Official portrait of Sir John Whittingdale

Sir John Whittingdale

Conservative MP for Maldon, since 9 April 1992

The Rt Hon Sir John Whittingdale is the Conservative MP for Maldon, and has been an MP continually since 9 April 1992.

Scorecard

59.7% Attendance Below the median of MPs who vote
342 Votes cast out of 575 divisions, plus 1 as teller
232 No vote recorded absent, abstaining, paired or unable to attend
0 Against their own party divisions where they voted the other way to most Conservative MPs
10 Interests declared 2 at £5,000 or more
679 Debates spoken in 85 written questions tabled

Ranked 515 of 638 MPs for attendance. The median of MPs who vote is 72.3%. Ministers and front-benchers vote less often than backbenchers for reasons of office rather than absenteeism, and Parliament does not publish reasons for any absence — the ranking is a starting point for a question, not an answer to one.

Voting record

575 divisions since they took their seat, newest first.

DateQuestionTheir voteResult
15 Sep 2025 Employment Rights Bill: Motion to disagree with Lords Amendment 49 No 332–160
15 Sep 2025 Employment Rights Bill: Motion to disagree with Lords Amendment 48 No 328–160
15 Sep 2025 Employment Rights Bill: Motion to disagree with Lords Amendment 47 No 327–164
15 Sep 2025 Employment Rights Bill: Motion to disagree with Lords Amendment 46 No 314–178
15 Sep 2025 Employment Rights Bill: Motion to disagree with Lords Amendment 23 No 329–163
15 Sep 2025 Employment Rights Bill: Motion to disagree with Lords Amendment 8 No 316–172
15 Sep 2025 Employment Rights Bill: Motion to disagree with Lords Amendment 7 No 330–158
15 Sep 2025 Employment Rights Bill: Motion to disagree with Lords Amendment 1 No 326–160
10 Sep 2025 Bus Services (No.2) Bill: Third Reading No 362–87
10 Sep 2025 Bus Services (No.2) Bill Report Stage: Amendment 10 Aye 153–300
10 Sep 2025 Bus Services (No.2) Bill Report Stage: Amendment 23 Aye 158–297
10 Sep 2025 Bus Services (No.2) Bill Report Stage: Amendment 58 Aye 92–364
10 Sep 2025 Bus Services (No.2) Bill Report Stage: New Clause 2 No vote 69–300
9 Sep 2025 Diego Garcia Military Base and British Indian Ocean Territory Bill: Second Reading No 330–179
9 Sep 2025 Diego Garcia Military Base and British Indian Ocean Territory Bill: Reasoned Amendment Aye 116–333
8 Sep 2025 Renters’ Rights Bill: Motion to disagree with Lords Amendment 64 No vote 335–160
8 Sep 2025 Renters’ Rights Bill: Motion to disagree with Lords Amendment 53 No vote 401–96
8 Sep 2025 Renters’ Rights Bill: Motion to disagree with Lords Amendment 39 No vote 325–171
8 Sep 2025 Renters’ Rights Bill: Motion to disagree with Lords Amendment 26 No vote 404–98
8 Sep 2025 Renters’ Rights Bill: Motion to disagree with Lords Amendment 19 No vote 336–158
8 Sep 2025 Renters’ Rights Bill: Motion to disagree with Lords Amendment 18 No vote 402–97
8 Sep 2025 Renters’ Rights Bill: Motion to disagree with Lords Amendment 11 No vote 398–93
4 Sep 2025 House of Lords (Hereditary Peers) Bill: motion to disagree with Lords Amendment 3 No 338–74
4 Sep 2025 House of Lords (Hereditary Peers) Bill: Motion to disagree with Lords Amendment 2 No 331–73
4 Sep 2025 House of Lords (Hereditary Peers) Bill: motion to disagree with Lords Amendment 1 No 336–77

Declared financial interests

Quoted in full from the Register of Members' Financial Interests. Entries where the largest figure is £5,000 or more are marked. A declaration is not a wrongdoing — the register exists precisely so that these things are visible.

3. Gifts, benefits and hospitality from UK sources

Name of donor: Betting & Gaming Council
Address of donor: Kings Building, 16 Smith Square, London SW1P 3HQ
Amount of donation or nature and value if donation in kind: Two tickets and hospitality at Ascot Races, value £1,920
Date received: 18 June 2026
Date accepted: 18 June 2026
Donor status: company, registration 12213577
(Registered 2 July 2026)

On the register since 14 Jul 2026

Name of donor: NBC Universal International
Address of donor: Central Saint Giles, St Giles High Street, London WC2H 8NU
Amount of donation or nature and value if donation in kind: Two tickets with hospitality to the EE BAFTA Film Awards, value £4,400
Date received: 22 February 2026 to 22 February 2026
Date accepted: 22 February 2026
Donor status: company, registration 04415234
(Registered 3 March 2026)

On the register since 10 Mar 2026

Name of donor: BPI (British Recorded Music) Ltd
Address of donor: Unit 4/4a, Tileyard Studios, Tileyard Road, London N7 9AH
Amount of donation or nature and value if donation in kind: Two tickets with hospitality to the BRIT Awards at Manchester Co-Op Live, value £3,430
Date received: 28 February 2026 to 28 February 2026
Date accepted: 28 February 2026
Donor status: company, registration 01132389
(Registered 4 March 2026)

On the register since 10 Mar 2026

4. Visits outside the UK

£6,421

Name of donor: Great Britain China Centre
Address of donor: Kings Building, 16 Smith Square, London SW1P 3HQ
Estimate of the probable value (or amount of any donation): Flights, accommodation and hospitality, value £6,421
Destination of visit: China (Yangzhou, Ninjang and Beijing)
Dates of visit: 24 May 2026 to 29 May 2026
Purpose of visit: To attend the 14th UK-China Senior Leadership Forum in Yangzhou and to meet members of the National People's Congress and Chinese Government.
(Registered 9 June 2026)

On the register since 16 Jun 2026

£6,155

Name of donor: Doha Forum
Address of donor: Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Almirqab Tower, West Bay, Doha Qatar
Estimate of the probable value (or amount of any donation): Flights (£5,555), accommodation and hospitality (£600), value £6,155
Destination of visit: Qatar (Doha)
Dates of visit: 5 December 2025 to 8 December 2025
Purpose of visit: To participate in the Doha Forum 2025 on diplomacy and dialogue including meetings with Qatari Ministers, and Ministers and Parliamentarians of other participating countries, in my capacity as a Member of the Foreign Affairs Committee.
(Registered 18 December 2025)

On the register since 6 Jan 2026

5. Gifts and benefits from sources outside the UK

Name of donor: Embassy of the State of Qatar
Address of donor: 1 South Audley Street London W1K 1NB
Amount of donation or nature and value if donation in kind: Two tickets to the Qatar Goodwood Festival 2025 and to the Goodwood Regency Ball including hospitality and accommodation for one night, value £1,200
Date received: 31 July 2025
Date accepted: 31 July 2025
Donor status: other
(Registered 5 August 2025)

On the register since 2 Sep 2025

6. Land and property portfolio with a value over £100,000 and where indicated, the portfolio provides a rental income of over £10,000 a year

Type of land/property: Residential property (flat)
Number of properties: 1
Location: London
Rental income: Yes
(Registered 8 October 2012)

On the register since 18 Apr 2024

8. Miscellaneous

A Member of the Executive Committee of the British Group of the Inter Parliamentary Union. This is an unpaid position.
Date interest arose: 27 November 2025
(Registered 29 November 2025)

On the register since 2 Dec 2025

Member of the Board of the Conservative Party. This is an unpaid position.
Date interest arose: 18 July 2024
(Registered 29 November 2025)

On the register since 2 Dec 2025

10. Family members engaged in lobbying the public sector on behalf of a third party or client

Name: Alice Whittingdale
Relationship: Daughter
Role: Senior Consultant
Name of employer: Hanover Communications
(Registered 7 August 2023)

On the register since 18 Apr 2024

The same register on parliament.uk →

Debates

679 debates contributed to in total. The ten most recent:

Money declared to them

2 donations accepted personally since 4 Jul 2024, worth £12,576 in total — from the Electoral Commission's register, which is a separate register from the one above. Money given to their party is not counted here; this is money declared to them.

AcceptedRecipientDonorTypeValue
24 May 2026 Mr John Whittingdale MP sitting MP Great Britain China Centre Other Visit £6,421
5 Dec 2025 Mr John Whittingdale MP sitting MP Doha Forum Other Visit £6,155

Where the public money goes — contracts and donations →


Sources: Commons Votes API, Members API and the Register of Members' Financial Interests, all published by Parliament under the Open Parliament Licence; donations from the Electoral Commission's register. This member's register and debate record were last refreshed 3 Aug 2026. How every figure is worked out →

Machine-readable: JSON for this MP.

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