Shailesh Vara
Conservative Former MP · left 30 May 2024
Represented North West Cambridgeshire · in Parliament since 5 May 2005
Parliamentary participation snapshot
Biography
Parliamentary service
| Constituency | From | To | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| North West Cambridgeshire | 6 May 2010 | 30 May 2024 | Elected 4 times |
| North West Cambridgeshire | 5 May 2005 | 6 May 2010 | Elected 1 time |
Party affiliations
| Party | From | To |
|---|---|---|
| Conservative | 5 May 2005 | 30 May 2024 |
Election history
| Election | Constituency | Date | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| North West Cambridgeshire | |||
| Northampton South | |||
| Birmingham, Ladywood |
Previous ministerial & opposition roles
| Role | Type | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| Secretary of State for Northern Ireland | Government | 7 July 2022 | 6 September 2022 |
| Minister of State (Northern Ireland Office) | Government | 23 July 2018 | 15 November 2018 |
| Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Northern Ireland Office) | Government | 9 January 2018 | 23 July 2018 |
| Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions) | Government | 9 July 2015 | 18 July 2016 |
| Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Justice) | Government | 7 October 2013 | 18 July 2016 |
| Assistant Whip (HM Treasury) | Government | 12 May 2010 | 6 September 2012 |
| Shadow Deputy Leader of the House of Commons | Opposition | 8 November 2006 | 6 May 2010 |
| Vice-Chair, Conservative Party | Other | 1 July 2001 | 1 July 2005 |
Voting participation
246th of 650 current MPs · all MPs average 71.4% · Conservative average 73.8%
Participation by year
| Year | Eligible divisions | Voted | Participation |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | 127 | 99 | 78.0% |
| 2023 | 256 | 202 | 78.9% |
| 2022 | 251 | 156 | 62.2% |
| 2021 | 242 | 219 | 90.5% |
| 2020 | 190 | 151 | 79.5% |
| 2019 | 2 | 2 | 100.0% |
By Parliament
| Parliament | Eligible divisions | Voted | Participation |
|---|---|---|---|
| 58th | 1,068 | 829 | 77.6% |
Participation counts aye, no or teller votes in Commons divisions held while the MP sat. Absence has many legitimate causes (pairing, illness, parental leave, ministerial or Speaker duties).
Parliamentary activity
joint 629th of 650 current MPs (23 tied) · all MPs average 489 · Conservative average 669
Annual breakdown
| Year | Debate contributions | Debates participated | Written questions | Oral questions | EDMs | Bills sponsored | Petitions |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | 22 | 16 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2023 | 17 | 14 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2022 | 21 | 16 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 2021 | 14 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2020 | 30 | 16 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2019 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Committee memberships
Not currently a member of any committee.
joint 1st of 515 current MPs (489 tied) · all MPs average 99.6% · Conservative average 99.9%
Committee membership history
- Environmental Audit Committee 2020–2020 · attendance 100.0%
- Joint Committee on the Fixed-Term Parliaments Act 2020–2024 · attendance 100.0%
3 bill committees served on
Hansard activity
joint 575th of 650 current MPs (3 tied) · all MPs average 552 · Conservative average 899
Counts come from the Hansard record for the Commons and Westminster Hall within the dataset window. Individual contributions and topic analysis are not yet part of the dataset; search Hansard for the full record.
Parliamentary timeline
Generated from seat, party, role and committee records.
2001
- – Appointed: Vice-Chair, Conservative Party
2005
- – Became MP for North West Cambridgeshire
- – Joined Conservative
- – Left role: Vice-Chair, Conservative Party
2006
- – Appointed (opposition): Shadow Deputy Leader of the House of Commons
2010
- – Became MP for North West Cambridgeshire
- – Left role: Shadow Deputy Leader of the House of Commons
- – Appointed: Assistant Whip (HM Treasury)
2012
- – Left role: Assistant Whip (HM Treasury)
2013
- – Appointed: Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Justice)
2015
- – Appointed: Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
2016
- – Left role: Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
- – Left role: Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Justice)
2018
- – Appointed: Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Northern Ireland Office)
- – Appointed: Minister of State (Northern Ireland Office)
- – Left role: Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Northern Ireland Office)
- – Left role: Minister of State (Northern Ireland Office)
2020
- – Joined Environmental Audit Committee
- – Joined Joint Committee on the Fixed-Term Parliaments Act
2022
- – Appointed: Secretary of State for Northern Ireland
- – Left role: Secretary of State for Northern Ireland
2024
- – Left the House of Commons (Dissolution)
Statistics cover 7 November 2019 to 7 November 2026. Source: UK Parliament Members, Committees, Commons Votes, Hansard, Questions and Bills APIs, via the UK Politics Decoded dataset. View this MP’s raw JSON.