Simon Hoare is the Conservative MP for North Dorset, having first been elected to parliament at the 2015 general election.

In the 2024 general election, Hoare won 18,208 votes, representing 36.6% of the vote. The Liberal Democrat candidate, Gary Jackson, received 16,619 votes (33.5%), while the Reform UK candidate, Ash Leaning, secured 7,894 votes (15.9%). Hoare was duly elected with a majority of 1,589 votes.

The North Dorset constituency is a rural seat bordering Wiltshire and Somerset, including the towns of Blandford Forum, Gillingham, Shaftesbury, Sturminster Newton, and Verwood. It is considered a safe Conservative seat, held by the party continuously since 1950 – however the majority was cut drastically at the 2024 general election (from 24,301 in 2019 to 1,589).

Hoare’s immediate predecessor as the MP for North Dorset was Robert Walter, who represented the seat from 1997 to 2015.

Political Career

Simon Hoare has chaired the House of Commons public administration and constitutional affairs committee (PACAC) since September 2024. PACAC examines how the country is run, covering both the machinery of government and the UK’s constitutional rules. It is the principal select committee to which Cabinet Office ministers are accountable.

By virtue of this role as PACAC chair, Hoare sits on the liaison committee – the “super committee” composed of the cross-party chairs of all the other commons select committees. It has a broad oversight role, but is best known for its questioning of the prime minister in sessions that take place two or three times a year.

Hoare is also a member of the Northern Ireland affairs committee (since December 2024) – the committee responsible for scrutinising the policy, administration, and spending of the Northern Ireland Office (NIO) and its associated public bodies.

Additionally, Hoare is a member of the Welsh affairs committee (since January 2025). The Welsh affairs committee examines the UK government’s policy and spending as it relates to Wales. Its primary role is to scrutinise the work of the secretary of state for Wales and the Wales Office.

Prior to the 2024 general election, which saw the Conservatives ejected from government, Hoare served as parliamentary under-secretary of state for local government (November 2023 – July 2024).

Hoare was previously parliamentary private secretary (PPS) to Sajid Javid, the then-home secretary. He resigned from this post in 2019 to stand for the chairship of the Northern Ireland affairs committee.

Hoare served as chair of the Northern Ireland affairs committee from June 2019 to November 2023, stepping down upon his ministerial appointment.

Hoare was previously a member of the regulatory reform committee from October 2015 to November 2019, the welsh affairs committee from October 2017 to November 2018, and the procedure committee from July 2015 to November 2016.

In June 2015, Hoare introduced the Pavement Parking (Protection of Vulnerable Pedestrians) Bill, which sought to introduce a nationwide ban on parking on pavements in England and Wales, a measure already in place in London. The bill aimed to protect vulnerable pedestrians such as wheelchair users and parents with pushchairs from being forced into the road.

Speaking in the bill’s second reading debate, Hoare told the House: “It does not take Einstein to do the maths and realise that a huge number of people who are either blind or visually impaired are without guide dogs.

“While they go about their legitimate business day in, day out – going to the shops, going to a community event, going to work, taking a child to school – they often find themselves encumbered by a car that is parked on a pavement when there is no need for it to be there. That is the kernel of the bill.”

In a December 2015 article for The House magazine, Hoare wrote: “A survey from Guide Dogs clearly underlines the issue, showing that 90% of blind or partially sighted people have experienced trouble with a pavement parked car while they are out and about.”

Hoare is listed as a member of the all-party parliamentary groups (APPGs) for council tax reform, dairy, local government, menopause, multiple sclerosis and theatre.

Hoare delivered his maiden speech on 4 June 2015, during a debate on the economy. In it, he said: “The [Queen’s speech] put at the heart of the government’s programme a commitment to growth and to entrepreneurialism, and that is something I want to champion during the years I am here.

“The people of Dorset are welcoming and they want the constituency to do well. I invite [MPs]to visit Hardy country. Tourism and agriculture in the area are growing. Indeed, the agricultural economy is probably the largest in the constituency.”

Before entering parliament, Hoare served as a Conservative councillor on West Oxfordshire District Council from 2004 to 2015, on Oxfordshire County Council for Bampton and West Witney, and as a parish councillor in Leafield.

Hoare previously stood unsuccessfully as the Conservative candidate for Cardiff West in the 1997 general election, finishing second to Labour candidate Rhodri Morgan on 8,669 votes (21.5%). Morgan went on to become first minister of Wales, serving from 2000 to 2009.

At the 2010 election, Hoare stood in Cardiff South and Penarth, finishing second to Labour incumbent Alun Michael on 12,553 votes (28.3%)

Political views

Leadership elections and loyalty

Tory leadership 2024: Hoare supported James Cleverly’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.

During the contest, Cleverly, the shadow home secretary, urged the party to “be more normal”. On 9 October, in a major upset, Cleverly was eliminated in the fourth ballot after his support dropped to 37 votes. The result was widely attributed to a failure of tactical voting by supporters who assumed his place in the final two was secure.

During the campaign, Hoare said Cleverly provided leadership “for all to see and hear.”

Tory leadership 2022 (I): Hoare supported Rishi Sunak’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.

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%).

During this campaign, Hoare argued that only Sunak could “grip the enormous challenges that we face as a country and seize the great opportunities ahead to deliver for the next generation.”

Tory leadership 2022 (II): Hoare also supported Sunak’s candidacy in the Conservative Party’s October 2022 leadership election. The contest was triggered by the resignation of 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.

In February 2022, Hoare criticised the then-prime minister, Boris Johnson, for making the false claim that Keir Starmer failed to prosecute serial paedophile Jimmy Savile while he was head of the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS).

Hoare told PoliticsHome the suggestion was “distasteful, unwarranted, and uncomfortable”.

Owen Paterson report: In November 2021, Hoare was one of 13 Conservative MPs who voted against a government-supported amendment to defer the suspension of Conservative MP Owen Paterson. The vote took place after a report by the commons standards committee found Paterson had breached paid advocacy rules in what was described as an “egregious” case of lobbying on behalf of two companies.

Cummings criticism: In May 2020, Hoare criticised the actions of Boris 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.

Hoare stated that Cummings’ “cavalier ‘I don’t care; I’m cleverer than you’ tone” was enraging the public and that he should “consider his position” because of the damage being done to the government’s reputation.

Tory leadership 2019: Hoare supported Sajid 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: Hoare 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

One Nation Conservative: Hoare has been listed as a member of the One Nation Conservatives caucus of moderate Tory MPs. The group was established in 2019 to provide a voice for the party’s more pragmatic and professedly “moderate” elements – a factional counter-weight to its ideological free-market, eurosceptic and socially conservative groups. In the 2019 to 2024 parliament, the group was chaired by former first secretary of state Damian Green, who went on to lose his seat at the 2024 general election.

Bright Blue: Hoare has been listed as a parliamentary supporter of Bright Blue, an independent centre-right think tank and membership organisation that champions liberal conservatism in the UK. Since its founding in 2014, the organisation has expanded its reach through a new cross-party strategy.

Conservative Environment Network: Hoare 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 Hoare, are thought to generally align with the group’s “green” message and environmentalism.

In a January 2025 article for ConservativeHome, Hoare made the case for supporting the Climate and Nature Bill from a traditional Conservative perspective. He argued that the bill, proposed by Roz Savage, was an opportunity for the party to take a leading role in tackling “humanity’s greatest long-term challenge”.

Invoking Margaret Thatcher’s 1989 speech on the environment, he positioned the bill as a continuation of a Conservative legacy of safeguarding nature for future generations.

He wrote: “With increasingly unpredictable governments across the globe, a conservative response to the threats we face should focus on conserving the planet and allowing nature to thrive. Those swayed by populist rhetoric and being swept up by conspiracy theories should be challenged at every opportunity.

“If Conservatives believe in anything, it is about creating an inheritable legacy for our children and their children. Valuing and conserving natural capital is as important as building up financial or asset capital.”

Brexit and Europe

Brexit referendum: Hoare supported the Remain campaign in the 2016 referendum on Britain’s membership of the European Union (EU), and therefore disagreed with a majority of constituents, 56.6% of whom voted to Leave.

Article 50: In February 2017, Hoare 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.

Customs union vote (2025): In December 2025, Hoare 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

Hoare 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).

In a statement setting out his position, issued ahead of the bill’s second reading debate, Hoare said: “I am opposed to the death penalty because I believe the state, in all its forms, is capable of making mistakes. So too could it make mistakes on assisted dying.

“I do not believe that medical science is so advanced as to know, within six months, when someone will die. Nor do I believe that the judiciary have the skill set to sit in judgement on such imprecise health issues.”

He added: “My final reservation is perhaps more philosophical. We are our planet’s apex species. We have convinced ourselves that we have a right to control everything. That we are entitled to everything that we want. In broad terms, nature, as a reminder of our human limitations, decides when we enter the world and leave the world.”

Social values and conscience issues

Abortion decriminalisation (2025): Hoare 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.

Foreign policy and security

Palestinian recognition letter (July 2025): In July 2025, Hoare was among the over 254 MPs to sign a cross-party letter calling for the government to immediately recognise the state of Palestine. The letter called on the prime minister and foreign secretary to recognise Palestine at the UN Conference then taking place in New York.

Palestinian recognition latter (June 2025): In June 2025, Hoare was among a group of eight Conservative MPs who attempted to deliver a letter to 10 Downing Street calling on the government to recognise a Palestinian state.

The letter read: “We write to express our strong support should the government recognise a Palestinian state… This decision would be a substantive act of diplomacy and a statement of commitment to equality and peace.”

“Successive UK governments have affirmed support for two states living side by side in peace and security, but without meaningful action, that vision is rapidly slipping away. Settlement expansion, the ongoing disproportionate destruction in Gaza, and political deadlock, are making a viable two-state solution harder to achieve with each passing day.”

Sir Edward Leigh, one of the letter’s signatories, stated that they were “locked out of Downing Street”.

Trident renewal (2016): Hoare 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): Hoare 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.

Before Politics

Born Simon James Hoare in Cardiff on 28 June 1969. He was educated at Bishop Hannon High School, Cardiff, and Greyfriars, Oxford, where he studied modern history, becoming the first in his family to attend university.

He worked at Conservative Central Office and as a personal assistant to a Conservative council leader.

He pursued a career in public relations and lobbying, working for firms including Charles Barker and Ketchum before founding his own company, Community Connect. He later became a director at Four Communications. He has also been a member of the council of governors of the South Central Ambulance Service NHS Trust.

Personal Life

Simon Hoare is married to Kathryn Hoare. They live in North Dorset and have three daughters.

Trivia

Simon Hoare was a member of the executive of Witney Conservative Association, working alongside the then-prime minister David Cameron, who was MP for Witney from 2001 to 2016.