John Whittingdale Portrait

John Whittingdale

Conservative - Maldon

First elected: 9th April 1992

Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

(since May 2023)

Minister of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)

(since May 2023)

Data Protection and Digital Information (No. 2) Bill
9th May 2023 - 23rd May 2023
Minister of State (Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport)
13th Feb 2020 - 16th Sep 2021
Committee on the Future Relationship with the European Union
11th Sep 2017 - 6th Nov 2019
Committee on Exiting the European Union
11th Sep 2017 - 6th Nov 2019
Committee on the Future Relationship with the European Union
31st Oct 2016 - 3rd May 2017
Committee on Exiting the European Union
31st Oct 2016 - 3rd May 2017
Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport
8th May 2015 - 14th Jul 2016
Vice-Chair, Conservative Party 1922 Committee
1st Jul 2008 - 30th Mar 2015
Liaison Committee (Commons)
11th Jul 2005 - 30th Mar 2015
Culture, Media and Sport Committee
11th Jul 2005 - 30th Mar 2015
Privacy and Injunctions (Joint Committee)
14th Jul 2011 - 12th Mar 2012
Privacy and Injunctions (Joint Committee)
8th Sep 2011 - 12th Mar 2012
Shadow Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport
1st Jul 2004 - 5th May 2005
Shadow Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
1st Nov 2003 - 1st Jul 2004
Shadow Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport
23rd Jul 2002 - 15th Nov 2003
Shadow Secretary of State (Trade and Industry)
18th Sep 2001 - 23rd Jul 2002
Trade & Industry
16th Jul 2001 - 29th Oct 2001
Shadow Spokesperson (Treasury)
1st Jun 1998 - 1st Jun 1999
Opposition Whip (Commons)
1st Jun 1997 - 1st Jun 1998
Health and Social Care Committee
5th Jul 1993 - 21st Mar 1997
Consolidation etc. Bills (Joint Committee)
27th Apr 1992 - 21st Mar 1997


Department Event
Wednesday 10th January 2024
11:30
Department for Science, Innovation & Technology
Oral questions - Main Chamber
10 Jan 2024, 11:30 a.m.
Science, Innovation and Technology (including Topical Questions)
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Note: This event involves a Department with which this person is linked, and does not guarantee their actual attendance.
Department Event
Thursday 11th January 2024
09:30
Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport
Oral questions - Main Chamber
11 Jan 2024, 9:30 a.m.
Culture, Media and Sport (including Topical Questions)
Save to Calendar
View calendar
Note: This event involves a Department with which this person is linked, and does not guarantee their actual attendance.
Division Votes
Wednesday 29th November 2023
Data Protection and Digital Information Bill
voted Aye - in line with the party majority
One of 267 Conservative Aye votes vs 1 Conservative No votes
Tally: Ayes - 274 Noes - 52
Speeches
Thursday 30th November 2023
Online Advertising Taskforce: Action Plan
I am pleased to inform the House that today we are publishing the Online Advertising Taskforce’s action plan.

The Online …
Written Answers
Monday 12th December 2022
Ukraine: Defence Equipment
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what defensive weaponry his Department is supplying to Ukraine.
Early Day Motions
None available
Bills
None available
MP Financial Interests
Monday 7th August 2023
5. Gifts and benefits from sources outside the UK
Name of donor: Qatar Racing and Equestrian Club (Qatar Ministry of Sports and Culture) and the Embassy of the State …
EDM signed
Tuesday 21st March 2023
The Loan Charge
That this House is concerned that suicides have been linked to the Loan Charge and that despite the Morse Review, …
Supported Legislation
Wednesday 30th November 2022
Roadworks (Regulation) Bill 2022-23
A Bill to make provision about the regulation of roadworks; and for connected purposes.

Division Voting information

During the current Parliamentary Session, John Whittingdale has voted in 793 divisions, and 1 time against the majority of their Party.

6 Jun 2023 - Committee on Standards - View Vote Context
John Whittingdale voted Aye - against a party majority and in line with the House
One of 28 Conservative Aye votes vs 32 Conservative No votes
Tally: Ayes - 185 Noes - 40
View All John Whittingdale Division Votes

Debates during the 2019 Parliament

Speeches made during Parliamentary debates are recorded in Hansard. For ease of browsing we have grouped debates into individual, departmental and legislative categories.

Sparring Partners
Stephanie Peacock (Labour)
Shadow Minister (Digital, Culture, Media and Sport)
(93 debate interactions)
Lindsay Hoyle (Speaker)
(21 debate interactions)
Damian Collins (Conservative)
(18 debate interactions)
View All Sparring Partners
View all John Whittingdale's debates

Maldon Petitions

e-Petitions are administered by Parliament and allow members of the public to express support for a particular issue.

If an e-petition reaches 10,000 signatures the Government will issue a written response.

If an e-petition reaches 100,000 signatures the petition becomes eligible for a Parliamentary debate (usually Monday 4.30pm in Westminster Hall).

John Whittingdale has not participated in any petition debates

Latest EDMs signed by John Whittingdale

6th March 2023
John Whittingdale signed this EDM on Tuesday 21st March 2023

The Loan Charge

Tabled by: Karl Turner (Labour - Kingston upon Hull East)
That this House is concerned that suicides have been linked to the Loan Charge and that despite the Morse Review, thousands face unaffordable demands, with the risk of further suicides; notes that most people facing action were mis-sold schemes and that HMRC are demanding scheme users repay disputed tax; further …
118 signatures
(Most recent: 11 Jul 2023)
Signatures by party:
Labour: 35
Scottish National Party: 33
Conservative: 17
Liberal Democrat: 14
Democratic Unionist Party: 7
Independent: 5
Plaid Cymru: 3
Alba Party: 2
Green Party: 1
The Reclaim Party: 1
Social Democratic & Labour Party: 1
23rd February 2023
John Whittingdale signed this EDM on Monday 13th March 2023

VAT on audiobooks

Tabled by: Mike Penning (Conservative - Hemel Hempstead)
That this House recognises that audio books, now popular and widely available across all genres; from business to academic, from historical to self help, are a lifeline for many people with sight loss, visual impairment, dyslexia or other reading disabilities; agrees that audio books offer unique opportunities for visually-impaired and …
58 signatures
(Most recent: 13 Jun 2023)
Signatures by party:
Scottish National Party: 20
Labour: 14
Liberal Democrat: 10
Conservative: 5
Independent: 4
Plaid Cymru: 3
Alba Party: 1
Democratic Unionist Party: 1
Social Democratic & Labour Party: 1
View All John Whittingdale's signed Early Day Motions

Commons initiatives

These initiatives were driven by John Whittingdale, and are more likely to reflect personal policy preferences.

MPs who are act as Ministers or Shadow Ministers are generally restricted from performing Commons initiatives other than Urgent Questions.


John Whittingdale has not been granted any Urgent Questions

John Whittingdale has not been granted any Adjournment Debates

John Whittingdale has not introduced any legislation before Parliament


8 Written Questions in the current parliament

(View all written questions)
Written Questions can be tabled by MPs and Lords to request specific information information on the work, policy and activities of a Government Department
13th Jul 2022
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what assessment his Department has made of the potential impact of proposals on the expansion of the text and data mining exception on the financial gains of non-UK based technology companies.

The exception only applies to copying for data mining conducted in the UK. The new exception will make the UK one of the most attractive nations for businesses to carry out data mining, whether basing their whole business here or the part which conducts data mining. An impact assessment will be published alongside the legislation when laid.

This provision supports the National AI Strategy by helping to capture the benefits of AI innovation in the UK and ensure that AI technologies benefit all sectors and regions. This applies to all sizes of firms, whether established, start-up, growing, or even unicorn.

13th Jul 2022
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of the text and data mining exception on levels of growth within the artificial intelligence sector as a percentage.

The new exception will put the UK amongst the leading nations globally who support AI development and wider use of text and data mining. It will make data more accessible, and help unlock the value of data sharing across the economy to drive innovation and growth and support the public good.

An academic study estimates that the effort required from researchers to undertake systematic reviews, an important part of research and innovation, is cut by 75% when using text mining services. An impact assessment will be published alongside the legislation when laid.

13th Jul 2022
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, if he will publish a list of instances in the last three years where creative industries have failed to licence their content to artificial intelligence developers.

The Government asked specific questions about impact in the consultation on AI and IP, but very limited quantitative evidence was submitted. However, smaller users such as small businesses and start-ups, as well as many researchers, have indicated that - when seeking to analyse works from multiple sources - licences have been out of reach on the grounds of cost or complexity.

13th Jul 2022
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what assessment his Department has made of the financial impact on the creative industries of his decision to expand the text and data mining exception.

The Government asked specific questions about impact in the consultation on AI and IP, but received very limited quantitative evidence. An impact assessment will be published alongside the legislation when laid. The proposed exception will be targeted to limit negative impacts, and the government welcomes further evidence from rights holders on how to best achieve this.

28th Apr 2022
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to help protect shellfish waters around the UK.

My department has designated 96 shellfish water areas in England where water quality is protected from harmful bacteria. Additional investment by water companies is being prioritised in waters with significant economic production of shellfish. In addition, we are delivering targeted action and practical support to farmers to reduce pollution from agriculture. This is on top of support to the sector through the Fisheries and Seafood Scheme.

Rebecca Pow
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
26th Apr 2022
What diplomatic steps her Department is taking to promote media freedom globally.

The UK is a longstanding champion of media freedom globally. We co-founded the Media Freedom Coalition, and continue to work with them, and partners to address the deteriorating global media freedom situation. We commend all journalists for their bravery in these unprecedented times.

In Ukraine we are working with partners to support journalists, providing direct support to enable independent journalism to continue including for example security advice and facilitation of international monitoring (including of potential war crimes).

8th Mar 2022
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps she is taking to promote global media freedom.

We commend all journalists in Ukraine for their bravery in these unprecedented times and condemn the censorship of independent journalists in Russia.

The UK is a longstanding champion of media freedom globally, which is vital to realising the network of liberty. My noble friend, Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon, led the UK delegation at the annual Global Conference for Media Freedom in Estonia last month.

We co-founded the Media Freedom Coalition, and continue to work with them, and partners to address the deteriorating global media freedom situation.

12th Dec 2022
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what defensive weaponry his Department is supplying to Ukraine.

We have provided a range of weapons to Ukraine, including air defence systems with thousands of missiles to protect critical infrastructure, almost 100,000 artillery rounds, more than 10,000 anti-tank missiles, Multiple-Launch Rocket Systems and around three million rounds of small-arms ammunition. This financial year we expect to spend £2.3 billion on operations and support for Ukraine and we are prepared to deliver similar support next year.