John Cooper is the Conservative MP for Dumfries and Galloway, having first been elected to parliament at the 2024 general election.

In the 2024 general election, Cooper won 13,527 votes, representing 29.6% of the vote. The Scottish National Party (SNP) candidate, Tracey Little, received 12,597 votes (27.5%), while the Labour Party candidate, James Wallace, secured 11,767 votes (25.7%). Cooper was duly elected with a narrow majority of 930.

The Dumfries and Galloway constituency is located in the South West of Scotland. The seat was created in 2005 and has had a varied history, having been held by Labour (2005-2015), the SNP (2015-2017) and the Conservatives since 2017.

Cooper’s immediate predecessor as the MP for Dumfries and Galloway was Alister Jack of the Conservative Party. Jack stood down from parliament at the 2024 general election.

Cooper is one of five Scottish Conservative MPs, and one of just 26 new Conservative MPs elected in 2024.

Alongside Harriet Cross, he was one of two new Conservative MPs elected in Scotland in 2024.

Political Career

Cooper currently serves as shadow exchequer secretary to the Treasury and opposition whip. Cooper was appointed to this role as part of the August/September 2026 shadow ministerial reshuffle, Kemi Badenoch’s second as Conservative leader.

Cooper served as parliamentary private secretary (PPS) to the Scotland team on the Conservative frontbench from November 2024 to September 2026.

Cooper is also a member of the House of Commons business and trade select committee (since October 2024). The committee scrutinises the work of the Department for Business and Trade.

In March 2026, Cooper introduced a private members’ bill (PMB) under the 10-minute rule procedure to reform the functions of the lord advocate. He argued that, under the current system, “the head of criminal prosecutions sits cheek-by-jowl with the politicians who are supposed to run Scotland”.

The Lord Advocate Bill sought to amend the Scotland Act 1998 to ensure that “the head of Scotland’s prosecution service is, in future, entirely separate from that of government adviser”.

Cooper is listed as a member of the all-party parliamentary groups (APPG) for media.

Cooper delivered his maiden speech on 18 July 2024 in a debate on foreign affairs and defence.

In it, he said: “Only through marrying the talent and aspiration that abound in the south-west of Scotland with opportunities can we defeat that blight on all rural areas: depopulation. We need the three J’s: jobs, jobs, jobs.

“We have much work to do to make ours a go-to destination, not a go-through destination. Blessed with a balmy climate, we are home to some of the country’s finest dairy herds. Our unspoiled landscape is a tourism dream. The terrain, for instance around Newton Stewart and Minnigaff, is ideal for cycling.”

He added: “Defence is the number one task of any government, as we have heard, and I am proud that my constituency, Dumfries and Galloway, has many fine young men and women currently in our armed forces, and many gallant veterans who have served on air, sea and land.

“Of course, like every constituency, Dumfries and Galloway has many people working in the UK’s world-class defence industry, which deserves our support.”

Before entering parliament, Cooper worked as a special adviser to his predecessor, Alister Jack MP.

Political views

Leadership elections

Tory leadership 2024: Cooper supported Robert Jenrick’s candidacy in the 2024 Conservative Party leadership election. The contest was triggered by the resignation of Rishi Sunak following the party’s defeat in the 2024 general election.

Jenrick, a former immigration minister, positioned himself on the right wing of the party, advocating for the UK to leave the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR). He emerged as an early frontrunner, topping the first two parliamentary ballots. After reaching the final two, he was defeated in the membership vote by Kemi Badenoch, receiving 41,388 votes (43.5%) compared to Badenoch’s 53,806 (56.5%).

Brexit and Europe

Customs union vote (2025): In December 2025, Cooper voted against the UK-EU Customs Union (Duty to Negotiate) Bill. The bill, introduced under the ten-minute rule procedure by Liberal Democrat Europe spokesperson Al Pinkerton, sought to mandate the government to enter into negotiations with the European Union to establish a bespoke customs union.

Assisted dying

Cooper 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): Cooper 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.

Before Politics

Cooper was born and raised in Stranrear, and went to school at the local Rephad Primary and Stranraer Academy.

Cooper began his career in journalism at 17 on the local paper, the Stranraer and Wigtownshire Free Press. He later returned to edit the paper from 2019 to 2022.

Cooper has also worked for the Irish Daily Mail and the Scottish Daily Mail.

Personal Life

Cooper’s wife, Patricia, is also a journalist. They have three children.

Trivia

Cooper plays the drums and has been in different bands since he was a teenager.

He told Holyrood magazine in March 2025: “Some of the music I listen to is quite terrifying. A lot of it is sort of 80s heavy metal. There were a lot of bands that made a big impression on me when I was about 13-14 and I still like listening to them.”

Cooper once broke his collarbone while climbing Ben Nevis.