Sir Jeremy Wright is the Conservative MP for Kenilworth and Southam, having first been elected to parliament for the predecessor constituency of Rugby and Kenilworth at the 2005 general election.

In the 2024 general election for Kenilworth and Southam, Wright received 19,395 votes, which represented 36.4% of the vote share. The Labour candidate, Cat Price, received 12,821 votes (24.0%), while the Liberal Democrat candidate, Jenny Wilkinson, secured 10,464 votes (19.6%). Wright was duly elected with a majority of 6,574 votes.

The Kenilworth and Southam constituency is located in Warwickshire, within the West Midlands region. It is a predominantly rural area encompassing the market towns of Kenilworth and Southam, along with numerous villages.

Political Career

Wright is a member of the speaker’s committee on the Electoral Commission (since November 2024). The committee is the statutory body of MPs that oversees the work and budget of the UK’s independent elections watchdog, the Electoral Commission.

Wright is a member of the panel of chairs (since November 2024). The panel of chairs is made up of MPs chosen by the House of Commons speaker, typically at the beginning of every parliament, to chair public bill committees and other commons general committees. In this capacity, he may chair debates in Westminster Hall and may also act as temporary chair during a committee of the whole House.

At the beginning of the parliament elected in 2024, Wright stood unsuccessfully for election as chair of the standards committee. In the contest, the results of which were announced in September 2024, Wright secured 176 votes, placing second. They were ultimately defeated by Alberto Costa, who won the support of 363 colleagues.

Wright served a shadow attorney general from July until November 2024 on the caretaker/interim frontbench constructed by Rishi Sunak after the general election of that year.

Wright served in the cabinet under prime ministers David Cameron and Theresa May. He was attorney general for England and Wales, and advocate general for Northern Ireland, from July 2014 to July 2018. Subsequently, he was secretary of state for digital, culture, media and sport from July 2018 until July 2019.

Wright left the cabinet upon Boris Johnson’s election as Conservative leader.

Prior to his cabinet roles, Wright was parliamentary under-secretary of state for prisons and rehabilitation at the Ministry of Justice from September 2012 to July 2014. He served as a government whip (lord commissioner of the Treasury) from 2010 to 2012.

During the Conservative Party’s last stint in opposition, Wright was an opposition whip from 2007 to 2010.

Wright was knighted in the queen’s birthday honours list in June 2022 for political and public service.

In May 2022, Wright called on the prime minister, Boris Johnson, to resign over the “Partygate” scandal. The senior Conservative MP said the controversy over lockdown parties in Downing Street had done “lasting damage” to the party.

In a lengthy statement, Wright said the scandal had “done real and lasting damage to the reputation not just of this government but to the institutions and authority of government more generally.”

He added: “Putting that right matters hugely to the essence of government authority and to the effectiveness of government policy, and I cannot see that the moving on of civil servants or apologies, however heartfelt, will succeed in doing so…

“It now seems to me that the prime minister remaining in office will hinder those crucial objectives. I have therefore, with regret, concluded that, for the good of this and future governments, the prime minister should resign.”

In May 2020, Wright criticised the actions of Johnson’s then-chief adviser, Dominic Cummings, over his journeys during the first national lockdown. The actions of Cummings, which included a trip from London to County Durham and a subsequent drive to Barnard Castle, were seen by many as a breach of the government’s own “stay at home” guidance.

In an 1100-word statement, Wright concluded that “it would be better for Mr Cummings to leave his position at Downing Street”.

He wrote: “These are consequences which may undermine the government’s central objective – to reduce the spread of the virus so as to allow the lifting of restrictions for all of us to be done safely…

“What is most important at this point is that government can give clear messages about how to defeat the virus and that everyone feels motivated to do their best to help.”

Following the publication of the privileges committee report into whether Johnson misled MPs over Partygate, Wright argued that the cross-party group’s findings was “persuasive in demonstrating that the former prime minister’s conduct fell well below the standard expected of him in providing the leadership necessary to ensure that rules set by the government were complied with at the heart of government, at a time when everyone in the country was being expected, and urged by the prime minister, to do so.”

Wright is listed as a member of the all-party parliamentary groups (APPGs) for digital regulation and responsibility, medical cannabis under prescription and restorative justice.

Wright delivered his maiden speech on 6 June 2005.

In it, he said: “I am eager to move from my constituency’s past to its future… For example, in my constituency stand the home of the Royal Agricultural Society at Stoneleigh park, Ryton organic gardens, which is a leader in its field, and Draycote water, which is a fine example of the co-operation that can exist between private industry and the wildlife agencies. I also represent a great many farms and villages.”

He added: “Other matters in the countryside need to be addressed: problems of rural crime and policing; the lack of adequate public transport, and the isolation that that can bring about; the absence of affordable housing in our villages; and the often overlooked but very important issue of drug abuse in rural, not just urban, areas.

“Those are the real problems of the countryside, and they are daunting.”

Political views

Leadership elections and loyalty

Tory leadership 2022 (I): Wright supported Sajid Javid’s candidacy in the Conservative Party’s July-September 2022 leadership election. The contest was triggered by the resignation of Boris Johnson, following the mass exodus of more than 60 frontbenchers.

Javid, whose resignation as health secretary had helped spark the government crisis, pledged to reverse the recent national insurance rise. He argued that the party needed to restore its reputation for integrity and economic competence. Javid withdrew from the contest shortly before the nominations deadline, after failing to secure enough support from fellow MPs to reach the required 20-nomination threshold.

Wright went on to support Penny Mordaunt’s candidacy. Mordaunt, the international trade minister, was described as a “socially liberal Brexiteer”. She was narrowly overtaken by Liz Truss in the final round. Mordaunt was thereby eliminated in the fifth parliamentary ballot on 20 July after receiving 105 votes.

Finally, after Mordaunt exited the race, Wright supported Sunak’s candidacy. Sunak, the former chancellor, warned against “comforting fairytales” regarding unfunded tax cuts. Although he won every round of the parliamentary ballots, securing 137 votes in the final stage, Sunak was defeated by Liz Truss in the membership vote, finishing with 60,399 votes (42.6%).

Tory leadership 2022 (II): Wright again supported Sunak’s candidacy in the Conservative Party’s October 2022 leadership election. The contest was triggered by the resignation of Liz Truss after just 45 days in office, following the financial and political tailspin triggered by her “mini-budget”.

Unlike the summer contest, this election featured an expedited process requiring each candidate to secure at least 100 nominations from MPs to proceed. Sunak, having emerged as the clear frontrunner, was declared leader of the Conservative Party unopposed on 24 October.

Tory leadership 2019: Wright supported Javid for the party’s leadership in 2019. The election was triggered by the resignation of Theresa May following her inability to secure a Brexit deal acceptable to the Conservative Party.

Javid, the then-home secretary, successfully reached the final four of the parliamentary stages, but was eliminated in the fourth ballot on 20 June after receiving 34 votes.

Tory leadership 2016: Wright was one of the 34 Conservative MPs who voted for Stephen Crabb in the first ballot of the party’s leadership election in July 2016. The contest was triggered by the resignation of David Cameron following the UK’s vote to leave the European Union.

Crabb, the work and pensions secretary, was the first candidate to formally declare his candidacy, running on a joint ticket with business secretary Sajid Javid as his intended chancellor. Crabb withdrew from the race after the first ballot and endorsed Theresa May, the contest’s eventual winner.

Factional identity and party tradition

Conservative Environment Network: Wright is listed as a member of the Conservative Environment Network (CEN) parliamentary caucus. CEN is an independent forum for conservatives that supports conservation and decarbonisation. It calls for the environment to be given a higher profile at the heart of policy making, describing “biodiversity loss, climate change, and wasteful resource use are threats to our national security”, and promotes “market-based policies” to environmental challenges. Members of its parliamentary caucus, such as Wright, are thought to generally align with the group’s “green” message and environmentalism.

Brexit and Europe

Brexit referendum: Wright supported Remain in the 2016 Brexit referendum, and therefore agreed with a majority of his constituents, 53.8% of whom also voted to Remain.

Article 50: In February 2017, Wright voted in favour of the European Union (Notification of Withdrawal) Bill. The legislation empowered the prime minister to notify the Council of the European Union of the UK’s intention to withdraw, formally triggering the process set out in Article 50 of the Treaty on European Union. MPs supported the bill by 498 votes to 114 at second reading.

Assisted dying

Wright voted against the Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill, better known as the assisted dying bill, at both second reading (November 2024) and third reading (June 2025).

Social values and conscience issues

Abortion decriminalisation (2025): Wright voted against a backbench amendment to the Crime and Policing Bill that sought to decriminalise abortion in England and Wales in June 2025. The amendment, which was passed by a majority of 242 votes, removed women from the threat of prosecution for ending a pregnancy at any stage. As an issue of conscience, MPs were allowed to vote according to their personal beliefs.

Same-sex marriage (2013): In February 2013, Wright was one of the 139 Conservative MPs to vote against the Marriage (Same Sex Couples) Bill at its second reading. The landmark piece of legislation, which received its second reading by 400 votes to 175, legalised marriage for same-sex couples in England and Wales.

Foreign policy and security

Trident renewal (2016): Wright voted in favour of a government motion calling for the renewal of the Trident nuclear deterrent system in July 2016. The motion, which was passed by 472 votes to 117, committed the UK to constructing a new fleet of submarines to carry the nation’s nuclear weapons.

Syria airstrikes (2015): Wright voted in favour of a government motion to extend UK airstrikes against Isis from Iraq into Syria in December 2015. The motion, which was passed by 397 votes to 223 after a ten-hour debate in the House of Commons, authorised the RAF to conduct strikes against Isis targets in Syria.

Syria airstrikes (2013): Wright voted in favour of the government’s motion on the principle of military intervention in Syria in August 2013. The government motion was defeated by 285 votes to 272, a move which effectively ruled out UK participation in any US-led military strikes.

Sanctioned (Russia): In April 2022, Wright was among the group of MPs placed on a sanctions list by the Russian government. The measure barred them from entering Russia and was presented by Moscow as a retaliatory response to the UK’s stance on the invasion of Ukraine.

Before Politics

Wright was born in Taunton, Somerset, on 24 October 1972. His parents were both school teachers.

He was educated at Taunton School, an independent school, and also attended Trinity School in New York City. He studied law at the University of Exeter.

Wright was called to the bar at the Inner Temple in 1996 and practised as a criminal barrister until his election to parliament in 2005.

Personal Life

Wright married Yvonne Salter in 1998. The couple live in the village of Shrewley in Warwickshire and have two children, a son and a daughter.

Trivia

In 2018, Wright revealed that he liked to relax by building Lego. The then-cabinet minister told Talk Radio he found assembling the building bricks “therapeutic”.

He said: “In my view it is a great way of putting your brain into neutral, which sometimes we all need to do.”