John Whittingdale

The Right Honourable Sir John Whittingdale OBE MP
Official portrait, 2024
Minister of State for Data and Digital Infrastructure
In office 9 May 2023 – 20 December 2023[a]
Prime Minister	Rishi Sunak
Preceded by	Julia Lopez
Succeeded by	Julia Lopez
Minister of State for Media, Tourism and Creative Industries[b]
In office 9 May 2023 – 20 December 2023[a]
Prime Minister	Rishi Sunak
Preceded by	Julia Lopez
Succeeded by	Julia Lopez
In office 14 February 2020 – 16 September 2021
Prime Minister	Boris Johnson
Preceded by	Nigel Adams
Succeeded by	Julia Lopez
Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport
In office 11 May 2015 – 13 July 2016
Prime Minister	David Cameron
Preceded by	Sajid Javid
Succeeded by	Karen Bradley
Chair of the Culture, Media and Sport Committee
In office 14 July 2005 – 11 May 2015
Preceded by	Gerald Kaufman
Succeeded by	Jesse Norman
Shadow Cabinet posts Shadow Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport In office 19 June 2004 – 6 May 2005 Leader Michael Howard Preceded by Julie Kirkbride Succeeded by Theresa May In office 23 July 2002 – 6 November 2003 Leader Iain Duncan Smith Preceded by Tim Yeo Succeeded by Julie Kirkbride Shadow Secretary of State for Trade and Industry In office 18 September 2001 – 23 July 2002 Leader Iain Duncan Smith Preceded by David Heathcoat-Amory Succeeded by Tim Yeo
Member of Parliament for Maldon Maldon and East Chelmsford (1997–2010) South Colchester and Maldon (1992–1997)
Incumbent
Assumed office 9 April 1992
Preceded by	John Wakeham
Majority	6,906 (13.9%)
Shadow Minister for Health and Social Care
In office 19 July 2024 – 6 November 2024
Leader	Rishi Sunak
Political Secretary to the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom
In office 1988–1990
Prime Minister	Margaret Thatcher
Preceded by	Stephen Sherbourne
Succeeded by	Judith Chaplin
Personal details
Born	(1959-10-16) 16 October 1959 (age 65) Sherborne, Dorset, England
Political party	Conservative
Spouse	Ancilla Murfitt ​ ​ (m. 1990, divorced)​
Children	2
Education	Sandroyd School and Winchester College
Alma mater	University College London

Sir John Flasby Lawrance Whittingdale OBE (born 16 October 1959) is a British Conservative Party politician who has been the Member of Parliament (MP) for Maldon (and its predecessors) since 1992 and Shadow Minister for Health and Social Care since July 2024.^[1] He previously served as Culture Secretary from 2015 to 2016. Whittingdale was most recently Minister of State for Media, Tourism and Creative Industries and Minister of State for Data and Digital Infrastructure from May to December 2023, during the maternity leave of Julia Lopez.^[2]

Whittingdale has been an MP since the 1992 general election, for a series of constituencies centred on the town of Maldon, Essex. He was Vice-Chairman of the 1922 Committee. He was a member of the Executive of Conservative Way Forward (2005–2010) and the Conservative Party Board (2006–2010).

Whittingdale served as Chairman of the Culture, Media and Sport Committee from 2005 to 2015. He was appointed Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport by Prime Minister David Cameron in May 2015. He was one of the six Cabinet ministers to come out in favour of Brexit during the 2016 EU referendum and was afterwards a supporter of the Eurosceptic campaign Leave Means Leave. He was dismissed in July 2016 by incoming-Prime Minister Theresa May.

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