Sir John Whittingdale MP: votes, interests and costs
Sir John Whittingdale (Conservative) is the MP for Maldon, in the seat since 9 April 1992.
Offices and committees
UK Parliament records Sir John Whittingdale as a current member of this committee.
Committees
| Committee or post | From | To |
|---|---|---|
| Foreign Affairs Committee | 21 October 2024 | Current |
Earlier ministerial and shadow posts
| Post | Department | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology) | Department for Science, Innovation and Technology | 9 May 2023 | 20 December 2023 |
| Minister of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport) | Department for Culture, Media and Sport | 9 May 2023 | 20 December 2023 |
| Minister of State (Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport) | Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport | 13 February 2020 | 16 September 2021 |
| Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport | Department for Culture, Media and Sport | 8 May 2015 | 14 July 2016 |
| Shadow Minister (Health and Social Care) | Department of Health and Social Care | 19 July 2024 | 6 November 2024 |
| Shadow Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport | Department for Culture, Media and Sport | 1 July 2004 | 5 May 2005 |
| Shadow Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs | Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs | 1 November 2003 | 1 July 2004 |
| Shadow Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport | Department for Culture, Media and Sport | 23 July 2002 | 15 November 2003 |
| Shadow Secretary of State (Trade and Industry) | Department of Trade and Industry | 18 September 2001 | 23 July 2002 |
| Shadow Spokesperson (Treasury) | HM Treasury | 1 June 1998 | 1 June 1999 |
| Opposition Whip (Commons) | Whips Office (Commons) | 1 June 1997 | 1 June 1998 |
Earlier committees
| Committee or post | From | To |
|---|---|---|
| Strategic Litigation Against Public Participation Bill | 1 May 2024 | 8 May 2024 |
| Zoological Society of London (Leases) Bill | 21 February 2024 | 28 February 2024 |
| Media Bill | 29 November 2023 | 12 December 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 September 2017 | 6 November 2019 |
| Committee on the Future Relationship with the European Union | 31 October 2016 | 3 May 2017 |
| Privacy and Injunctions (Joint Committee) | 8 September 2011 | 12 March 2012 |
| Privacy and Injunctions (Joint Committee) | 14 July 2011 | 12 March 2012 |
| Liaison Committee (Commons) | 11 July 2005 | 30 March 2015 |
| Trade & Industry | 16 July 2001 | 29 October 2001 |
| Health and Social Care Committee | 5 July 1993 | 21 March 1997 |
| Consolidation etc. Bills (Joint Committee) | 27 April 1992 | 21 March 1997 |
Other posts
| Committee or post | From | To |
|---|---|---|
| Vice-Chair, Conservative Party 1922 Committee | 1 July 2008 | 30 March 2015 |
Source: Parliament Members API, read 15 October 2026, SHA-256 a13f57582a12.
Register of interests
The Register of Members' Financial Interests lists 9 entries for Sir John Whittingdale: Gifts, benefits and hospitality from UK sources (3), Visits outside the UK (2), Miscellaneous (2), Family members engaged in third-party lobbying (1), Land and property (within or outside the UK) (1). The most recent was registered on 2 July 2026. Each entry is quoted as published, with its registration date; payments linked to an entry are listed under it.
Betting & Gaming Council - £1,920.00
- Whether the benefit was monetary or in kind: In kind
- Description of the payment: Two tickets and hospitality at Ascot Races
- Value of the benefit: £1,920.00
- Date on which the benefit was received: 2026-06-18
- Date on which the benefit was accepted: 2026-06-18
- Name of the donor: Betting & Gaming Council
- Status of the donor: Company
- Name of the donor company: Betting & Gaming Council
International visit to China between 24 May 2026 and 29 May 2026
- Purpose of the 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.
- Date Member left the UK: 2026-05-24
- Date Member returned to the UK: 2026-05-29
BPI (British Recorded Music) Ltd - £3,430.00
- Whether the benefit was monetary or in kind: In kind
- Description of the payment: Two tickets with hospitality to the BRIT Awards at Manchester Co-Op Live
- Value of the benefit: £3,430.00
- Date on which the benefit was received: 2026-02-28
- Date on which the benefit was accepted: 2026-02-28
- End date, if the benefit was received over time: 2026-02-28
- Name of the donor: BPI (British Recorded Music) Ltd
- Status of the donor: Company
NBC Universal International - £4,400.00
- Whether the benefit was monetary or in kind: In kind
- Description of the payment: Two tickets with hospitality to the EE BAFTA Film Awards
- Value of the benefit: £4,400.00
- Date on which the benefit was received: 2026-02-22
- Date on which the benefit was accepted: 2026-02-22
- End date, if the benefit was received over time: 2026-02-22
- Name of the donor: NBC Universal International
- Status of the donor: Company
International visit to Qatar between 05 December 2025 and 08 December 2025
- Purpose of the 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.
- Date Member left the UK: 2025-12-05
- Date Member returned to the UK: 2025-12-08
Member of the Board of the Conservative Party. This is an unpaid position.
- Date on which the interest arose, or became registrable: 2024-07-18
- The type of interest: Formal role with a party organisation
A Member of the Executive Committee of the British Group of the Inter Parliamentary Union. This is an unpaid position.
- Date on which the interest arose, or became registrable: 2025-11-27
- The type of interest: Unpaid role
Alice Whittingdale employed as Lobbyist
- Job title or role: Senior Consultant
- Name of employer: Hanover Communications
- Name of the family member acting as a lobbyist: Alice Whittingdale
- Who the family member is directly related to: Related to member directly
- Nature of relationship: Daughter
Residential in London
- Location of the land or property: London
- A description of the property: flat
- The number of properties this interest relates to: 1
- Country in which the land or property is located: United Kingdom
- The type of property: Residential
Source: Register of Members' Financial Interests API, read 29 October 2026. The register entry on UK Parliament.
Business costs (IPSA)
The Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority publishes Sir John Whittingdale's 2024-25 staffing spend as £200,835 (budget £250,820). In 2023-24 it was £179,501. Office costs came to £9,169 of a £33,020 budget. IPSA publishes each budget, the amount spent and the amount left (the remaining amounts are in IPSA's files); no total across budgets is published, so none is given here.
| IPSA figure | 2024-25 | 2023-24 | 2022-23 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Staffing: spent | £200,835.27 | £179,500.51 | £166,205.08 |
| Office costs: spent | £9,169.43 | £16,664.39 | £14,075.25 |
| Accommodation: spent | £29,290.00 | £26,840.00 | £25,080.00 |
| Winding-up: spent | £0.00 | £0.00 | |
| Travel and subsistence (no cap): spent | £4,414.56 | £4,395.67 | £4,447.14 |
| Other costs (no cap): spent | £0.00 | £912.15 | £0.00 |
Budgets set for 2024-25: office costs £33,020, staffing £250,820, accommodation £29,290 (Standard non-London area budget; Standard budget for renting a property in the London area).
IPSA's CSVs for 2024-25, 2023-24, 2022-23, read 15 October 2026; constituency as IPSA lists it: Maldon CC.
Staff roles listed by IPSA, 2024-25
Senior Parliamentary Assistant (permanent full time), Office Manager (permanent part time), Caseworker (permanent part time), Senior Caseworker ×2 (permanent full time), Parliamentary Assistant (permanent full time) (IPSA CSV)
IPSA annual publications · All MPs' 2024-25 costs (table and CSV)
Votes in the Commons
The Commons Votes API records 380 votes by Sir John Whittingdale in divisions since 4 July 2024. Of these, 34 were votes on statutory instruments or procedural motions, which are not listed below. The latest 30 votes on bills and motions are below, from 23 June 2026 to 20 October 2026. The most recent, on 20 October 2026, was a No on "Northern Ireland Troubles Bill: Third Reading".
Source: Commons Votes API, read 29 October 2026. Only divisions in which a vote is recorded for the MP are counted. The full list on UK Parliament.
Written questions
The Written Questions API lists 62 written questions from Sir John Whittingdale since 4 July 2024. Departments in the latest 10: Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office; Ministry of Justice; Treasury; Department for Business and Trade; and others.
Russia: Liquefied Natural Gas
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether he plans to prohibit UK firms from providing insurance and other financial services to the Clean Planet, Clean Ocean and Clean Vision before the wider ban on maritime …
Press Recognition Panel: Finance
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what plans his Department has to provide future funding to the Press Recognition Panel.
Press Recognition Panel: Expenditure
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, if he will list grants made by his Department to the Press Recognition Panel since 2014; and what the purpose was of those grants.
Electronic Commerce: Taxation
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment his Department has made of the potential impact of the reporting thresholds for excluded sellers in the Platform Operators (Due Diligence and Reporting Requirements) Regulations 2023 on individuals s …
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.
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 …
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.
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.
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 …
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 …
Source: Written Questions API, read 15 October 2026, SHA-256 144de8f148cf. Question wording as listed by the API, which gives the opening words of longer questions. All questions by Sir John Whittingdale.
2024 general election
The House of Commons Library records a majority of 6,906 for Sir John Whittingdale in Maldon in July 2024, from 19,374 votes on a turnout of 63.7%. Result as published: Con hold.
Commons Library results, read 14 October 2026 · Maldon figures
Statements and pledges on this site
Official corrections
Records in which Sir John Whittingdale corrected an answer or the Commons record, or which the UK Statistics Authority addressed to Sir John Whittingdale:
- Sir John Whittingdale corrected a written answer on Cultural Heritage: Northern Ireland and Republic of Ireland
- John Whittingdale corrected a written answer on Media: Public Health
Built 15 October 2026 from official records; register entries and votes are re-read on a rolling schedule. This page sets out what the record shows and gives no rating of the MP. Official UK Parliament page · All MPs · Something wrong? Tell us.