a Trustee of the Parliament Choir, which was an All Party Parliamentary Group until 2019, but is now an autonomous body under the patronage of the Speaker of the House of Commons and the Lords Speaker. The choir is open to all who work in Parliament. (registered 21 Oct 2025)
- Director and Chairman of Beach Road Water Ltd, a non-profit company limited by guarantee. This is an unpaid role. (registered 11 Dec 2023)
- A Vice President of Combat Stress, a charity offering mental health services to veterans. This is an unpaid role. (registered 15 Dec 2021)
Written questions
A120: Repairs and Maintenance
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether she plans to upgrade the A120 from Hare Green to Harwich.
Answer · 16 Jul 2026
Through its Safety National Programme, National Highways is considering targeted measures, including junction upgrades, improved signage and road markings, barrier enhancements, and speed management interventions on the A120 between Hare Green and Harwich...
Defence: Finance
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, if he will set out in detail where he expects to be able to fulfill the commitment of £10.7bn included in the spending projections on page 73 of the Defence Investment Plan.
Answer · 6 Jul 2026
Defence is committed to efficiency and ensuring every pound spent on Defence is used in the best way for our Armed Forces and the taxpayer. Section 4 of the Defence Investment Plan (DIP), published 30 June 2026, outlines our extensive Reform and Efficienc...
Livestock: Exports
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if she will consider allowing the export of live animals to the EU as part of the dynamic alignment provisions of the proposed sanitary and phytosanitary agreement with the EU.
Answer · 15 Jun 2026
The Government does not currently prohibit the export of live animals to the EU, except for slaughter and fattening. This Government is currently negotiating a Sanitary and Phytosanitary (SPS) Agreement to make agrifood trade with our biggest market cheap...
Economic Growth: UK Membership of EU
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment has been made by her Department of the statistical reliability of the OBR's claim that the UK economy is growing more slowly than if the UK had remained in the EU after 2021; and if she will set out
Answer · 10 Jun 2026
The Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) is the Government’s independent official forecaster and is responsible for producing economic and fiscal forecasts.The OBR has included assessments of the economic impacts of leaving the EU in its forecasts since...
Economic Growth: EU Law
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of measures proposed in the EU reset on economic growth, taking account costs on business and the taxpayer of, inter allia, i) new regulations and dire
Answer · 9 Jun 2026
At a time of great global uncertainty, we must deepen our relationships with allies whose values we share and whose interests are tied to our own. This is why we will pursue a closer relationship with the EU where it is in our national interest to do so. ...
Economic Growth: Brexit
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment she has made of the impact of leaving the EU on the underlying growth rate of the UK economy; and what recent analysis her Department has undertaken on that issue.
Answer · 1 Jun 2026
The Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) is the government’s official forecaster. The OBR has included assessments of the economic impacts of leaving the EU in its forecasts since 2016. In March 2020 the OBR estimated that, as a result of the deal negot...
Public Appointments: Vetting
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how many times the assessments made by UKSV arising from the developed vetting of individuals proposed for public appointments since the enactment of the Constitutional Reform and Governance Act 2010 come into f
Answer · 28 Apr 2026
UKSV does not centrally categorise individuals by their specific terms of appointment, such as whether they are a public appointee. In line with the practice followed by successive administrations, the Government does not otherwise comment on security mat...
Electricity: Suffolk
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what estimate he has made of the proportion of UK electricity that will pass through the Bramford substation (a) in an average year and (b) at periods of highest demand through Bramford after
Answer · 23 Apr 2026
This information is not held centrally.
Early day motions
| 25 Jan 2018 | COLLECTING DATA ON ELECTION CANDIDATE DIVERSITY | 36 sig. |
| 15 Sep 2015 | SCHOOL TRANSPORT | 1 sig. |
| 22 Oct 2014 | EU PORT SERVICES REGULATION | 14 sig. |
| 15 Oct 2014 | EU DIRECTIVE ON SULPHUR CONTENT OF MARINE FUELS | 12 sig. |
| 9 Sep 2014 | SCOTLAND AND THE UNITED KINGDOM | 50 sig. |
| 3 Nov 2011 | DISCRIMINATION AGAINST PEOPLE AFFECTED BY LEPROSY | 30 sig. |
Speeches in the chamber
16 Jul 2026 Topical Questions
May I refer the Secretary of State to Question 20 on the Order Paper? Can she explain when the A120 to Harwich will finally be upgraded? Is she aware that a community of some 20,000 people is served by this dreadful road, and that we dread…
15 Jul 2026 National Energy System Operator: Blackout Risk
Can I just point out that the very fact that the Minister is at the Dispatch Box answering this urgent question is itself an indictment of the confidence that not only the public, but people working in NESO, have in the resilience of the s…
13 Jul 2026 Death of Ann Widdecombe
I thank the Home Secretary for her statement, and her tribute to Ann—it was extremely moving, if I may say so. Can I also point out the unfortunate statistical fact that a Member of Parliament is more likely to meet a violent death than a…
13 Jul 2026 Local Government Reorganisation
May I draw the Minister’s attention to a poll conducted and published by YouGov? It shows that local government reform in Essex is really unpopular. What is more, the more people are questioned about it, the more unpopular it becomes. Why …
9 Jul 2026 NATO Summit
On a point of order, Madam Deputy Speaker. During business questions, I mentioned the interests of council tax payers in Tendring district. I probably should have drawn attention to my entry in the Register of Members’ Financial Interests,…
9 Jul 2026 NATO Summit
Could the Foreign Secretary say anything about the bilateral discussions between President Trump and President Zelensky, and can she shed any light on the discussions they had about the United States sharing its Patriot missile production …
9 Jul 2026 Business of the House
The Leader of the House did not mention in the forthcoming business that the House is about to be asked to decide on whether to issue a writ for a farcical and unnecessary by-election. [Interruption.] Have we had it already? I beg your par…
9 Jul 2026 Iran Conflict: Ceasefire
I ask this question in all sincerity. Throughout this conflict, the Government have pleaded for de-escalation, but if Iran is gratuitously escalating, should we not give unambiguous support to the Americans for retaliating? Who else is goi…
9 Jul 2026 Jury Trials
Where is the evidence that jury trials are causing the delays? In the south-east and other parts of the country, the backlog is already falling. The Government should be commended for that, but what are the other causes of delays, and are …
9 Jul 2026 Jury Trials
3. What advice she has given the Government on the potential impact of removing jury trials in certain circumstances on the rule of law.
8 Jul 2026 Rearmament and Warfighting Readiness
I happen to agree with the hon. Member about the failure of the coalition Government to make progress with the deterrent, but there were many of us complaining about that at the time, including my right hon. Friend the Member for New Fores…
8 Jul 2026 Rearmament and Warfighting Readiness
Will the hon. Member give way?
8 Jul 2026 Rearmament and Warfighting Readiness
There is a national conversation about who will be the next Prime Minister or whether there will be a by-election in Clacton, but there is no such national conversation about the existential threats to our freedom and democracy. It is d…
8 Jul 2026 Rearmament and Warfighting Readiness
We need resilient financial systems. We need sovereign defence capabilities and sovereign critical national infrastructure. I am glad that we have stopped handing over so much of our CNI to foreign owners, but an immediate, radical transfo…
8 Jul 2026 Rearmament and Warfighting Readiness
In this paper entitled “Understanding the UK’s Transition to Warfighting Readiness” that I am just about to explain briefly to the House, we refer to Norway’s concept. Norway’s total war concept is being embedded in its national life and …
8 Jul 2026 Rearmament and Warfighting Readiness
Yes, and I think the Government have plans for that, but they keep pulling back because it is a difficult thing to talk about. The spin doctors and spads will tell their political masters, “Oh no, don’t talk about that—the polling says it …
8 Jul 2026 Rearmament and Warfighting Readiness
It is an honour to succeed the hon. and gallant Member for Birmingham Selly Oak (Al Carns) in this debate. I congratulate the hon. Member for Tunbridge Wells (Mike Martin) who opened the debate—a very timely debate it is, too. I particula…
8 Jul 2026 Maritime and Coastguard Agency
May I help the Minister answer the question he was asked by my hon. Friend the Member for Mid Buckinghamshire (Greg Smith), who is on the Opposition Front Bench? The answer is that the law is an ass and the law should be changed, as the ri…
8 Jul 2026 European Entry and Exit System
Will the Minister point out to the European Union that, because we have a common travel area with the Republic of Ireland, and because the Republic of Ireland is not applying any of these checks on British citizens going to and coming from…
6 Jul 2026 Patient Safety Review
I am listening very carefully to what the Minister is saying. She has engaged positively with the questions I have asked, but she has actually made the case for keeping HSSIB separate. Will she reflect on that? If the only thing she wants …
Source: contributions on parliament.uk.
Full parliamentary career
Opposition posts
- Shadow Minister (Energy and Climate Change) · Department of Energy and Climate Change 10 May 2005 – 8 Dec 2005
- Shadow Secretary of State (The Regions) 1 Oct 2003 – 10 May 2005
- Shadow Secretary of State for Defence · Ministry of Defence 1 Sep 2001 – 1 Oct 2003
- Shadow Minister (Transport) · Department for Transport 19 Jun 1998 – 1 Sep 2001
- Opposition Spokesperson (Constitutional Affairs, Scotland and Wales) 1 Jul 1997 – 1 Jul 1998
- Opposition Spokesperson (Environment, Transport and the Regions) 1 Jan 1998 – 19 Jun 1998
Other posts
- Deputy Chair, Conservative Party 1 Dec 2005 – 7 Nov 2006
Committee memberships
- Liaison Sub-Committee on Scrutiny of Strategic Thinking in Government · Chair 22 Jun 2023 – 30 May 2024
- Liaison Sub-Committee on National Policy Statements · Chair 22 Sep 2021 – 30 May 2024
- Liaison Committee (Commons) · Chair 20 May 2020 – 30 May 2024
- Committee of Privileges 2 Mar 2020 – 30 May 2024
- Committee on Standards 2 Mar 2020 – 30 May 2024
- Public Accounts Committee 2 Mar 2020 – 25 May 2021
- Liaison Committee Sub-committee on the effectiveness and influence of the select committee system 13 Feb 2019 – 6 Nov 2019
- Liaison Committee (Commons) 6 Nov 2017 – 6 Nov 2019
- Speaker's Committee on the Electoral Commission 12 Jul 2017 – 6 Nov 2019
- Public Administration and Constitutional Affairs Committee · Chair 12 Jul 2017 – 6 Nov 2019
- Draft Health Service Safety Investigations Bill (Joint Committee) · Chair 16 May 2018 – 27 Jul 2018
- Draft Health Service Safety Investigations Bill (Joint Committee) 17 Apr 2018 – 27 Jul 2018
- Liaison Committee (Commons) 10 Sep 2015 – 3 May 2017
- Public Administration and Constitutional Affairs Committee · Chair 18 Jun 2015 – 3 May 2017
- Speaker's Committee on the Electoral Commission 18 Jun 2015 – 3 May 2017
- Parliamentary Privilege (Joint Committee) 3 Dec 2012 – 30 Mar 2015
- Liaison Committee (Commons) 19 Jul 2010 – 30 Mar 2015
- Public Administration Committee · Chair 10 Jun 2010 – 30 Mar 2015
- Draft Protection of Charities Bill (Joint Committee) 6 Nov 2014 – 3 Feb 2015
- Committees on Arms Export Controls 10 Mar 2008 – 6 May 2010
- Defence Committee 27 Nov 2006 – 6 May 2010
- Social Security 6 Dec 1993 – 21 Mar 1997
Previous seats
- Harwich and North Essex · Elected 4 times 6 May 2010 – 30 May 2024
- North Essex · Elected 3 times 1 May 1997 – 6 May 2010
- North Colchester · Elected 1 time 9 Apr 1992 – 1 May 1997
Elections contested
- Glasgow Central 11 Jun 1987
Expenses
Contact & offices
020 7219 4029
Parliamentary office
House of Commons, London, SW1A 0AA
Frequently asked questions
Common questions about Sir Bernard Jenkin, answered from official Parliament data.
Who is Sir Bernard Jenkin?
Sir Bernard Jenkin is a Member of Parliament representing Harwich and North Essex in the House of Commons. See Sir Bernard Jenkin's official Parliament profile.
Which party does Sir Bernard Jenkin represent?
Sir Bernard Jenkin sits as Conservative. See Sir Bernard Jenkin's official Parliament profile.
Which constituency does Sir Bernard Jenkin represent?
Sir Bernard Jenkin is the Member of Parliament for Harwich and North Essex. See Sir Bernard Jenkin's official Parliament profile.
How long has Sir Bernard Jenkin been an MP?
Sir Bernard Jenkin has served in the House of Commons for 34 years, 3 months. See Sir Bernard Jenkin's official Parliament profile.
What registered interests are listed for Sir Bernard Jenkin?
Sir Bernard Jenkin has 11 entries in the Register of Members' Financial Interests. See Sir Bernard Jenkin's official Parliament profile.
Source: this MP's official Parliament profile. Last updated 26 Jul 2026.