Member of Parliament
Mr Richard Holden
Conservative MP for Basildon and Billericay
Shadow Secretary of State for Transport
At a glanceMr Richard Holden is a Conservative MP for Basildon and Billericay, and has represented the seat for 6 years, 7 months. They currently serve as Shadow Secretary of State for Transport. They have cast 381 votes in Commons divisions (66% attendance), tabled 3,708 written questions and registered 6 financial interests.
Attendance is votes cast as a share of the 575 Commons divisions since the 2024 election; Mr Richard Holden did not vote in 177. 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
He currently undertakes the role of Shadow Secretary of State for Transport.
Current roles
- Shadow Secretary of State for Transport Opposition post · Department for Transport since 22 Jul 2025
- Basildon and Billericay Representation · Elected 1 time since 4 Jul 2024
- Conservative Party since 12 Dec 2019
Voting record
Voting alignment
Votes most like
-
Bradley Thomas
Conservative
100.0% · 370 of 370 shared votes
-
Rebecca Harris
Conservative
100.0% · 359 of 359 shared votes
-
Gareth Bacon
Conservative
100.0% · 354 of 354 shared votes
-
Edward Argar
Conservative
100.0% · 353 of 353 shared votes
-
Greg Smith
Conservative
100.0% · 353 of 353 shared votes
Votes least like
-
Emily Thornberry
Labour
0.5% · 1 of 199 shared votes
-
Michael Payne
Labour
0.6% · 2 of 308 shared votes
-
Kerry McCarthy
Labour
0.9% · 3 of 331 shared votes
-
Gen Kitchen
Labour
1.0% · 3 of 312 shared votes
-
Pamela Nash
Labour
1.0% · 3 of 296 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.
Gifts, benefits and hospitality from UK sources1
- London Marathon Events Ltd - £350.00 (registered 13 May 2026)
Visits outside the UK4
- International visit to Kenya between 24 May 2026 and 29 May 2026 (registered 8 Jun 2026)
- International visit to Italy between 17 April 2026 and 19 April 2026 (registered 18 May 2026)
- International visit to Zambia between 12 April 2026 and 17 April 2026 (registered 18 May 2026)
- International visit to Ukraine between 20 February 2026 and 25 February 2026 (registered 18 Mar 2026)
Miscellaneous1
- Executive Committee Member of the British-American Parliamentary Group. This is an unpaid role. (registered 9 Jan 2025)
Written questions
Written question
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to WPQ 17035, on what date will the Masterplan for Euston be published.
Awaiting an answer from the Department for Transport.
Written question
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to WPQ 17032, at what level are the charges expected to be set for the Lower Thames Crossing.
Awaiting an answer from the Department for Transport.
Written question
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to WPQ 18160, how many of the driving tests for D1 licenses that were conducted in each year were for people a.) 24 and under b.) 25 and over, when taking the test.
Awaiting an answer from the Department for Transport.
Written question
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 10 July 2026 to Question 14939 on Large Goods Vehicles: Electric Vehicles, what use cases her Department considered when assessing the purchase price differential between diesel heavy
Awaiting an answer from the Department for Transport.
Written question
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 13 July 2026 to Question 15858 on Network Rail: Biodiversity, which sites or projects do the standard licenses for (a) badgers, (b) bats, (c) great crested wewts, (d) hazel dormice and
Awaiting an answer from the Department for Transport.
Civil Servants: Overseas Workers
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what the total expenditure on additional journeys for civil servants serving at qualifying hardship posts has been since 4 July 2024, broken down by department.
Awaiting an answer from the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office.
Physical Education: Finance
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many primary schools she estimates will receive less funding for PE and school sport under the Sport Partnerships Network than they would have received through the Primary PE and Sport Premium.
Awaiting an answer from the Department for Education.
Government Communication Service: Staff
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the answer of 6 July 2026 to Question 16056 on Government Communication Service: Staff, how many headcount staff in her Department are (a) members of the Government Communication Service and (b) are
Awaiting an answer from the Department for Transport.
Early day motions
| 21 Oct 2024 | Pie and Mash (No. 2) | 6 sig. |
Speeches in the chamber
16 Jul 2026 Topical Questions
In London boroughs and cities across the country, council-wide 20 mph speed limits are causing havoc. In Wales, councils are desperately trying to unpick the last Welsh Labour Government’s blanket 20 mph speed limits. Why on earth are Labo…
16 Jul 2026 Transport Decarbonisation
British vehicle manufacturers are expressing the view, with increasing urgency, that the ZEV mandate has simply become an ideological shibboleth of the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero. Will the Secretary of State finall…
16 Jul 2026 Transport Decarbonisation
Opposition Members genuinely wish the whole Transport team well ahead of the weekend and next week—although if they are moved up, along or down, at least they will not have to answer the many written parliamentary questions that we have pu…
25 Jun 2026 Ports and Port Connectivity
It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship today, Ms Jardine, and I thank you for allowing male Members to remove their jackets—although that was before you saw the shirt the hon. Member for Didcot and Wantage (Olly Glover) is weari…
22 Jun 2026 East Midlands Railway Collision
First and foremost, I offer my condolences to the family of Shaun Burton. In addition, our thoughts are with all those injured, some of whom are still in hospital with very serious injuries. I and all my colleagues on the Conservative Benc…
11 Jun 2026 Mass Transit Systems
Given the right hon. Lady’s clearly close working relationship with the Greater Manchester Mayor, does she agree with the decision of the Prime Minister—sorry, Mayor Burnham—reported in The Sun to spend £35,000 of taxpayers’ money repainti…
11 Jun 2026 Mass Transit Systems
Since coming to power, the Labour party has increased the bus fare cap by 50% from £2 to £3. But one area that has not seen that rise is Greater Manchester where the last Conservative Government gave over £1 billion to support its mass tra…
10 Jun 2026 Railways Bill
My right hon. Friend makes an important point. If the Government truly believe in putting passengers first, why are they making life harder for the very operators that have delivered some of the lowest fares and highest levels of passen…
10 Jun 2026 Railways Bill
I do not know what my hon. Friend the Member for Broadland and Fakenham (Jerome Mayhew) and the hon. Member for Selby (Keir Mather) are going to do when they are not spending so much time together, week in, week out. We are gathered her…
29 Apr 2026 Points of Order
On a point of order, Mr Speaker. I seek your guidance on two matters relating to the completeness of ministerial answers to this House. On 24 April, in answer to a written parliamentary question tabled by my hon. Friend the Member for Leic…
20 Apr 2026 Draft Train Driving Licences and Certificates (Amendment) Regulations 2026
It is an absolute pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Mrs Harris. Today, the Minister will be pleased to know that the Opposition are fully and wholly supportive of his measures to deregulate this sector. Bringing young people in…
26 Mar 2026 Transport Accessibility for Disabled People
I think the hon. Member should reflect on the fact that he voted last week for a policy that hammers those rural transport users more than anyone else, not at some theoretical time in the future but from September this year, increasing in …
26 Mar 2026 Transport Accessibility for Disabled People
The hon. Lady makes an important point. I will add, though, that disabled people often choose to use a car, if one is available, because it is the most convenient means of getting around; it means that they can travel at times that suit th…
26 Mar 2026 Transport Accessibility for Disabled People
Over the past few decades there has been a consensus in politics that disability should not prevent people from living fulfilling and successful lives. However, I recognise that, despite strong standards and the implementation of new measu…
26 Mar 2026 Topical Questions
In September last year, the Secretary of State told the House: “I know the importance of the fuel duty freeze”.—[Official Report, 11 September 2025; Vol. 772, c. 1031.] That was when diesel and petrol were significantly cheaper than …
26 Mar 2026 Passenger Rail Services
It is clear that the Minister is not prepared to agree with the Secretary of State, so I ask him whether he agrees with himself. In an answer to my hon. Friend the Member for Broadland and Fakenham (Jerome Mayhew) on 23 March, he said that…
26 Mar 2026 Passenger Rail Services
We still do not know how or what the Government want to achieve with state control of the railways. They say that there will be simpler fares, but the public are seeing simply more expensive fares. They say that passenger growth is necessa…
18 Mar 2026 Fuel Duty
My hon. Friend makes the really important point that this is about choices. She is also right that many people do not have such a choice about their cars, and nobody has a choice about going to a shop to buy food, which will be delivered b…
18 Mar 2026 Fuel Duty
No, I have already given way to the hon. Member. We in the Opposition are all praying for a U-turn on the fuel duty policy, which would be very welcome. We would rather that they had never come up with the policy in the first place beca…
18 Mar 2026 Fuel Duty
It is not often that I agree with an SNP spokesperson, but I very much do so today. The hon. Member makes an incredibly important point. The Labour party came to office talking about how growth was its No. 1 priority. Has anybody heard Min…
Source: contributions on parliament.uk.
Full parliamentary career
Government posts
- Minister without Portfolio (Cabinet Office) · Cabinet Office 13 Nov 2023 – 5 Jul 2024
- Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport) · Department for Transport 28 Oct 2022 – 13 Nov 2023
Opposition posts
- Opposition Whip (Commons) · Whips Office (Commons) 8 Nov 2024 – 22 Jul 2025
- Shadow Paymaster General · Cabinet Office 8 Nov 2024 – 22 Jul 2025
Committee memberships
- Procedure Committee 28 Oct 2024 – 30 Jun 2025
- Product Regulation and Metrology Bill [HL] 13 May 2025 – 15 May 2025
- European Statutory Instruments Committee 2 Mar 2020 – 30 May 2024
- Seafarers' Wages Bill [HL] 11 Jan 2023 – 17 Jan 2023
- Trade (Australia and New Zealand) Bill 4 Oct 2022 – 18 Oct 2022
- Online Safety Bill 18 May 2022 – 28 Jun 2022
- Public Accounts Committee 2 Mar 2020 – 15 Mar 2022
- Marriage and Civil Partnership (Minimum Age) Bill 5 Jan 2022 – 12 Jan 2022
- Finance (No.2) Bill 8 Dec 2021 – 11 Jan 2022
- Approved Premises (Substance Testing) Bill 8 Dec 2021 – 15 Dec 2021
- Higher Education (Freedom of Speech) Bill 7 Sep 2021 – 22 Sep 2021
- Select Committee on the Armed Forces Bill (2021) 25 Feb 2021 – 14 Apr 2021
- Select Committee on the Armed Forces Bill (2021) 22 Feb 2021 – 22 Feb 2021
Previous seats
- North West Durham · Elected 1 time 12 Dec 2019 – 30 May 2024
Elections contested
- Preston 7 May 2015
Expenses
Source: IPSA (OGL v3.0)
Contact & offices
0207 219 3059
Parliamentary office
House of Commons, London, SW1A 0AA
Frequently asked questions
Common questions about Mr Richard Holden, answered from official Parliament data.
Who is Mr Richard Holden?
Mr Richard Holden is a Member of Parliament representing Basildon and Billericay in the House of Commons. See Mr Richard Holden's official Parliament profile.
Which party does Mr Richard Holden represent?
Mr Richard Holden sits as Conservative. See Mr Richard Holden's official Parliament profile.
Which constituency does Mr Richard Holden represent?
Mr Richard Holden is the Member of Parliament for Basildon and Billericay. See Mr Richard Holden's official Parliament profile.
How long has Mr Richard Holden been an MP?
Mr Richard Holden has served in the House of Commons for 6 years, 7 months. See Mr Richard Holden's official Parliament profile.
What registered interests are listed for Mr Richard Holden?
Mr Richard Holden has 6 entries in the Register of Members' Financial Interests. See Mr Richard Holden's official Parliament profile.
Source: this MP's official Parliament profile. Last updated 26 Jul 2026.